Issue 19: From our community
How important is what you call your freelance business to you?
Is your business named after you, or is it a separate brand? Do you see yourself as a freelancer, founder, consultant, entrepreneur, business owner, company of one, agency... or something else?
When I first went into business as a freelancer many a moon ago, I called it agoodwriteup because I thought that name was incredibly clever. My website hosts the same name, and I think it looks proper profesh. Would any of my clients who didn't find me via my website know what the business is called or offer a flash of recognition upon hearing 'agoodwriteup'? I doubt it very highly. I'm just Jo. People know Jo. People like Jo. People hire Jo. I apologise for talking about myself in the third person 😄
Jo Watson | Copywriter hired by people with great taste in copywriters
This is Beehive Green – where I used to live and the inspo behind my business name! I’ve since moved, but the name stuck as it has a deeper meaning. Like a BEEHIVE my studio thrives on collaboration – I work closely with my clients to help them communicate and partner with a network of creatives to deliver the right mix for each project. GREEN evokes freshness and vitality – my studio thrives using creativity to help brands grow. Sidenote: I started out freelancing under my own name, but it never quite felt right – the collective nature of my work (and the constant misspellings of my surname!) led me to something that felt more aligned.
Andrea Boughton | Brand strategist
Generally I think that a freelancer is the business: you'll get clients largely through your personal network and brand, so it's a little bit irrelevant what the business is called. However, I went with a business name for two reasons. One, it made it feel real and serious, to demonstrate to others (and me) that this is what I do now; it's not something I'm just doing while job hunting. Two, as a marketing consultant, I felt that I had to create a decent brand, to show others I could do it for them. So I went with something that captured the ethos of what I wanted to be as a business – Pigface Marketing. And to be honest I've been surprised how sticky the business name has become: how it's come to define what I do as much as my name. No one ever forgets it.
Charlie Syme | Marketing & storytelling consultant
I think of myself as a consultant and operate under my own name. To me ‘consultant’ implies more of a strategic partner than ‘freelancer’. This really helps with my mindset, especially when it comes to the less comfortable side of business, like cold pitching and pricing.
Catherine Sempill | Content marketing & messaging strategist
What's in a name? Usually a lot… It's definitely different to my name because I wanted it to be. My business is a play on words, and has a purposeful intention, with a mild story behind the name. Write Junction.
Kerry | Copywriter
Why Fourth Path? Because it’s my fourth big step – after three redundancies, each one pushing me to figure out what I really wanted for myself, and so I started on this new path. And because I was born on 4/4/94 – the number 4’s kind of been following me around my whole life (I’ve even included it in my number plate now). Fourth Path is a nod to fresh starts, second (or fourth) chances, and doing things my way!
Jordan Japal | The Sax Playing Sales Guy
I decided to use a different name for my brand as it helped me have confidence to market myself like a superhero identity. If people didn’t like my marketing it didn’t matter because it was my brand. I then sat and thought about names and colours. I left home to attend university in Manchester (the city of bees); it was where I first felt empowered and strong and at the time of starting my business I felt useless from being disabled and I wanted to feel empowered again. I now live in a village in an area called the Happy Valley and I am not lying when I say there are so many honey businesses in the area (and I still live about 30 mins from Manchester centre) so the 🐝 had to be it.
I also thought I would make it slightly different and use ‘Bizzy’ instead of ‘busy’ as the name would then be written as it sounds (bzzzzzzzz-e). Obviously I was naive and didn’t bloody think about SEO consequences but you live and learn 🤣🤣
Then my brand colour was yellow, the main colour of the bee and since learning about colour theory it was meant to be because yellow means happiness, optimism and energy which is what I try to bring to my clients (and honestly to myself too) ☺️
Erin Buck | Virtual & social media assistant at BizzyBee
I call myself a freelancer and I use my own name. I think it's important to show that when you hire me to index your book, you are definitely getting me, my experience and background knowledge. It helps that I have a fairly distinctive name, I expect. I'd be worried that a business name might dilute that. Plus it's another URL name to own, another thing to market…
Tanya Izzard | Indexer for literature, history, art, biography
I've been freelance for 30 years and in that time I've switched between using my own name and a company name a few times depending on what work I was doing and who I was working with at the time. But at heart I'm a dedicated freelancer and I'm currently back in my happy place trading under my own name. It's the 'free' in freelancer that's most important to me.
Lisa Emmington | Instructional designer and e-learning developer
I’m a designer & solopreneur and I run things under a separate brand called Artone Studio. That setup gives me the flexibility to stay small when I want to, but also expand and collaborate when needed. I definitely am the business in many ways. Clients often reach out because they want to work directly with me. That personal connection helps build trust fast. But it also creates a challenge when scaling, since people expect me to be involved in everything. Right now, I frame Artone as a design studio with a small team, where I’m involved but not alone. It’s a constant balance: staying personal without limiting growth. And naming it as a brand rather than just using my own name has made that easier.
Razvan Badea | Founder of Artone Studio
I’ve always distinguished business owner and freelancer as the former being a Ltd and the latter being a sole trader but perhaps that’s my own bias! I’ve always said I’m a freelancer, but I work under the bracket of Grace Hall @ Crying Over Copy because it’s the headline and name people recognise from LinkedIn and it’s a conversation starter. I am my business as I’m the sole individual running it and providing the output, but my brand is also Crying Over Copy – it’s an amalgamation of me as a brand and the work I do. (Plus I love it as it’s the name I came up with before I even properly started freelancing and it’s stuck since. I still get messages about it!)
Grace Hall | Copywriter & content writer
Selling my business Flourish Unlimited at the end of last year, and stepping into 2025 as 'just me' was nerve-wracking. But I'd been told countless times by mentors & clients YOU are your business, regardless of the awesome team you have around you. It therefore made perfect sense to own being ME – The Lucy Patterson Ltd. That choice also came with a weird sense of freedom and acceptance for myself, warts and all, which has been reflected in the work I do and the creative way I approach all new projects now. It's liberating, and definitely comes with a side of increased revenue. Who knew confidence in a name could be such a self-fulfilling prophecy?! ✌️
Lucy Patterson | Rebel by design
I’m a freelance copywriter for women service providers and I see myself as a business owner. My brand is Seed Words, which conveys the idea of organic growth through the power of words. There’s also a nod to the idea of seed money: the money invested to start a business. Strategic copy is an investment in your marketing garden: your website, blog, emails, newsletters, social media, brochures, adverts and so on. It establishes strong roots so your business flourishes.
Plant the right seed words in your audience’s mind and they’ll blossom into sales.
Sarah Marshall | Copywriter and translator
My name (which actually has accents) can be said in 13 ways and spelt in many more: most often it's Bernice. I'd love to be Berenice Howard-Smith Design or something but I'd have to also be Bernice which I would resent paying for as it implies that it is permitted. When I have thought about changing, someone has said that Hello Lovely makes them smile! I always point out any misspellings with kindness but expect it to be correct. I wonder how others with unusual spellings deal with this?
The other interest I have is a podcast on childlessness called The Full Stop. We avoided putting childless in the name as we invite parents and childfree to listen so we can meet in the middle as many issues we and our guests talk about are exclusions and it helps future generations. Full Stop is an ending, new start and also the English version of period which has fertility associations. In our branding, it's also used as a circle to show a safe space, to show the three founders and community. What was a clever name, became a clever bit of branding! I love business names that lend themselves to stories and great branding, that design and fonts can often enhance. As a founder of Full Stop, as it’s a CIC though technically we are directors, it still feels a bit groundbreaking, six years later. I call myself the owner of Hello Lovely to acknowledge the effort, responsibility and experience.
Berenice Howard-Smith | Designing eye-catching web, brand & print experiences
What I did vs what I would do… When I went freelance, I called my business No.16 PR & Copywriting based on my address at the time (and I thought it had a nice ring to it). I wrote things like “Let us know if we can help further” to sound like a bigger multi-person agency. Over the years, I realised clients would obviously know it was just me, and – by and large – wanted to use a freelancer rather than a company anyway. I like my brand and logo, so I’ll stick with it – but if I were starting over again, I’d probably go for the more straightforward option of simply using my name. Most of my work comes through recommendations, so clients will pass on my name and number and then have to try and remember what the completely unrelated web address is. In terms of how I refer to myself, it’s self-employed or freelance. I wouldn’t use the phrase in conversation for fear of sounding pretentious but my website describes me as a free-range writer (based in the countryside, free to work where and when I choose, and ranging into different industries rather than having a niche).
Laura Wells | PR and copywriter
I've chosen a name that is related to what I do. I pigeonhole myself as an independent entrepreneur, as I have two income streams, teaching English as a Foreign Language and as a graphic designer etc. It's also a special category in setting up in France. Officially I'm Catherine Rompais EI! But since I've freelanced since 1997, I'm a freelancer I suppose. A business here has different criteria. Entrepreneur Indépendante is for Ray of Sun and I do everything under that name, with a given SIRET number that proves I'm bona fide and above board.
Catherine Rompais | Multidisciplinary designer
Being from Lincoln, I freelance as the Creative Imp – it's a local theme, with the imp of the world-famous cathedral. And although happy to be part of the freelance community, I can see the sense in seeing yourself as a business owner – both from a personal and client perspective.
Stuart Davis | Copywriter
I founded Social League as an offline community. As a founder-led startup, I’m the face of the brand. My voice and my story are what drive trust.
Laaleen Sukhera | Communications and public relations leader
My business is Confident Conversations Ltd because that’s what clients need to be having more of – but under that umbrella I’m a trainer and referred to as everything from “that Newton woman” to “the suicide woman” – depending on whether I’m teaching crew managers to manage performance or construction managers to engage in suicide intervention, but yes, I am my business.
Andrea Newton | Helping people have difficult conversations about sensitive subjects
I'm both a freelancer and a business owner. Freelance-wise I do content writing for local magazines, medium pubs, etc. under my name. As a business owner, my husband and I are the cofounders and co-owners and we named the business after ourselves, but only because the alliteration (Carson Creative) is more likely to stick with people we talk to.
Samantha Lisk Carson | Writer
My business name is Molly Bruni Editorial. It was important for me to have my name in it so that clients know they’re working with *me*, not a faceless company. One of my priorities is having warm, reliable, friendly relationships with clients, so the intention behind my business name supports that.
Molly Bruni | Editor | Advocate for playful reading and learning
I've got two businesses, with the main one named after me – Fiona Robertson Graphics – which I (as you might imagine) put zero thought into when I accidentally started my business, and don't really love, especially now that I'm married and changed my name! But it's got that personal connection – people choose my business because of me and my portfolio – plus, I've been using it for 18 years now, so a full rebrand is a bit daunting. My second business name, Fox & Finch, was a lot more intentional, and in some ways that made designing the branding a lot easier. For so long I considered myself a freelancer, but the past few years, I've been trying to reframe my mindset to think of myself as a business owner. For some reason, it makes me feel like getting help and growing my business to include other people, whether that's a VA, subcontractor, etc, is more acceptable – for some daft reason, when I was a 'freelancer' I felt I had to do everything myself.
Fiona Robertson | Branding and website designer
When I chose the business name Calibre, it was a statement of intent. From day one, my mission has been to elevate the virtual assistant industry by setting a new benchmark for excellence. Calibre reflects the high level of expertise, professionalism and strategic value our ‘high-calibre’ VAs bring to the table as proactive partners in growth.
Calibre encapsulates the impact I’m here to make: building a brand that becomes synonymous with quality, reliability, and forward-thinking support. We’re not just here to offer admin help; we are here to redefine what ‘high-calibre’ support looks like for modern business leaders, and Calibre sets the tone for everything we do.
Also to answer your second question, although I am the founder of an agency, I also view myself as an entrepreneur at heart, always looking for new and innovative ways to reach my end goals.
Naomi Wachner | VA matchmaker
I've thought about this a lot lately. I used to think of myself as 'just' a freelancer, and refer to myself as a 'gun for hire'... but more recently going from 'freelancer' at Joanna Cummings Writing & Editing to 'founder and editorial director' at Joanna Cummings Editorial has helped me look at it differently – I feel like I'm more focused and in control, and that it has potential to grow! I think that's purely psychological though – what's a shift for me might not matter to other people. As for naming it after me, I did a confidence course a few years ago (I might have mentioned it to you!) that said it was important to have the URL of your own name… so it built from that!
Joanna Cummings | Editorial director, writer, storytelling strategist
My own name! While it can sometimes be harder to confidently self-promote using your own name, in terms of visibility and clarity, I think it's worth the extra 'eeek-factor'. My recurrent question is whether to use different channels for my two main strands – voiceover and music. But I always come back to the idea that it's better to be just one person!
Emma Nabarro-Steel | British voiceover artist
It's still early days for me, so I'm owning the badge of ‘freelancer’. It just seems to carry a certain freedom with it... possibly because I've just left corporate life after 18 years. And no, the name didn't matter to me whatsoever – it's literally just my initials. I don't think a good name = more success. Just look at the Arctic Monkeys.
Rory Ford | Strategic & creative communications expert
The name of my business is weirdly important to me. It started as a talk I gave at the Bath Digital Festival eight years ago, about how marketing could be leaner. It was my dad's idea, really. As the business grew and shrank over the years, the name has given me comfort. And since my dad's passing away, it means even more. I think of myself as a freelancer, but I have a small limited company that 'protects' me, and I like that idea. I also take enormous personal comfort from the name; even though most people would just associate it with me, it's nice that it's there in the background. ❤️
Jo Millett | Your LinkedIn wingwoman
My business name (Red Rose Media & Marketing) is different to my actual name, but in reality it is me. There is a meaning and reference to me i.e. red for red hair, and roses for passion as I'm a passionate person who works well in industries led by passionate people e.g. startups, health/wellbeing, charities and more recently football. But, I mix up what I refer to myself. To most I'm a freelancer but if it's a more corporate or large business or charity I use ‘consultant’. I use a mix of these terms across LinkedIn and my website so I can be found. I'm me in whatever form the business or charity needs me to be.
Penny Gibbs | Digital marketing & media consultant
My business name is Bandbox Design. Unsurprisingly, that is not my actual name. I chose Bandbox Design a long time ago as part of a project I did for a design course and have improved the logo/branding a lot since becoming a full-time freelancer in 2024. I wanted to have a separate brand to my own name as it allows for more variation and brand assets. I'll be the first to admit Craig Williams doesn't sound like a very dynamic design business name. Whereas Bandbox Design has given me the 'band' angle to incorporate music song titles into my messaging, 'box' has influenced my photos and pricing tiers, and the design speaks for itself. I always like it when there are hidden meanings to things too, so there's a further graphic design link as, according to Wikipedia, a bandbox is “a graphical user interface interaction technique that involves drawing a box around objects to select them”. As a graphic designer, I do that a lot. I call myself a freelancer. But after reading Paul Jarvis's book, I'm thinking like a company of one from now on.
Craig Williams | Graphic designer
I've been mulling over ideas for a business name for a while now. I'm currently Linda Harrison or Linda Harrison PR, but I feel like I need something with a bit more 'oomph'. I started doing in-person PR training events in York with another PR expert this year, including a speed networking event for journalists and small businesses called 'Meet The Media'. I find it much easier to 'sell' Meet The Media than my own business, perhaps because the name feels more detached. I'll really look forward to reading this article. I'd love to know more about the process people go through to find business names.
Linda Harrison | PR specialist: Getting small businesses in the press.
I chose to have a separate brand to stand out – Lindsey Russell Copywriting seemed a bit bland so I went for Wordy Bird and love it. People seem to engage with it and find it memorable. When I first briefed my designer, I said I wanted the logo to be quirky, creative and professional, with long legs, and I think they nailed it. I even get accosted affectionately as, "It's Wordy!" As I'm a sole trader, I refer to myself as a freelancer and that works for me.
Lindsey Russell | Copywriter
My business name is my name. People do business with people and that person is me. Just me. What my clients pay for is MY time, MY skills, MY knowledge, MY expertise and, well, MY personality 😊 A VA/client relationship is so personal. I have no intention of growing my business to anything more than just myself so simply using my name works perfectly. I’m not sure I can put a label on what I see myself as though.
Sally Todd | Virtual assistant supporting coaches and independent practitioners
I called my business Sands Street Media Ltd after the street we lived on in Hong Kong. That perhaps is a clue as to what I thought of myself then – that I didn't have the confidence to include my name. I'm a business owner because of the rigmarole involved in setting up the companies in the UK and Hong Kong (they're separate), but when I'm knee deep in someone else's copy, I'm definitely a freelancer. At the same time, Paul Jarvis's idea of a company of one chimes with me.
Ralph Cunningham | B2B journalist & copywriter
My business name is Just ask Jo – when I went self-employed just over 4 years ago, I wanted something meaningful to me but not something that felt too restrictive in case my offerings evolved (which they have!) – just ask Jo was always something people said around the office when I was employed, so it felt like the perfect fit! I relate to 'freelancer' and 'business owner', but if friends ask, it's usually “I work for myself” – freelancing always feels a bit casual and business owner or founder sometimes feels like I should have a grand office or a team! 😂
Jo Gardiner | Custom-branded digital assets done for you
I called my business In The Moment Copywriting because I wanted it to reflect a sense of being contemporary and also as a reminder for being mindful (to be in the present moment). I've spent more time using my own name as the brand though, especially through LinkedIn.
Gavin Williams | Expert content and copywriter for longevity, fitness & wellness brands
I'm in an interesting position. I'm currently closing down a business I had with a business partner and am now officially freelancing again. We had a strong brand and name for the joint business. But my freelance business was always called Nikki Eve, which is my first name and middle name. I feel like I want something new and impactful to revitalise my brand and business, but I've been struggling to come up with something. The one name I did think of, someone has already used it. Ideas and notes on a postcard are welcome!
Nikki Wallis | Copywriter & content writer
I’m Xian, founder of Mermaid Minds – a product that turns YouTube videos into mind map-style diagrams in seconds. It’s designed for fast summarisation, SEO keyword extraction, and visual thinking – especially useful for researchers, creators, and curious minds. The name Mermaid Minds wasn’t just branding – it reflects how I think about the product: playful yet structured, and deeply focused on helping people process complex information visually.
The idea came from a real moment. One day, my husband was rewatching a Zoom meeting he’d missed – nearly an hour long – and he casually asked, “Is there a tool that could just turn this into a visual summary?” That question stuck with me. I researched and realised there wasn’t much out there in that niche. It felt like a gap worth building for. I’m a solo founder, product designer and indie hacker building tools based on real user needs. Naming the business gave it shape and direction. It’s not just me any more – it’s something others can rely on.
Xian Li | Indie hacker
I have called my business Force 4 Events. As a marketer who is used to marketing businesses I found marketing this a bit easier to swallow than marketing myself. I also knew from day one that I wanted the business to be something that wasn’t attached to me as a person. Not only because my name is a mouthful, but eventually I see a team of people (eventually) and it would be odd if the business was called under my name.
Imagine… “Oh hi I’m so-and-so and I’m the operations manager at Raimonda Richardson Ltd” – weird!!
Raimonda Richardson | Event & Launch Marketing
I started my first business as a freelancer, albeit one who ‘owned’ a small business as a sole trader. This time around, I don’t refer to myself as a freelancer, although it’s just me for the time being. Because my company is limited, I refer to myself as a director and a founder. For me, it has to do with mindset, which I was struggling with during the first six months. I’ve switched direction a couple of times, so the director mantle better fits, I feel. I have found that people interact differently with me, depending on what I refer to myself as, too. I think people have different perceptions based on titles. The reason I went limited is because the name, Red and White Media, is a bit of a nod to Arsenal FC, and also to my late father. We used to go to their games together for many years before his death in 2014. I feel like it’s a bit of him with me!
Vikkie Richmond | Brand-led, tone-of-voice copywriter and results-driven social media marketer
My business is named Good Words Work. I chose this because it encapsulates what I believe about writing, content, and people. I consider myself a freelance writer and solopreneur.
Vicki Thomas | Content writer and strategist
Strange Birds has finally (FINALLY) embraced using the term ‘agency’ despite its lumps. It's the shortest path to understanding the range and potential of what we can offer as a multi-brained team. But we're really a worker-owned cooperative, which is a special container that enables us to do our work in the way we want to do it: from a place of deep care and mutual support, for both ourselves and our clients. Anna Hetzel and I both call ourselves "worker-owners". The name Strange Birds opens the door to flocking with new collaborators over time, and also a website full of bad bird puns. Plus, it comes directly from a night of tequila and reading the dictionary together, which couldn't be more on-brand for us.
Janel Torkington | Co-owner of Strange Birds, a messaging agency that gives a flying duck
My business is JOG ON Digital which was a tedium play on my first and middle names and an old nickname, but also a nod to how the big tech giants can chew up small advertisers and inhale their budgets, and what I as their consultant would be telling Meta/Google to do 🙂
Jo Phillips | Google Ads & paid social consultancy
I came up with lots of name ideas for my proofreading business, but I settled on Proofreading Jenny. In Scotland, a ‘tea Jenny’ is someone who drinks a lot of tea (spot on for me!). I’m not Scottish, but I loved the idea that a ‘proofreading Jenny’ could be someone who does a lot of proofreading… so I went with it. I am very comfortable referring to myself as a freelancer, definitely when liaising with clients or introducing myself to potential clients. As I mostly work with marketing/creative/comms agencies and marketing teams, I think the term ‘freelancer’ sits well and hope my clients view me as a valuable extension of their team or someone they know they can bring in for big projects or in busy times. Having said that, I do also refer to myself as a business owner and might explain to someone (not a client) that I’m a proofreader/copywriter and run my own business.
Jenny Gibson | Proofreader and copywriter
Maternity leave taught me hard and fast that I AM the business (why didn't I realise that before!). In answer to your questions in reverse order: I am a BUSINESS OWNER! And I think it's so important to think of yourself that way – freelancing in any discipline is a BUSINESS! You are running a business! I also say Incredibble is an agency/collective. That's evolved over the years though. As for naming your business, I was The Great Little Marketing Co., Helen Dibble, and then, after taking a big gulp of confidence, Incredibble. It was a calling card for excellence and something to believe in. I started showing up differently and my business started to grow. Plus side: people love the play on words. Our new service, Embedibble, is also bringing people wordy joy! Downsides: I am the business! There’s no getting away from that when it's in the brand name. And explaining how it's spelt – if people search for 'Incredibble' they're probably typing in 'Incredible'. How important is what you call your business? There are some fun opportunities to be had with a clever/interesting choice. But all that is far less important than believing in yourself and what you're doing.
Helen Dibble | Marketing agency founder
So, I always wanted to run with a business name, and I knew exactly what it would be – Walker Design Co. To the point where I had the domain registered years before I started. Growing up, I was incredibly close to my grandparents, in particular my maternal grandad, and my love for nostalgia and things from before my time are because of him. His surname was Walker and while he was alive he traced the Walker name back to the 1600s. However, he and my grandmother were the last remaining Walkers – his sister had married out of the name, and he had two girls, my mum and my auntie, and therefore when both my grandparents died, the Walker name died with them. The dad’s side of my family is Greek so I had a Greek surname growing up. When my grandad passed away, I decided to legally change my surname and to his, so the Walker name could continue. And now I have a one-year-old son, the name will live on in our family. So calling my business Walker Design Co. isn’t just a name to me, it makes me incredibly proud every time I see it, and reminds me where I’ve come from, and why I’m doing what I’m doing.
David Walker | Branding & web designer
