The name game

When planting a church, one of the first and most stressful decisions you have to make is: What should I name it? Converge church planting leaders Lee Stephenson and Danny Parmelee share tips to help you select a name that will work for your church.

1:11 Danny talks about the process he used to name his church plant.
4:00 Danny discusses how omitting the word "church" from the name caused problems.
5:22 Lee says the name needs to connect to your culture, society and community. "We intentionally put ‘community church’ in our name because we wanted people to know we are part of the community."
7:22 Lee talks about why he choose to keep the same name for his second church plant.
7:55 Danny and Lee discuss the advantages and disadvantages of including the city name in your church name.
9:11 Lee says it’s good to be creative when picking a name, but don’t get too creative. "If your name needs too much explanation behind it, you are losing the opportunity to connect with just a normal person in your community."
10:40 Lee says the name needs to flow well into a logo and a website URL.
10:53 Danny says you should research the area to make sure the name isn’t being used by another church or by a church that no longer exists. 
11:48 Danny and Lee discuss some good reasons for renaming your church.
12:55 Lee and Danny talk about the current trends they see in church names.
14:16 Lee says it comes down to finding a name that your community can naturally understand without a big explanation.
14:53 Lee doesn’t think you need to hire a marketing firm to come up with a name.
15:43 Danny and Lee suggest checking for website availability of the name and if another church has trademarked the name.