DBA

“Doing Business As” (DBA, of d.b.a.) is a way of telling people that the name of the company they’re working with is an alias. This is not an attempt to be dishonest; in fact, it’s just the opposite. The merchant is being upfront with the knowledge that the true name of the business isn’t the same as the name on the door.

This happens frequently in the business world. For example, a corporation called “Big City Automotive” may operate multiple dealerships: Big City Ford, Big City Honda, Big City Subaru, and so on. Each of those would be considered a DBA business: Big City Automotive, DBA Big City Ford.

Using a fictitious name can help segregate marketing, sales, cash flow, and other areas. There are some potential downsides to consider, though. For instance, a customer may not recognize a credit card charge from Amalgamated Home Services when they only dealt  with the DBA “Friendly Plumbing.”