If your search tool looks at filenames, your filenames are your filing system. "Final_v2_NEW_use this one.docx" helps nobody. A little consistency goes a long way.
A simple pattern
Try date, subject, description, with the date written as year-month-day so files sort in order automatically:
- 2026-11-02 Acme Ltd Proposal.pdf
- 2026-10 Payroll Summary.xlsx
- 2026-09-14 Harbour Road Risk Assessment.docx
Five rules worth agreeing
- Use full customer names rather than private abbreviations.
- Avoid words such as "final", "new" and "latest". They age badly.
- If you must keep versions, use v1, v2, v3.
- Keep names reasonably short, but descriptive.
- Do not use slashes or unusual symbols, which can cause problems between systems.
Do not rename everything at once
Start with new files and tidy older ones only when you touch them. A convention people actually follow is far better than a perfect one abandoned after a week.