On Naming and Brand Identity

Choosing the right name for a new product or service is a critical step in the branding process, serving as the cornerstone of a brand's identity and playing a pivotal role in its market success. An effective name not only captures the essence and value proposition of the product or service but also distinguishes it from competitors, facilitates brand recall, and resonates with the target audience. In a landscape saturated with choices, a well-chosen name can be a powerful tool in creating a memorable brand experience and fostering customer loyalty. This article aims to guide entrepreneurs, marketers, and business owners through the intricate process of selecting a name that not only aligns with their brand's mission and values but also appeals to their intended market, ensuring a strong foundation for their marketing and branding efforts.

Here are ten tips, tricks and guidelines to help you make the right decisions:

1. Make it Short, Sweet, and Easily Pronounced

The ideal name for customers to remember and for you to use to cut through the industry noise is probably short and sweet and easily pronounced. This means it will have two or three syllables (or even one), and it will work on the phone or the internet even if people have never seen or heard it before. If they have to be told how to spell it once, that is OK (and may even help with recall) But if they have to be told a second time, that is a problem. One of the sticky consonants (k,q,x,z) can help with recall.

2. Create Something Unique Within the Industry

Your name doesn't need to be weird or clunky, but it does need to not sound like all the rest of your direct competitors. HotJobs.com, BAJobs.com, Careers.com, CareerJunction.com, and LocalJobs.com are all easily lost in the crowd, but Monster.com stands out dramatically - even though it does not describe what they do! In practice, it has become brand shorthand for job searches, just like Starbucks has become shorthand for coffee, Coke for soda, and FedEx for overnight shipping.

3. Assure that the Name is Legally Available and Defensible

Your lawyers think this should be item one of course. Regardless, what is the point of starting any company or marketing campaign if you cannot have full rights in the name? Your best defense is always a magic which only can be issued by the USPTO (or equivalent agency in other countries). If the USPTO won't issue a registration certificate because they judge it to be generic, then you have a problem with uniqueness anyway. Common law trademark searches are also critically important.

4. Focus on Good Alliteration, Especially if a Longer Name

Sometimes a longer name does have a place in marketing. After all, the most famous brand in the world, Coca-Cola, is four syllables. But notice how smoothly it rolls off the tongue. Linguists will tell you it has good alliteration.

5. Make Sure is Does Not Lend Itself to Abbreviations

If you have a long descriptive name, people will abbreviate it quickly. OK, we know it worked for IBM, AT&T, CBS etc., but how many years and how many branding dollars do you have? For a small company, this means you quickly become YASI (Yet Another Set of Initials) and drown in the initial bit bucket. At least make sure the trademark part (brand part) of your tradename is a name and not initials e.g. Ford is the trademark for Ford Motor Car Company. Leave FMCC etc. to the legal documents only. But who or what are AMA, CCI, etc.?

6. It Should be Flexible and Expandable

Too many people try to describe their company rather than name it. Copyland, Copydata, Copyshop, QuickCopy all define what they do - and are barely distinguishable from one another. But Kinkos stood out dramatically and did not pigeonhole them into only copy services. Today, of course, they are Fedex Office, and can offer a raft of services without needing to update their name. Unlike Texas Instruments that doesn't even make instruments

7. Keep it Linguistically Clean

What are the root origins of the name? How is it pronounced by a Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese or French native speaker? What does it mean in these languages? You may need to support these languages just to do business in North America nowadays.Especially in the populous areas of California, New York, Texas, Illinois, Florida and Canada. Remember the Chevy Nova? That was a ”No Go” in Spanish?

8. Assure That Name Will Not Age Quickly

Is your name hip and topical? If you are in the fashion trend business this might be fine. But otherwise, be very careful of "in" words or expressions. They will be superseded sooner or later. They may also not play well across all demographics. Many markets have their own "industry-speak” and slang. Names with classical roots tend to endure more easily.

9. Make Sure Your Name Embraces Your Company Personality

Two competitors, entering the same market at the same time with directly competing products will pick different names because every company and management team has its own personality. This means the executives must be involved in the decision making process. A marketing agency can tell you if the name fits, not if you are comfortable with it.

10. Test for Fit Within Company's Brand Portfolio

The company name, division names and product names are all part of your brand portfolio. Do these sound like they all come from the same family? While this is a specific problem with merged companies, everyone's naming architecture needs to be properly managed to maximize your brand power and intellectual property portfolio.

In conclusion, the process of choosing the right name for a new product or service is both an art and a science, requiring a delicate balance between creativity, strategic thinking, and market research. A well-crafted name acts as the first point of interaction between the brand and its potential customers, setting the tone for all future communications and interactions. It's essential to approach this task with a comprehensive understanding of your brand's identity, target audience, and competitive landscape. By employing a thoughtful, methodical approach to naming, businesses can ensure that their chosen name not only stands out in a crowded market but also encapsulates the brand's essence, fosters customer connection, and lays a solid foundation for long-term success.