What’s in a name? Rather a lot, actually. Regardless of the size of the outfit, it’s one of the most critical parts of the branding process. Get it right and it’s a positive and effective extension of your brand, get it wrong and it’s back to square one.
Given the importance placed on naming a brand, it may sound daunting. We’re not going to pretend that it’s not, but follow our tried and tested tips for an easier process.
a name is for life
To reiterate the importance of getting that moniker right in the first place, let’s think about longevity. Your name is the brand’s key identifier, how your customers know you and any trust, recognition and awareness that’s built up is done so around that name. Brands do of course rebrand and change names, but usually only once they’re highly established with an accessible and engaged customer base to communicate to.
where to start?
There are (loosely) three ways to choose a brand name.
1. Using founders’ names or someone or something close to them, such as:
Arlo & Jacob, the sofa company named after the founder’s children.
Any fashion house - Chanel, Balmain, Prada and Mui Mui (derivations of founder Miuccia Prada’s name).
Ben & Jerry’s, from founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield.
2. What it says on the tin. What does the brand do? Say it in the name!
Carpetright - they sell carpets, right?
Yankee Candle - does this brand make candles, in the USA? Yes! In Massachusetts to be precise.
Innocent - smoothies and juice, with no shady character ingredients.
3. A name that’s completely unrelated to your product. There’s more creativity required here, and perhaps a little more caution too - it’s not the ‘safe’ option. But done well and that name, over the years, can morph into our linguistic structures to become a generic term or even a verb, and that’s got to be the lofty pinnacle of success for any brand.
Tupperware. There’s probably a generic term out there for never having the lids too.
Google. As in ‘google it’, where a name becomes a verb. Clever. Just ask Jeeves…
Hoover. Strictly speaking, the brand name for vacuum cleaners made by The Hoover Company but more commonly that thing you do quickly before someone comes round to visit.
