From Brainstorm to Brand Name: Breaking Down the Brand Naming Process
TLDR: Top 3 Takeaways from this Post:
The brainstorm is the foundation of the naming process.
We served up five different brainstorming prompts to get the creative juices flowing.
Company and product names can fit into several common categories that will help you understand how your naming choice can impact your decisions.
Every business and product starts with a name. Choosing the right brand name is more than a creative activity – it’s a strategic process and investment that leaves a lasting impression and has long-term implications for your business. You are going to live with this name for a long while – so as you step into that first brainstorming session, let’s make sure you are prepared for the adventure ahead.
Whether you are launching a startup, rebranding your business, or brainstorming a new product identity, I’m here to guide you through the process.
The typical brand or product naming cycle covers four key areas:
The brainstorm. Generate a list of names to work with.
Practicalities: Navigate domain names and search potential.
Legalities: Understands the basic intricacies of trademarking.
Making the final decision: The crucial step in launching your brand’s identity.
Once the name is chosen, the next chapter begins. The name will trigger a new workstream for the post-naming brand implementation that can include everything from designing your logo to launching your product.
This series taking you from your brainstorm to your brand name will address these first four steps, starting with step one.
Step One: The Brainstorm
Let’s kick things off with the foundation – the brainstorming session. Success here hinges on a clear understanding of your business strategy and the enduring vision for the organization. This is a name you’ll live with, so it must serve the business now and in the future.
Stay loose in the beginning. Invite a wide range of ideas and don’t rush into making a choice immediately. Make a long list, and then let it marinate for a few days.
Whether you brainstorm individually, asynchronously, or as a group, the process benefits from diverse perspectives and crowdsourcing. You should include a cross-functional team including the founder/CEO, marketing, sales, and operations leaders. You can use the brand process to engage employees and stakeholders and build culture through the process. You can read more about including employees in the branding effort here.
Feeling blocked? Here are a few techniques to break free. You can combine multiple techniques and iterate on your ideas until you find the name that resonates with the essence of your brand.
Mind mapping: Explore the central theme of your product or business, branching out to related words, synonyms, and associations. Play with combinations and variations.
Word association: Start with a key word related to your business, listing words that come from your services, products, location, values, etc. Look for interesting or unexpected connections between words and ideas.
Random inspiration: Embrace the unexpected by using random word generators or flipping through a dictionary or thesaurus to find words that jump out at you.
Visual inspiration: Connect with visual elements related to your brand, exploring shapes, colors, and symbols. How might these visual elements translate into words or ideas for a name?
Outside in: Put yourself in the shoes of customers. What words or concepts would attract them to the brand?
Understanding Different Types of Brand Names
As you embark on your naming journey, it’s helpful to understand the different categories of brand names. Each type brings its own features that may align to your brand vision.
Suggestive or Evocative: Uses suggestion and metaphor to evoke an idea or benefit. Examples include PlayStation, Amazon, Uber, Shopify, KitchenAid, AirBus, Lyft, and Reddit. More evocative examples include Virgin, Lush, and Bounce. Suggestive names do some of the storytelling work and make it easier for customers to understand what your business will mean to them.
Arbitrary: Use common words in an unrelated context for flexibility. Examples include Big Fish, Apple, Kayak, and Pandora. Arbitrary names give freedom to define the brand.
Fanciful (aka Invented): Made up or new words. Like arbitrary names, a fanciful or invented name will only have the meaning your brand gives to it. Examples include Google, Exxon, Polaroid, Pepsi, Xerox, Adidas, and Verizon. When you invent a word, think about how easy it is to pronounce and spell. Invented brand names can be easier to trademark.
Acronym: Often show up when a business is rebranding an existing multi-word name. Examples include QFC, IBM, BMW, BP, MTV, CVS, AT&T. Like an arbitrary or invented name, an acronym needs you to give it meaning. In the image above, DKJ Food Mart.
Lexical: Use wordplay, puns, compound words, intentional misspellings, and alliteration to create meaning. Lexical brand names can be fun, clever, and playful. Examples include Dunkin’ Donuts, Krispy Kreme, Froot Loops, Krazy Glue, Laffy Taffy, Cheez Whiz, Hubba Bubba.
Descriptive: Literally describe the offer. Descriptive names are easy to interpret and make the message clear. Examples include Bank of America, General Motors, Toys R Us, The Weather Channel, The Container Store, and Hotels.com. If you use a descriptive brand name, consider how your business or products may evolve over time, and how today’s name will serve tomorrow’s purpose.
Founder: Used when there is a familial connection or the founder’s identity is core to the brand. Examples include Ralph Lauren, Ernst & Young, Ford, Kellogg’s, Martha Stewart, and Ben & Jerry’s. Like invented and fanciful names, founder brand names require some education in the market about the brand promise.
Geographical: Associate your brand with a specific place for cultural and historical ties. Examples include New York Life, Canada Dry, Hawaiian Punch, Florida’s Natural, and Outback Steakhouse. Will you always want to be associated with a particular place? What will happen if you move your headquarters or outgrow your region?
Real Life Stories
I’ve named my consultancy Deb Keltner, which is both a Founder name and a Descriptive Name. At one point, I considered a Lexical name (World Wide Deb). I also considered a geographical name for its SEO benefits “Seattle Marketing Consulting”. I’ve been thinking about expanding my consultancy and taking on additional team members. If I do that, I may have trouble with this name because I skipped the first and most critical step, which was to think carefully about the long-term vision for this brand.
Yana Vlatchkova is a startup and tech veteran with experience developing brand names. Her first startup was a digital task manager that worked with a simple swipe. Their brainstorm landed on a Suggestive brand name, Swipe. “This was a new UX gesture on the smartphone, so calling it ‘Swipe’ gave it an edge.” Today, Yana is the co-founder of a business with a Descriptive brand name: Question Base is a knowledge base made from questions and answers. “Question Base quickly paints a picture for people about what we are and what we do, so it’s been great to build a brand around.”
