Stuck in the mire of finding a new name for brand or product> Here are some helpful tip as well as the psychology behind why e like certain names above others.

1. The Power of Brighter Naming
Shedding light on the naming process - February 2010

2. How do you choose the right one?

7. A name is for life.

8. Names play a key role in how we identify each other and the things
around us.
They help us to select from a vast array of choices.
They set up expectations of what a brand delivers.
They stay the same when everything else changes.
Names can be valuable assets.

9. The good…
1930 1956

10. The good…

11. The good…

12. The OK

13. The unfortunate…

14. The ugly…

15. Why do we like some names,
and not others?

16. People think the world is rational…

17. …but actually, we are fuelled by emotions
“Reason is not as ‘pure’ as most of us “Emotion, intuition, long-term memories
think it is or wish it to be; emotion and and unconscious motivations make
feelings aren’t intruders into the bastion up as much as 80 percent of our
of reason. We feel before we think. decision-making processes.
In fact we feel in order to think.” That leaves just 20 percent for logic
to battle over.”
Descartes' Error, Antonio Damasi
Kevin Roberts, Saatchi & Saatchi

18. “Language is the mind”

19. A good name hits us in the part of the brains that
controls memory and emotional reactions

20. Properties
*Subject : <Brand storytelling>
*Name : <question>
Paul Ekman - Primary Emotions
Template
Outer Directed
Joy
Surprise Anger
Flight Fight
(Backwards) (Forwards)
Disgust Fear
Sadness
Inner Directed

21. Emotions of Vowel Sounds
Low-pitched ahhhhhh somberness
gentleness

24. Emotions of Vowel Sounds
Low-pitched ahhhhhh somberness
gentleness
oooo wonder
awe

27. Emotions of Vowel Sounds
Low-pitched ahhhhhh somberness
gentleness
oooo wonder
awe
High-pitched eeeeee excitement
ayyyyy urgency

30. “Good words are ones
in which their sound
and meaning are
congruent”

31. Phonetic Symbolism
The mere sound of a word, apart from
its definition, conveys meaning and
evokes specific emotions

32. 80% of people thought Mal was size of larger
table
Mal Mil

33. Back v Front Vowels
Big Small
Heavy Light
Soft Hard
Slow Fast
Round Angular
Dull Bright
Mal Mil

34. ‘Big’ sounding name for global communications
Big
Heavy
Soft
Slow
Round
Dull
Mal

35. Is a small word good for Internet searching?
Small
Light
Hard
Fast
Angular
Bright
Mil

36. What’s the better name for an ice-cream?
?
Frish Frosh

37. What’s the better name for an ice-cream?
Frosh Frish
Big Small
Heavy Light
Soft Hard
Slow Fast
Round Angular
Dull Bright
Ice cream
Smooth, Rich, Creamy

38. Frosh

40. Can your name be a
disadvantage in
an election?

41. In 42 elections, the candidate with
the highest ‘Comfort Index’ won
vote
in 35 of them
83%

42. Naming Strategies

43. Descriptive vs Evocative Names
PicturePerfect televisions Emporium televisions

44. Descriptive vs Evocative Names
PicturePerfect televisions Emporium televisions
Higher recall of an
advertised benefit
(picture quality)

45. Descriptive vs Evocative Names
PicturePerfect televisions Emporium televisions
Higher recall of an
non-advertised benefit
(sound quality)

46. Implications…
• Choosing a name that is concrete and evokes key product benefit facilitates
the initial positioning
• But, this can limit the brand’s longer-term development
• Therefore non-suggestive might be better for new products if they might
evolve over time

47. Literal and
descriptive - speaks
to the products...
books. Binds the
company to books
Compared to…

48. Open and
inviting...flowing,
easy, abundant

49. Yellow Sky Blue
Kermit Green Millennium Orange

50. More positive emotional feelings
towards a given product
Kermit Green Millennium Orange

51. A puzzle that needs to be solved…
Ah-hah!
Kermit Green

52. As light as…
Air

53. Require some lateral thinking…intrigue
A new dawn?
Millennium Orange

54. Require some lateral thinking…intrigue
A new dawn?
Party?
Millennium Orange

55. Require some lateral thinking…intrigue
A new dawn?
Ending?
Party?
Millennium Orange

56. What will my
friends think?

57. How to start the Naming Process?

58. Our naming process
Discovery Creation Optimisation Checking Selection
Agree Nominate Build, Search Review name
the naming naming refine and for topline recommendations
challenge springboards shortlist trademark &
lead names domain conflict Pick
Fully immerse [Optional front-runners
into research/ brainstorm(s)] Support with Check
insights/ ʻNamemakerʼ linguistic Further search
competitor Generate (if appropriate) acceptability trademark
info long lists (and URL)
[Optional registrations -
Establish research] [using
criteria and 3rd party]
objectives for Fine-tuning
new name or Develop
name change branding

59. The naming start point: the brief
All important - but not long or over-detailed
• 1. Decide on what’s needed on practical and tonal/emotional levels
– Who is the target for the new brand?
– What is its remit in terms of product, or service, or company offer?
– How likely is it to spread internationally?
– What makes it different and distinctive from its competitors?
– Is it a stand-alone brand or will it work as a sub-brand or creative descriptor under, or endorsed
by, a parent brand?
– Does it need a .com or .co.uk etc domain name?
• 2. And from an emotional point of view
• Does the style of the new brand need to be quirky or serious, scientific or everyday,
macho or more feminine etc
• What words would you use to describe the personality of the desired brand e.g. Light-
hearted, maverick, bold, clever, intuitive, fast-moving

60. The pitfalls: linguistics
• So what can go wrong?
– Forgetting to screen for linguistics
on a brand with plans to expand
– Names that look or sound great in a
national language may mean some
unfortunate things in others!

61. The pitfalls: domain names
• So what can go wrong?
– With no punctuation or spaces
between words, domain names www.scatissue.com
can open up a can of worms!
www.childrenswear.co.uk
www.choosespain.com
Plumbers of Exmouth
www.plumbersexmouth.com

62. The pitfalls: legal registrability
• Even the most exciting, impactful and appropriate name can fall at the hurdle
of trademark registration
• That’s why it is important to balance the creativity with the rational -
continually filtering throughout the naming process to ensure that the chosen
routes have a chance
• Unfortunately the more global the brand, the more thorough and expensive
the checking process is likely to be - and the longer it will take
• NetTest - a name created in 1992 - for example took 12 years to complete
registrations in 22 countries worldwide

63. How do you know when you’ve
got a good one?

64. 3 - 5 times before a word is registered
in your mind…

65. …but too often will and it will lose its meaning

66. Combination of thinking and feeling

67. A good brand name should be…
• Easy to pronounce
• Transfer internationally
• Memorable, Distinctive, Evocative
• Legal and available
And also…
• Be in line with phonetic associations
• Evoke positive associations
– Unexpected descriptive
– Ambiguous

68. …but also
“Imagination is more
important than
knowledge”

69. You start with a blank canvas
It’s up to you to create
the associations

70. “…the one common denominator that separates the mediocre
from the memorable, is the degree to which the name engages the
mind of the consumer.
Most new business owners opt for company names that inform
and describe, leaving nothing to the imagination.
They often fail to realize that the context surrounding the name
(the ad, the store sign, the product, the brochure copy, etc.) will
define what they do, so the name can be free to describe how
they do it. In other words, no customer will hear or see the name
in a mental vacuum..”
Philip Davis, Tungsten Branding

71. It’s what you do with it that counts

72. It’s what you do with it that counts

73. It’s what you do with it that counts

74. It’s what you do with it that counts

75. Thank you!

76. Contact
Bianca Cawthorne
Butterfly London
+44 (0) 7866 806 367 (UK)
bianca@butterflylondon.com