What's in a name?

What's in a name?

There is nothing nominal about names.

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Parents are right to agonise over what to call their children, but not for the reasons you might imagine. The name you choose for your child can influence how others treat them and how they see themselves.

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Studies have linked unpopular or negative sounding names with lower perceived attractiveness on dating sites, less willingness to come to a stranger’s aid and higher involvement in crime even after controlling for demographic factors.

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One could quite legitimately it seems, apply a System 1 approach to naming your kids - aim for fame, feeling and fluency. It has for instance been shown that people equate easy flowing names with more agreeable natures with all the benefits that might bring.

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The right name is even more critical in business than it is in life.

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A name by itself means nothing until it is filled with user experiences created by hundreds of interactions that add value. To do this you need spot-on brand positioning, marketing strategy, creative execution and customers who are willing to give you a go.

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Getting your brand right from the start will make all the above easier. The right brand name can help people to understand what you offer and what’s in it for them. It can pique their interest and keep it - without needing a mega media budget to go with it.

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Most of the brands I have worked on were “adopted” in the sense that they came with a name, a clear product/service, and a set of associations already. Whilst I sometimes thought “I wouldn’t have chosen to start here”, I also know how hard it is to create anything from scratch.

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Ask any creative or entrepreneur. Once the blank page has been filled or the idea generated, people are lining up to tell you what they think about it. My husband has a great word for this kind of unsolicited advice – “helpo-fering” – interference masquerading as help.

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The reality though, is that new businesses need all the branding help they can get. Whilst technological advances have made it possible for anyone to launch a brand, doing so successfully is harder than ever. After all, incumbents enjoy many structural advantages as well as deeper pockets.

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All this might help explain why start-ups in the US are vying with one another to become clients of brand agencies like Mythology or Red Antler . Yes, you read that right. Imagine as an agency owner having clients pitching for your business?! In any given month these agency owners are approached by 100 to 150 start-ups – offering equity in exchange for their services. Of these, they only accept 2 to 4.

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The naming game can be won at minimum cost if you know what to look for.

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There were 22,500 start-ups in Ireland last year – the highest number recorded since 2017. Whilst one in every three fails in the first five years for any number of reasons, not having the right brand name does not have to be one of them.

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If you are a start-up and unable to pay an agency to come up with a brand name, you can do a lot of the heavy lifting yourself. ?The most important thing in my experience is to arrive at a name that is:

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1. Meaningful

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2. Memorable

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3. Ownable

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4. Enduring

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I’m going to explain what I mean by each of these and share an example I personally admire. I’ve made a point of selecting successful home-grown brands, as opposed to the big household names we’re all familiar with.

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1.???? Meaningful – true to you and what you can do

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Your brand name is only meaningful if it makes intuitive sense. It should reflect who you are and who you’re for. In other words your name should be true to you – why you exist, where your strengths lie and what you can offer customers that is of relevance and value to them.

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Spotlight was recently recommended to me by my dental hygienist. Is there a better endorsement for a brand available in Boots? This Irish brand has revolutionised the industry since its launch in 2016, providing safe and effective oral care products that are clinically proven to target a range of dental needs. Their toothpaste tubes were the first 100% recyclable tube in the world.

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2.???? Memorable – simple, distinctive, evocative

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Your brand name will only be memorable if it is simple - easy to say, spell, pronounce and visualise. It will be more memorable if it is distinctive because we’re all hardwired to notice what’s different. Having a stand out name is critical even if your offering is similar to your competitors’. To be memorable your name will also need to evoke positive associations and feelings in your intended audience and avoid any unintended negative ones.

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As we become more dependent on voice activated technology, sonic branding like Netflix’s ta-dum and Mc Donald’s ba-da-ba-da-da "I’m lovin it" will become more important for brand memorability over time.

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Tony’s Chocolonely is a meaningful name, designed to refer to the loneliness of taking a stand against slavery; its bars are pre-scored into uneven pieces to allegedly remind people of the inequality in the chocolate industry.

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More importantly, Tony’s Chocolonely is memorable because it looks and sounds so distinctive – a tall task in a highly contested and branded confectionery market. The onomatopoeia in the word Chocolonely suggests Willy Wonka style fun – as does its brightly coloured packaging and retro-style typography. Whilst the name is a bit of a mouthful, it sounds like a small artisan one started by the likes of a Ben and Jerry. The internal rhyming of Tony with Chocolonely also has a simple, pleasing and memorable ring to it.

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3.???? Ownable – a trade mark, a clear domain name and social media handle

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Now to state the obvious but what can cause bitter disappointment if left too late. When it comes to a chosen brand name. No matter how much you love it - if you can’t own it, protect it and use it (everywhere you need to), you should lose it.

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Whether your brand is a generic word (e.g. Represent), a personal name (e.g. Harry’s), an acronym (e.g. Slack), descriptive (e.g. buymie), suggestive (e.g. Casper) or devised (e.g. Etsy), you cannot protect what you do not own.

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Despite Represent’s international success, a tiny retailer of the same name nearly broke the company and its founders when it insisted on a pay-off the company could ill-afford at the time.

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Once you’ve landed the right name therefore, don’t scrimp on legal advice to ensure it is properly trademarked and protected across all relevant categories, geographies, and touchpoints. Having to add dashes and words to own a domain name or social media handle for example may dilute your credibility.

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4.???? Enduring – flexes with needs of your business and customers over time

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Your brand name needs to be able to withstand any number of future changes such as product extensions, entry into new categories and expansion into new markets. You want a name you love and can grow into.

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Sculpted (By Aimee) is an Irish brand that has taken the skincare and beauty category by storm. Having launched with basic serums and moisturisers, Ms Connolly recently launched an innovative double-cleanser and has plans to expand into the US. Her name has inbuilt flex when it comes to new products and markets.

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It’s your brand so have the courage of your convictions.

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Get your positioning right and do some research but remember that names are subjective. Once you’ve done the strategic hard work, trust your gut and the people most critical to your success. Take how they respond to your brand name seriously, what they think of it, less so.

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Brands are ultimately what you, your products, employees, and customers make them. The right name will make it easier for you to attract your first and most important customers – those willing to invest in your idea.

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P.S. All will be forgiven if your brand experience is brilliant enough.

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“Diary of a CEO” is now one of my favourite podcasts. However, based on the name alone, I would have studiously avoided it. I expected it to showcase business owners talking about themselves with a peek into their personal lives to lighten the self-promotion.

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Thankfully, my friend éadaoin McCarthy knew me well enough to say, don’t be put off by the title, just try it, you’ll love it. And I do. In fact, I have since recommended it to countless others with the same caveat.

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What Diary of a CEO offers are intimate conversations between Steven Bartlett and people from all walks of life whose exceptional expertise, wisdom and life experience have enlightened, touched, and entertained me.

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It is phenomenally successful despite its name or maybe the joke is on me. The name Diary of a CEO under-promises but over-delivers. That’s kind of rare these days, which makes it all the more meaningful, memorable, and hopefully enduring.


#brandnames #startups #brandingtips

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Tanya English

Marketing Services | Strategy & Implementation | Connecting brands & customers

7 个月

Congrats Rachel, your name stops being your name when it becomes you :)

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Caroline Sleiman

Director & Co-Owner Coffeeangel

7 个月

Building your own brand is oh so difficult but incredibly rewarding ; If any can you will for sure ??

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Aisling O'Sullivan

CEO @ Calliope Consulting | Freelance Copywriter / Creative Director

7 个月

Lovely article Rachel. Having spent the last few weeks helping a brand to find their new name, this all rings true to me. ?? It's such a personal thing as well, the sound of a word reminds one person of something negative, while it may fill another with joy.. a bit like naming your child - when you suddenly begin to curse ex boyfriends for using up perfectly lovely names!

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Naomi Steen

Communications specialist

7 个月

Love this Rachel, I feel the same about my name! Can see Laura's face though :)

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