We’d all like our brand to be a household name. But to achieve this, it’s vital that your brand naming communicates everything you stand for. So how do you choose it? Here’s what you need to know about the brand naming process…

There isn’t a magic formula, however, there are common traits that make a brand name easy for you to use and easy for people to remember. Ideally, you want something that’s:

• Meaningful: It communicates your brand essence, invokes an image, and fosters a positive emotional connection.
• Distinctive: It is unique, memorable, and stands out from your competitors.
• Accessible: People can easily interpret it, say it, spell it, or Google it. (Even if you have an unusual or bizarre name, it must be understandable.)
• Protectable: You can trademark it, get the domain, and “own” it, both legally and in the general consciousness.
• Future-proof: It can grow with the company and maintain relevance—and be adapted for different products and brand extensions.
• Visual: You can translate/communicate it through design, including icons, logos, colors, etc.

There is really one question that determine whether a name is successful (notice we didn’t say “good” or “bad”). At the end of the day, all that matters is this: Does it resonate with people?

How to Find the Right Brand Name

Finding a good brand name can be tiring, angering, and exhilarating. There are more and more services that are trying to make it easier for you, by pre-vetting and suggesting names (e.g., Shopify’s Business Name Generator or Wordoid), domains (e.g., Bust a Name) or names and available URLS (e.g., Brand Bucket).

These tools can be helpful for brainstorming, but we think it’s important choose, vet, and test a brand name intentionally and with purpose. Somethings just aren’t meant to be auto generated. Alright, are you ready to choose your brand name? If so, here’s our step-by-step guide to do it.

 

Step 1: Articulate Your Brand Heart

Before you name yourself, you need to understand who you are and what you’re trying to achieve. This includes:

• Purpose: Why do you exist?
• Vision: What future do you want to help create? What does the future look like?
• Mission: What are you here to do? How do you create that future?
• Values: What principles guide your behavior?

 

These aforementioned elements influence everything you do (including choosing a name).

 

Step 2: Look at Your Differentiators

Understanding what makes your brand unique is the essential to finding a brand name. You want to keep these differentiators front of mind as you move through the naming process. Remember: You aren’t just looking for a great name. You’re looking for a great name for you.

 

Step 3: Brainstorm

Here’s the fun but sometimes tedious part. Gather your stakeholders and creatives and host a structured brainstorm. It’s effective to provide some form of guidelines to work from. You may want to start these discussions with certain prompts or specific exercises.

For example:

• Write down all the adjectives that describe your product/service.
• Describe what you want your customers to feel when they use your product/service.
• Do a free association of words about your product/service.

Another useful way to brainstorm is to think of the different categories of brand names. These include:

• Founder:A name based on a real or fictional person, such as Ben & Jerry’s, Warby Parker, or Betty Crocker.

• Descriptive: A name that describes what you do or make, such as General Motors.
• Fabricated: A totally made-up name or word, such as Kodak, Xerox, or TiVo.
• Metaphor: Mythical, foreign, or imagery-heavy things, places, people, animals, or processes, such as Nike or Patagonia.
• Acronym: A name that uses initials or an abbreviation, such as DKNY (Donna Karan New York) or GE (General Electric).
• Magic spell: A name that is a portmanteau (two words together) or a real word with a made-up spelling, such as FaceBook or Flickr.

 

Step 4: Vet Your Brand Name

This is absolutely the most frustrating part. There’s no point in testing anything that’s already taken, so you need to vet your frontrunners. Narrow your brainstormed list down to your favorites (ideally those 15-20), then search the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s database of registered trademarks. If they’re all taken, it’s back to the drawing board. This exercise will surely narrow your list down for you. Now, you can test the top three name choices, to see which option resonates most with people. You may be surprised by the outcome.

 

Increase loyalty with a consistently strong brand

Arriving at brand naming that really resonates is just one part of the puzzle. We already mentioned that this will sit alongside your marketing, visual design, and other elements, but it’s worth reiterating because aligning all these parts of your brand can have a huge impact on customer loyalty.

Did you know that being consistent with your branding across all platforms can increase revenue by up to 23%?

People expect to have the same experience – whether that’s simply visual, or more meaningful and interactive – wherever they go, so ensuring you have an airtight, uniform approach to your branding and brand experience is a must. If you a professional opinion on selecting the right brand name for your business, reach out to our brand experts and schedule a Free Discovery Call.