| The most common company naming trap is this - | | | | memorable and effective than descriptive names, |
| creating a new business name that's accurate and | | | | why is it that so many businesses make this basic |
| descriptive, but utterly forgettable. And it's easy to | | | | mistake? In large part it's because we conditioned |
| see how it happens. Unlike real life application, naming | | | | from childhood to conform, to be like others, and to |
| is usually done in a vacuum -- with no context, no | | | | follow the leader. As much as we don't like to admit |
| accompanying logo, web site or brochure copy. A | | | | it, most of us would rather follow an established trail |
| group of key decision makers sit in a boardroom and | | | | than to blaze a new one. One of the first questions I |
| toss names around in the air. And with no supporting | | | | ask potential clients is whether they want their new |
| cast, no background, no props, the good names | | | | company name to blend in, or to stand out. Most |
| often seem disconnected and even ridiculous. It's at | | | | adamantly say they want to stand out, but when |
| this stage the mind wants to make sense of the | | | | stand out names are presented, the red flag goes up. |
| names and without context, without supporting | | | | "I'm not sure," they might say. "These names are |
| elements, it defaults to free associations from the | | | | unique, but they're so different from anything in our |
| past. This is what kills off many a great brand name. | | | | industry." |
| Imagine a committee looking for a brand name for a | | | | And so it goes. The names continue to blend in until |
| new computer company. Someone suggests the | | | | someone names an airline Virgin instead of |
| word "apple." | | | | Southwest. Or an online job site Monster instead of |
| "Apple?" the group reacts in shock and bewilderment. | | | | CareerBuilder. Or a massive online store Amazon |
| "That makes me think of my mother saying 'One bad | | | | instead of Books-a-Million. |
| apple spoils the whole bunch,'" one committee | | | | Not only are descriptive names less impactful, they |
| member protests. | | | | are more difficult to visualize. I can picture a Monster, |
| "It sounds like something fruity to me," claims | | | | but I have trouble picturing a Career Builder. When it |
| another. "We can't be perceived as a fruity | | | | comes to beach shoes, I can imagine a pair of Crocs, |
| company!" | | | | but not a pair of Keens. These vivid mental pictures |
| "And what about worms that get into the apples," a | | | | provide yet another way to anchor the brand name |
| third member agrees. "And the way they rot, and | | | | in the customer's mind for easier recall. |
| how the juice gets sticky, and how..." | | | | Creatives names are also less restrictive. If you have |
| "All right!" the suggestee apologizes, curling up in a | | | | a purely descriptive name, what happens if your |
| near fetal position, vowing she'll never venture | | | | company's core products or services being to |
| another idea. | | | | change? How much additional advertising does it |
| And so the group comes to absolute agreement that | | | | require for Burlington Coat Factory to convince |
| the name must convey what the company does. So | | | | customers they sell more than just coats? |
| the next set of suggestions seem right on target... | | | | Are highly memorable names the only way to go? |
| "United Computer Manufacturers" | | | | No. Some small businesses don't have the luxury of a |
| "General Computer Systems" | | | | marketing budget and resort to literal names out of |
| "Quality Computer Corporation" | | | | short term necessity. And there are other viable |
| "Superior Computer Builders" | | | | naming strategies that work well. But for those |
| "Global Computer Worldwide" | | | | looking to build a brand name that will set them |
| The closer the committee comes to describing the | | | | apart, and reserve more space in the customer's |
| "what" of the company, the more they become | | | | mind, then an evocative, memorable name is the |
| homogenized and blend right into the rest of their | | | | way to go. Seth Godin makes a convincing case for |
| industry. They sound more like a business description | | | | memorable company names in his New York Times |
| than a brand name, and in doing so they obscure the | | | | bestseller, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business By |
| very identity they are trying to create. They don't | | | | Being Remarkable. |
| realize that the new company name will exist in a | | | | So whether you name company after a river, a fruit, |
| setting that helps define it, so that the name is free | | | | a dessert, a reptile, or even an odd color bovine, |
| to evoke feeling and emotion. An apple is fresh, | | | | chances are you will, on a minimum, make a name for |
| approachable, healthy, and invigorating. And so a | | | | yourself. And once potential customers notice and |
| company can borrow on the attributes inherent in a | | | | remember your company, the rest is up to you. If |
| completely unrelated item to convey the way they | | | | you do your job well, you'll have a company that's |
| approach its business. | | | | not only memorable, but one that's unforgettable. |
| So if creative company names are so much more | | | | |