Anyone can come up with a brand or product name. Just think about the category or characteristics, play around with those words for a couple of seconds, maybe write a quick AI prompt, and poof: you’ve got something that sounds like an actual brand name.
But that doesn’t mean it’s the right name.
Because a good name stands out from its competitors. Its spelling and sound are clear to everyone in the target audience. It fits within the wider brand architecture, has potential for a nice branding story, is semantically correct, and is not yet trademarked by another brand.
Naming becomes a lot harder if you want to meet all of those criteria. That’s why experts use a step-by-step process like the one below.
Step 0: the preparation
Before the naming process actually starts, all parties need to get aligned. First, we collect input and define the most important criteria.
What does the current brand architecture look like?
How might that change in the future?
Where does the new brand or product come in?
Which are the target audiences and markets?
How is the brand positioned versus competitors?
Based on that information, we define the criteria and goals for the brand name. In corporate settings with many decision-makers, it might even be best to define a decision formula: how will we mathematically choose between the names on the final shortlist?
The most important input is collected in a one-page brief, which will be used as a guiding star during the following steps.
Step 1: the creation
This is where the magic happens. We come up with names within thematic groups. Ideally, this phase starts off with a naming workshop with different stakeholders: management, employees, and even loyal customers. That way, we get a wider range of input and a better idea of how people view the brand or product differently.
Whether there’s a naming workshop or not, the briefing should always go to a specialized copywriter too. In some cases, even multiple copywriters. That’s the only way to make sure no stone is left unturned.
After this phase, we’ve got a long list of names. Sometimes 50, sometimes 200, sometimes even more. It all depends on the context and the budget.
Step 2: the selection
Here we start to shorten the long list. First, we pick names we like and discard ones we dislike. Once we’re left with a manageable 20 to 50 proposals, we check those remaining names against six key criteria:
- Is the name distinctive within the (product or brand) category?
- Is the name easy to spell and pronounce (for an international audience)?
- Is the name a good fit in the existing brand or product architecture?
- Is the name a good start for a product or brand story?
- Is the name semantically obvious (linguistically and culturally)?
- Is the name viable in trademark terms?
Many names will fall short in at least one of those criteria. That’s how the cream rises to the top.
Step 3: the decision
Now we make a choice between the final two to five names. First, we let each name come to life in a rationale. This hints at the brand or product story and shows how each name could shape the brand or product.
Then comes the actual decision. By voting, by a pre-defined formula, or by a combination of both.
This step can be hard, and not everyone might be on the same page. But at the end of the day, all of these final proposals meet the criteria and make good names. A lot better than what you might have come up with after a quick AI prompt.
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