What's in a Brand Name?
What you call your brand is very important. It immediately signals volumes of information and brand nuances to your buyer about who you are, what kind of business you are and the essence of your brand experience.
All of this in a name?
Yes, but only when you have worked hard to give your brand name meaning.
Brand names fit into several categories:
Proper Nouns - Brands that are proper nouns usually began with the name of the company founder(s), the product inventor or the place of manufacturing: Disneyland®, McDonald's®, Kellogg’s®, Wrigleys®
Metaphorical Names - These brand names have borrowed meaning from another context with shared or similar brand attributes: Apple®, Midas Muffler®, Arctic Cat®, Jaguar®, Nike®, Target®
Descriptive Names - These brand names describe the product, company or service with accepted relevant terminology: Foot Locker®, Travelers Insurance Group®, Acme Glass®, Precision Tune Auto Care®, Toys "R" Us®
Composite
Names - These newer brands combine parts of words to build unusual and
unique names:
SciMed®, Microsoft®, Trinitron®,
VeriSign®, Snapple®
New or invented names - These brand names are created by changing existing words or by making totally new words by combining letters: Kodak®, Xerox®, Immunix®, Viagra®
Acronyms - These brand names have been shortened and substituted for longer names. Over time, they have become the brand’s name: BMW®, IBM®, GE®, KFC®, MTV®, 3M®
A hallmark of a great name is that it is easily remembered. Your brand name should be unique and stand out, and at the same time instantly transmit who you are as a brand. Your brand name should be easily pronounced so that your buyers will be able to say it without hesitation. In addition, since 100,000 names are filed every year in the U.S., you’ll want to find a name you can legally own.
Talk to you soon,
Kae Groshong Wagner
CEO, Founder — North Star Marketing
Award-winning Author, Speaker
Brand Consultant
CEO Advisor for Sales & Marketing