There are many contradictions in the theoretical teachings on how to name a firm correctly.
Some people believe that without a good and accurate name, a product or firm cannot be successful. Some, on the contrary, say that the name is not as important as the quality.
Without a doubt, quality is an extremely important element because consumers are unlikely to buy a second time a product that will not satisfy their taste.
Many people when it comes to naming like to quote Pushkin:
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“What’s in my name for you,
It will die like a sad noise.
The waves splashing on a distant shore,
Like the sound of night in a deaf forest…”.
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Yes, but Pushkin wrote about a human name. Unlike a name for a person, the name of a brand or trademark is given for a longer period of time, and corresponds, rather than a human name, to a human surname – as an identifier of the whole family!
Like a once human surname (a fixed nickname from the past), a brand name should be a succinct and apt definition of all of the brand’s core qualities and objectives!
Name is the main contact element of a product with the consumer. Naming is the first step in the branding process. Therefore, the development of a name is an extremely important process of forming a successful brand as a whole. The brand name is its foundation.
Naming is a professional activity of creative agencies related to naming and finding a worthy name for everything that requires its own unique name.
An effective name is necessary for both newcomer companies and for individual brands that are just entering the market. The first thing that can evoke some kind of emotional response from the customer is the name. In addition, the name gives the product or company legal protection. The task of professional naming is to create a successful, interesting and trustworthy name. And, sometimes, to fulfill this task at a decent level you need to go quite a long way.
First of all, it is necessary to come up with a company name in such a way as to help the new product stand out among competitors and create its own niche in the market. For this purpose, it is necessary to evaluate the existing names promoted by competitors.
At the same time, most Russian companies start naming beforehand having studied the names of competitors, intending to come up with something similar. And foreign companies “suffer” from imitating other people’s success.
For example, at the time when the Macintosh company wanted to enter the market with a new computer, many professional machines on the market had scientific acronyms: DEC, PSDI, NEC, IBM and so on. Naming experts “blame” IBM for this.
In their opinion, the successful example of IBM convinced company executives that: just name a company with a spectacular monogram, and it instantly becomes the market leader.But no! Macintosh company put this “abbreviation” aside and – easy, memorable name Apple (or – apple) – predetermined the insanely successful fate of the new computer, now – the world-famous brand – Apple Macintosh.
As for the food market, one can cite such an example as the formation, following the Soda-Cola Company, of the American Pepsi-Cola, the Russian Russian Cola and the French Virgin Cola, as well as many other brands, among which few had a popularity and longevity commensurate with the prototype. To this day, the brand “Coca-Cola” collects most of the profits in the market of drinks, which are commonly called “cola”. Agreed, not least because of the great name-puzzle.
The human consciousness is organized in such a way that the most memorable is the rare, creative, sensual and the most distinguished from the general mass. The name must inspire confidence in future buyers of goods or consumers of services and create lasting positive associations. For example, research confirms that, among Russian and Ukrainian brands, such brands as Vesely Molochnik, Domik v derevnya, Oleina, Nasha Ryaba and Sandora, among others, have strong positive associations.
The name that is chosen should enhance creativity and serve as a source of inspiration for marketing campaigns, because it is on the name of the brand that the advertising strategy and slogans of the brand are mainly based. For example, the promotion of juice “Dobryy” was accompanied by a well-thought-out advertising campaign, carrying the idea expressed directly in the name itself – good feelings and good relations, along with the taste qualities of “Dobryy” (Ukr.) = both tasty and good.
It is necessary that the name reinforces the positioning of the product itself and, at the same time, contributes to the emergence of positive emotions towards the brand. In this regard, it is worth citing the brands “Russian Standard”, “Ideal Cup” and “Clean Line” as an example.
So, the naming should:
- to capture the consumer’s attention and enhance their inspiration;
- to sound consistent with the brand image;
- to be easy and memorable;
- Create a positive visual image;
- Overall, inspire confidence and positive emotions;
- convey the essence of the product by celebrating its uniqueness.
It should be said that despite the many agencies calling themselves branding or advertising agencies of full cycle, in Ukraine naming is only beginning to emerge and form into a system of skills in naming, which in the future may become the names of brands. Western specialists have already accumulated vast experience in marketing naming.
As an example, let’s take the principles of naming, which were developed by American specialists:
1. Repetition is forbidden. There is no need to use old-fashioned words such as “global”, “ultra”, “pro”, etc. As a result of such gore-naming, with the exception of really original inclusions, most of our companies look the same, as a result, sometimes not even accepted under state or international copyright protection. If you look in the telephone directory, you will find a lot of “Admirals”, “Altaires”, “Avangards”, and “Alternatives”.
2. The whole world in a name. The most successful brands have a universal meaning. Let’s take as an example the American company Mars and its product – a chocolate bar with the same name, practically in all languages it sounds the same and evokes positive associations with the planet that man has been striving to master for many years.
It is important to note that in the stock of the masters of naming, unfortunately, there are almost no such morphemes, so in the process of naming, often have to be limited to artificial word formations or just a pleasant consonance.
3. brevity. The longer the word, the harder it is to memorize. Words with one or two syllables have a greater appeal. For comparison, let’s take the words “rhythm” and “rhythmics”. Without a doubt, the word “rhythm” will be easier for the consumer to remember. In addition, a name that consists of one word looks more attractive.
Why are short names more effective than long ones? Because the name is remembered by the consumer unexpectedly, at the moment of choosing a product. If the name is short and unique, such as Rich, the person instantly selects and recognizes it among the rest of the list of products. Names such as International Business Machines or Mobile TeleSystems are not easy to remember and therefore their abbreviations – IBM and MTS – are promoted in the consumer market.
4. Meaning is not everything; semantics is just the support on which the word is held. Rhythm and phonetics are also important. Some accents and rhythms suit the product more and others less. For example, it is much nicer to hear “Eurostyle” than “Style Euro” or “PROlight” than “LightPRO”.
Another pillar for the brand name is symbolism in sounds. Letters and sounds evoke certain associations. For example, the sound “p” triggers anxiety and restlessness. That is why the noble and beautiful stone mRamor does not evoke positive emotions. Conversely, the sound “a” is one of the main sounds in any language. Its sound is open and bright. For example, “Bounty” affects the consumer through the “a” sound and thus evokes positive emotions.
5. You need your name to “tell a story”. As an example, remember the brand Milka, with its purple cows grazing on alpine meadows; Santa Claus, who long ago “flew away” on a reindeer sled beyond the scope of Coca-Cola’s advertising campaign; the brands Virgin, Camel, Borjomi and many others.
Now, hopefully, you understand the main purpose of namingis to develop a certain uniqueness of the name, which will help the brand to gain trust among consumers.
To achieve the best results in naming, with the question “how to name a firm?” you should contact the masters of naming. They will be able to come up with a company name quickly enough, but without losing the effectiveness of the name! When working with professionals, the cost of developing a name for the brand will definitely justify itself with a large influx of customers! Because such a “name” will not be just a random fiction, but – the best brand name, which has a solid marketing basis.
Brand development, naming, all this you can order in the KOLORObranding agency. Contact us !
