What's in a Name?

Where brands are concerned, the brand name is the single most important identifier. It is intimately linked with the company’s operations and, as business perceptions are built around it, it comes to embody many emotional aspects as well.

An organisation or product name fulfils a number of functions:
> identifies the organisation or product
> distinguishes it from its competitors
> positions the organisation or product in relation to others
> provides a ready means of identification
> provides a visible, coherent recognisable identity to which employees, customers and investors can relate
> suggests quality, authority and integrity
> functions as a legal property
> communicates the company’s philosophies, personality, culture and products

The selection of a new name, or revision of an existing one, needs to be rigorously challenged to determine its effectiveness and relevance to the company’s activities and target market.

A name must be:
> appealing to customers
> appropriate to the company’s products and services
> memorable
> distinctive
> pronounceable
> legally protectable

There are seven categories of names:
> descriptive
> people & places
> associative
> non-related
> coined/abstract
> abbreviated
> alpha/numeric

Brand names are often accompanied by a positioning statement.
The positioning statement delivers a quick, concise and meaningful message to a potential consumer which complements the brand name and visual identity and helps consumers to understand the personality of the brand. Positioning statements are generally drawn from one of five categories:
> what you are
> what you do
> how you do it
> who you are
> why you do it

There are 5 basic phases in developing a name:
1. Conduct a communications audit of the company’s overall business, branding and communications objectives.
2. Develop a full naming brief.
3. Explore directions and themes and undertake initial name generation.
4. Short-listing, legal searches, and detailed testing of preferred names including multi-language applications, if applicable.
5. Legal registration of the selected name.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.

View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au

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