Ever meet someone and forget their name two minutes after they’ve introduced themself? This happens all the time.
In 1956, an important body of research suggested the average person can hold around seven items in their short-term memory. It’s called Miller's Law. This thinking has often been applied to brand recall. A 2001 study conducted by Neil Cowan, Ph.D., a professor of psychology who focuses on working memory, suggested the capacity of short-term memory might be closer to four items. Both these studies were conducted before social media took off. Today, we are bombarded daily with so many messages that even remembering four names in a given industry or category could be challenging.
There is, however, a way to stand out: a compelling value proposition and a brand name that pays off that proposition. Finding the right name for your brand is important as a good name builds awareness, aids with recall and creates equity. Thus, good brand names are a valuable, long-term asset.
There are brands that invest millions of dollars trying to rise above the noise, but not every business has such large marketing budgets. With the right proposition and name to back it up, any business can make an impact, without carrying a huge expense.
What Makes a Good Name?
Whether the brand is part of a corporate behemoth or a small business, a good name provides a short cut to understanding what your brand is all about and will leave an imprint in people’s minds. Below are some ways to think about approaching naming. Although these aren’t the only styles, I believe these types of names most often lead to success.
Names can be:
Simple and clear: Think Whole Foods. It’s easy to understand what they sell and what they stand for.
Metaphor or analogy: Consider Farmer’s Fridge, which evokes a healthy, fresh meal, or Jaguar, a brand that conveys power, speed and elegance.
Hybrid: This approach can be a blending of two words, which is called a portmanteau. For instance, Travelocity combines “travel” and “velocity” to quickly communicate the notion of booking travel at speed. Groupon blends “group” and “coupon” to quickly signify offering deals to a large number of people.
Evocative: Evocative names create an emotional reaction, like the McDonald’s Happy Meal. Rather than simply being called “kids meals,” it gets to the heart of what the target audience wants: to make their kids happy.
Some businesses choose to go with quirky, unusual names that are unexpected. However, if a name doesn’t connect to anything specific, this can be risky unless there is the ability to invest significantly to promote the brand. Thus, the more logical the name, the better.
In hospitality, a standout name of an offering that is simple, clear and evocative is “Westin’s Heavenly Bed.” The name is descriptive and makes an emotional connection, inviting guests to experience a comfortable, blissful and dreamy night’s sleep. This is a clear departure from what people often expect they’ll get in a hotel bed. Now, 25 years since it was first introduced, Westin’s Heavenly Bed remains a cornerstone of the brand.
A Guide To Finding the Right Name
Below are four steps that can help you with a naming challenge.
Define Your Value Proposition and Brand Story: This begins with understanding your target audience and what’s important to them and then creating an offering so special that it uniquely addresses their needs better than competitors do.
Unleash Your Creativity: Brainstorm as many words as you can that connect to your value proposition — adjectives, nouns, adverbs, etc. If you need inspiration, try consulting a thesaurus or an AI bot like ChatGPT to uncover more words that have a similar meaning. Consider sharing your brand story with people who may not be close to your work and ask them for unbiased, out-of-the-box ideas to add to your list. Give ideas a chance to spark. Sometimes the best ideas pop into your head when you least expect it like while driving, falling asleep or even taking a shower. Once you have a list of ideas, prioritize the names you believe communicate your story best.
Do Your Due Diligence: While not every name has to be trademarked, make sure the names you’re interested in are usable. Start with an online search to see what comes up. You might learn some of your ideas are being used by other businesses and could cause confusion. Cross-check the name to learn if it might be offensive. Make sure the name doesn’t translate into something off-putting in another language. Also, check if there is a domain address available that works with the name. And importantly, search your name ideas on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website to see if someone else owns the trademark. It’s helpful at this stage to confer with a trademark attorney to definitively confirm the trademark is not owned in your category, or if you are looking to trademark a name.
All these checks will whittle down your list to move to the next step.
Solicit Feedback: It’s important to garner feedback. Some companies take a formal research approach to see if the name resonates and clearly communicates the proposition with target customers. Others might pursue a more informal approach. In either approach, be sure to answer these questions: Does the name resonate with the people you want to attract? Does the name reinforce your brand story? Is the name memorable? Is the name easy to pronounce?
When done well, a strong name will build awareness, aid with recall and create lasting equity for your brand. This is a critical, long-term asset, so invest the time needed. It will pay off in the end — and your business will be one of those four items to stick in your audience’s memory.
Karen McSteen is principal of consulting firm brandMatters and a member of the International Society of Hotel Consultants.
The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hotel News Now or CoStar Group and its affiliated companies. Bloggers published on this site are given the freedom to express views that may be controversial, but our goal is to provoke thought and constructive discussion within our reader community. Please feel free to contact an editor with any questions or concern.