The name gameThere are three main options when picking a brand name – descriptive, suggestive or fanciful – but it should always set the right expectations for the consumer, says Nikolas Contis of Siegel+Gale

Is it true, as Shakespeare’s Juliet suggests, that names of things don’t matter and what matters most is what things are? After all,

“that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” would it not? Does this hold true for brand names and what they represent?

All too often, brand names do not authentically reflect the truth of the experience the brand delivers. And no name can compensate for what a brand is incapable of delivering. Neither Montague nor Capulet, nor Jones, nor Smith, defines the essence of a person. You don’t actually expect someone named Smith to work with a hammer and anvil do you? But unlike surnames, a brand name is specifically designed to set clear expectations – first and foremost, expectations about a brand experience. Names, in this case, do matter.

As marketers, we set expectations about a brand by aligning, in the simplest way, a product, a name, a strategic

foundation and a compelling image – an alignment many of us refer to, collectively, as a brand identity. What’s often missed is how critical it is to determine what role the name should play within the context of that alignment, and what kind of name will actually fulfill that role effectively. It’s like casting actors for roles in a play. Not every actor is right for every role. Getting it right can make the difference between a great brand name and a ho-hum, or terrible one.

Have you seen the 2013 version of the Chevy Malibu? GM might call this mid-size sedan a Malibu but, trust me, it no longer lives up to that name. In 1965, the Malibu was a sexy coupé, with a big-block, 396-cubic-inch V8 engine, a heavy-duty suspension and performance to burn. With the top down at sunset, at speed, headed north on the Pacific Coast Highway – you were cruising in a Malibu. Today’s Malibu is for car rental fleets, taking kids to soccer games or carrying groceries. Nothing will ever make today’s model a Malibu, most certainly not the name.

Putting any brand equity with an older generation aside, the name is ill-fitted because of the associations with the word itself – glamour, thrills, sun, beach, adventure, romance and Hollywood. Given what the vehicle has now become, it’s just not a Malibu.

The name Malibu makes a promise

believe? Consider Grey Goose vodka: here we have premium vodka with a completely unconventional name. And it’s a vodka not made in Russia, but in France. Most names in the vodka category follow one of two conventions; either traditionally Russian names, like Popov or Stolichnaya, or names that overtly suggest high quality like Absolut, Pinnacle, Ketel One, Skyy or Chopin.

But Grey Goose, unlike the others, is simple and unexpectedly surprising. It sets up a new story in the category – a story that entices, a tale to imagine, an idea to pass on to friends, a drink to call for when you need to impress someone.

The name Grey Goose, by virtue of being so different, is also true to what the product is. It’s not typical vodka. It doesn’t come from Russia. This odd name piques your interest and sets up an opportunity for a ‘different’ story to unfold. And this ‘different’ story directly supports the idea of quality. Rumour has it that the name Grey Goose was actually once the name of a German wine in the 1970s and that it was revived for its ability to conjure an ethereal, mysterious image.

But a name like Grey Goose may not appear obviously ‘good’ at first, especially in a boardroom, where the walls of logic and analysis can box us in. Within those walls, it’s so easy to fall into the trap of conventional wisdom and end up with a name like Pinnacle – ultimately, a name that tries too hard and that few will believe as genuine, much less, interesting. A forgettable name.

2 CREATE A SIMPLE, BUT BIG IDEACrate & Barrel is one of the most elegantly simple and effective names of

all time. Who would have ever thought that two basic words would have meant so much or be as sophisticated. In 1962, Gordon and Carole Segal opened their doors in an old Chicago elevator factory to sell merchandise imported from Sweden. Merchandise arrived in pine crates and boxes, some of which were used to display their wares. On a lark, they chose the name Crate & Barrel for their store. Talk about a name true to its heritage.

But imagine how that could have gone. Their concept was selling sophisticated, fashionable, contemporary designs at reasonable prices. At face value, one can easily

argue that the words ‘crate and barrel’ are far too ‘downmarket’ for their concept. College students use crates and barrels for furniture – not adults or families. And, after all, they weren’t selling wicker crafts and cheap bazaar items. This was about selling contemporary, smart home furnishings in a city steeped in iconic, modern architecture and design.

Had this been laid out in a boardroom as a fully baked concept, with slick mood boards and positioning statements among a gaggle of marketing experts, it’s entirely likely the name Crate & Barrel would have been instantly shot down. Hindsight teaches us otherwise. The name Crate & Barrel does several things wonderfully well. First off, it leverages a certain degree of ‘negative capability’. It is so utilitarian that, put into the right context, it becomes fashionable and modern. Especially when set in a beautiful, crisp and simple type face. In this way, it can be compared to Tyler Brûlé’s brilliant name wallpaper*, a magazine not about wallpaper, but about all the beautiful, stylish marvels that surround us. Once you see wallpaper* juxtaposed with Eames ottomans, Cherner chairs and gorgeous models on heavy, glossy, expensive magazine stock, the word ‘wallpaper’ means something entirely new and different.

The Crate & Barrel name also makes contemporary design approachable, friendly, casual and daily. It’s not stuffy, elite or aloof.

Finally, it plants two very tangible images in front of the mind’s eye. The words themselves conjure such concrete images, that they never had to develop visual icons to support them. The words are the icons.

3 DEFINE YOUR OWN TERMSEvery now and then, an opportunity arises where a brand name can be

instrumental in defining a new category. There are no existing, obvious words to describe what the product, service or experience is. New ideas are necessary.

A Swiffer, after all, is not a mop – it’s a Swiffer. Rollerblades, TiVo, Xerox, Kleenex, Jeep, Gore-Tex and Google all defined categories eponymously. They became eponymous because they obviously represented new and different experiences. The operative word is ‘obviously’. The

the new car can’t keep. Hence, it is an example of a bad name. A simple exercise in more rigorous brand architecture may have indicated this upfront – it would have answered the question of when a Malibu is no longer a Malibu, or when applying a name like Malibu becomes less believable and when a new name would have been more appropriate.

The Dodge Charger, on the other hand, lives up to its name. Take a look at the 2013 Charger and tell me it’s not as exhilarating and sexy as the original – to the core, it is what it says it is – and it’s still designed to rip up the road. What about the Aston Martin Vanquish? That’s a name that reflects the true spirit of an automobile. And the images conjured by Bavarian Motor Works cannot be outdone in representing The Ultimate Driving Machine.

It should be noted that the new Malibu has seen success. So, to an extent, Juliet was right – names aren’t deal-breakers. But I’m just making the case that, as a potentially powerful element in setting the right expectations, the name Malibu name may not be the most efficient and effective choice.

Thinking about other car names, one may ask, what about the Honda Odyssey? Isn’t that a bit of an overpromise too? I mean, really, it’s a minivan, not an all-terrain vehicle, right? Well, I bought one for my family because raising kids is an Odyssey. The name is perfect.

So let’s take a closer look at what properties make a good brand name. It all boils down to a simple premise – good names set the right expectations. In most cases, the best brand names do three things exceptionally well. They provide a unexpectedly simple and surprising idea; are true to what they represent and offer potential to release relevant meaning over time, even as products, businesses and corporations change and reinvent themselves.

Here are four more guidelines for developing great brand names.

1 TELL A NEW STORYOften in the world of consumer goods, creating messages that suggest

quality can be a bit of a wild goose chase. Everything claims to be best; what should we

Admap propogates thought leadership in brand communications and is published monthly in print and on the iPad. To subscribe visit www.warc.com/myadmap

experience delivered by these brands was significantly, and obviously, different enough to warrant nothing less than a totally unique name, which ultimately defined the category.

Twitter is another great example. It’s an old, rarely used word, like Kindle, so it feels unique yet familiar – and there’s a bit of alchemy to it. Like Grey Goose, Twitter is unexpectedly fresh and wonderfully simple. Text messaging, uploading and posting somehow just don’t sound as easy as ‘tweeting’. Twitter has come to define a new experience, a new form of behaviour, and the name is a lynchpin.

4 CONSIDER YOUR OPTIONSThere are essentially three kinds of names to choose from: descriptive,

suggestive and fanciful. Descriptive names like British Telecom and General Electric describe goods and services in the most stark, clear and straightforward terms. Suggestive names are descriptively creative, like WeedEater and PowerBook. They tend to be more evocative than descriptive names, but a little less transparent.

Fanciful names are either made up entirely, like Kodak, or convey meaning more metaphorically, like Amazon. They engage audiences on a more imaginative, emotional level.

There is an old argument that overtly transparent, descriptive or suggestive names require the least amount of investment to get a message across in the short term. That’s because transparent names allude directly to features and benefits at face value. But often a more fanciful name, like Amazon, is the quickest, most effective way to communicate and engage in both the short and the long term. Fanciful names often instantly stand out in a crowded landscape. They are also, in most categories, easier to trademark and protect than descriptive and suggestive names.

Had Amazon called itself Books-A-Million, it is less likely it would have become a household term. Names like Books-A-Million become, in most cases, recessive and less efficient – they disappear into the landscape of similar descriptive and suggestive names. Being less unique, transparent names are also more easily mimicked by competitors. More

fanciful names, like Amazon, also prove, in the long-run, to be more flexible. Today, Amazon is no longer only the world’s largest bookstore, but the world’s largest store.

This is not to say that suggestive names are ineffective. On the contrary, names such as DieHard, RayBan, Facebook and YouTube have proven the suggestive route to be extremely effective. Just be sure to consider all of the options and play out the messaging and marketing scenarios in both the short and long term to arrive at the right choice.

So, what’s in a brand name? A lot. As one of the smallest, but most ubiquitous and powerful pieces of messaging real estate, a brand name is a valuable strategic asset. The right brand name will differentiate your product or service. It will engage your audience in a unique way. Most importantly, it will set authentic, positive expectations for the brand experience you will deliver. In the case of brand-naming, a rose by any other name may not always smell as sweet.

“ Every now and then, an opportunity arises where a brand name can be instrumental in defining a new category. There are no existing, obvious words to describe what the product, service or experience is. New ideas are necessary”

Crate & Barrel: its name makes contemporary design approachable and friendly

This article was first published in Admap magazine January 2014 ©Warc www.warc.com/admap