The next 60 minutes

+Nuts and bolts of name research

+What name research can accomplish

+How to prepare for research

+Different research methodologies

+Pitfalls to avoid when designing research

and interpreting data

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Naming: A high-stakes game

+ Trademark clearance

+ Linguistic reviews

+ Registration of domain names

+ Positioning

+ Visual identity

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Why validate a name?

+ To determine whether a name accomplishes its purpose:+ Distinctiveness

+ Consideration

+ To understand how a name affects perception:+ How does it contribute value to the brand?

+ What is the brand personality that the name helps to create?

+ Does the name help the brand stretch (e.g., price tiers, need states, different product categories)?

+ To mitigate risk (e.g. perform a disaster check)

+ To help inform the rationale for a name decision and overcome factors that can sway decision-making:

+ Biases

+ Internal politics

+ Idiosyncrasies

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Scenarios in which name research is useful

+ Merger or acquisition+ When a new company name is a possible outcome, you can

determine the equity of that name and how it maps to the equity of the existing company brands

+ Complex issues surrounding brand architecture+ The ability of a name to encompass different price tiers or need

states

+ Regional performance of various names

+ Competing agendas or company politics

+ Consensus-driven corporate culture

What name research should not be used for

+ To pick a “winning” name

+ To determine the likeability of a name

+ A means of soliciting ideas from consumers

+ When options are so similar or extremely literal

Which do you prefer…- “I.Q.”- “Smart” OR - “Professional” ?

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AssociationsThoughts, feelings and imagery that people tie to words

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DimensionalityGreater dimensionality is a key indicator, at face value, of a name’s ability to be memorable and engage consumers at an emotional level

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FlexibilityThe more flexible a name is, the easier it is to adapt to different product line extensions or price tiers

Names with greater flexibility can provide companies with more up-market (or down-market) stretch

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Value contributionHow well the name contributes value to the concept, category or brand

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Messaging,voice andpositioningDeveloped from the language people use to describe their needs and the personality traits they assign to the brand

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EmotionalengagementHow a name makes a person feel

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PronounceabilityHow can you remember (or recommend) a product if you can’t say it?

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Auditory resonanceHow a name sounds and whether the name matches people's perception of the product or category

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Consumer needs- Functional and emotional benefits- What drives preference- How you measure up

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Linguistic check and trademark search

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Brand architecture- What role it will play in naming- Competitor/category naming conventions

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The pros and cons of different methodologies 

It is important to remember that, regardless of the methodology you choose, qualitative thinking drives name research 

 Qualitative

+ Explores respondents’ perceptions, feelings and the associations they have with particular words and brand

+ One on one (IDI) format

+ Respondents can fully interact with stimuli

 

 Quantitative

+ Results are projectable (representative of the entire population being researched)

+ Confers statistical rigor and validity

+ Can also be more time- and cost-effective 

Eliciting feedback–the phased reveal

+ Round I: The name at face value

+ Round II: The name in context

+ Round III: Association with the corporate brand

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Certain names may test better than others 

Coined words (Kleenex)

+ “Made up” means these can be difficult to connect with functional attributes

+ Can be more distinctive (implications for trademark clearance and domain name searches)

+ More ambiguous = more flexible

+ Less polarizing

 

 

Evocative words (Cloud tissues)

+ Rich range of associations

+ Tend to engage, support an experience

+ Not as transparent as suggestive names

 

 

Suggestive words (SofTish tissues)

+ Literal and more familiar, so tend to perform better

+ Require less “thinking” or interpretation

+ May not stand out

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Context is important…

+ Ecological validity is critical

+ Without it, our understanding of human perceptions and decision-making is flawed

+ Notional applications (e.g., a business card, an advertisement) contribute to what is being communicated about the product, so they should be tested when possible

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With brand attributes, more doesn’t mean better+ Names should deliver on the characteristics that your product

or company wants to be associated with

+ But names alone do not need to convey all the desired attributes

+ Look also to typography, logo, in-store experience and advertising

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Memorability is good, but difficult to measure

+ You need to be top-of-mind if you want people to buy

+ High imagery names are easier to remember than low imagery names

+ Memorability can lead to greater word-of-mouth sharing, making it cheaper to build brand awareness

+ But true testing requires a time lapse, ideally when the decision-making takes place

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Brands and categories fit differently

+ “Fit to brand” and “fit to category” are typical metrics

+ But “fit to category” can be at odds with differentiation

+ Differentiated ideas are initially disliked by people because they are unfamiliar

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Key takeaways

+ Name research can reveal what a word does for a brand

+ It can also mitigate risk

+ But it is critical to understand what research can and cannot achieve

+ If done well, research can provide insight into:

+ What associations words can create—be they imagery, sounds, feelings or experiences

+ How people respond to particular words

+ The impact of a name on their relationship to your product, service or corporate brand