Branding Essentials: Creating a Unique Name for your Business or Product

1. Introduction: Hey there, enterpreneurs. Welcome to my latest class. I'm thrilled to share with you my very own naming process that you can use to name your product. Business service. I have developed this process whilst working for many years at Digital Ages, 10 grand agencies naming everything from things like APS, digital products, start ups and business is minimal. The most common mistake that I see entrepreneurs and business owners make when trying to create the name is they try to describe a function that they perform like lama or architect , or they tried to describe the way that do, such as fast and cheap. However, naming a product or business is a crucial branding activity and name that has a concept, an idea or story within. It makes for much more compelling and strong brands. When naming effectively, you need to consider things like your customers expectations, your competitors and also your brand positioning a great name will engage an audience and set expectations, so it's important to do it carefully and responsibly. Without the seed of arrogance. I have aimed to make this the most comprehensive naming class on skill share that takes into account all of the different brand aspects that go into creating a great name, as well as providing my very simple but powerful techniques for generating ideas for names . This class is great for business, honest, but it's ultimately suitable for anyone looking to create a memorable and distinctive time for business, product or service. It's important to recognize that a name can be either a great asset for your brand or it can become a disaster. So you need a structured, insists my process to follow for the class project. You're going to create your mates, and I can't wait to see what you come up and roll now. 2. Importance of Naming: So why is naming important exactly naming things and concepts helps us humans to instantly recognize what we're discussing or looking at simply because of our automatic association that we have with it. Let's say we're talking to a friend and we can tell them, Hey, let's discuss fast food or artificial intelligence or McDonalds or Google and straightaway . We both have an opinion, an idea or wealth of experience on the topic. Without names, we wouldn't be able to effectively collaborate with anyone before having to spending hours upon hours, explaining our concept to someone before they know what we're even talking about. This is especially crucial for naming businesses and products. Now, when naming is done, well, it opens up a story in a conversation and hopefully creates a good first impression. But when naming goes wrong, as it did for plenty of companies, it can become an Internet mean cause the business to be a laughingstock and given invitation port with a shaming. A few years ago, an American company, Tribune Publishing, rebrand itself to Trunk Inc that has sparked ongoing ridicule off the name on the Internet with some hilarious reactions. For example, online magazine, the Verge Road trunk is the sound of a millennial falling down the stairs, and it didn't stop there, eventually forcing the company to reconsider the new name altogether. Now, despite the importance that the name has for a business or product, I find it very surprising that a lot of business owners and in the produce treat the name as almost like an afterthought, whether it spent many months developing brilliant products and companies on Lee to go with the name that fuels right. The problem with that is they haven't carefully concede that the social and cultural context off the name, even the use of spelling or any other factors that should go into creating a great name for business. So product So fraud, this cost I'll be encouraging. Take a considered and thoughtful approach to naming. Now, if you still finding your grand for your company or product, it could be not the right time to come up with the name just yet. It will be sufficient just to come up with a project or called name that you can refer to eyes you exploring the different directions that you can take your business or product, and that way when inevitably your direction changes. As you continue to explore, you won't be stuck off a name that Lex relevance. So what makes a good name now? There are lots of qualities that a good name can have, but not necessarily all at once. But here's some starting questions to ask as a good starting point. Is it unique? Is it memorable and timeless? Doesn't guide employees in their actions and attitudes. It doesn't mean anything to clients. Does the name alludes to the customer benefits? The promise you're making to the market, what you do differently, your brand personality And also, what do you stand for? Anyone can come up for a great name off a little lateral thinking, but certainly not without hard work. It's not uncommon to go through hundreds of options before you can find a great sounding name that has meaning and relevance. So let's take a look at some naming types variations so you can start thinking about what your product business to adopt or use 3. Naming Types & Techniques: understanding what top of category names your business support can or should adopt can help you narrow your search. Or at least it can help you guide you prove to generate some ideas for the name. Now let's take a look at the category stuff I like to explore because I find it gives me a good, solid foundation toe work with the 1st 1 I called the description that is something like General Motors or Electronic Arts that pretty much says what it does in the box. That's probably the least exciting. A clever, off the naming conventions. It does provide a certain immediate relevance to decline. However, that's about all that is good for because it's not terribly emotive or memorable to anyone . Hearing name. Now the acronym is the descriptions close cousin. When names become too descriptive and too long, an acronym was typically adopted. For example, German car brand being doubly can simply be translated into English as the Bavarian Motor works again. Not incredibly imaginative or creative, either. In the first place, we have the foreigner uber were originally called Uber cab uber, meaning very best off in German, so their name therefore meant the ultimate taxicab. But uber cap were ordered to stop running the unlicensed taxi cabs, and therefore they had to remove and dropped the word cab. So they just started operating as the word uber in fourth place. We have alliteration. The mind remembers names by Sant, not by sight, and a liberation is a very pleasant combination of sounds that are repeated several times. So, for example, names that use this convention things like Coca Cola, Dunkin Donuts, KitKat they will tend to be fine and personal brands. If you're working in the corporate sector, this top of naming convention may not be right for you unless you really want to disrupt your industry with something entirely different. The fifth place we have the near logistic logistic names are either made up words or existing words that have been given a new meaning. They usually are formed by combining existing words or by giving words new and unique suffixes or prefixes. For example, Google is a great example of a near logistic name. There was originally derived from a name Google, which means a very huge number. Number six will have the associative names, which are similar to the NL logistic in the sense that they're usually made up off two or more words combined, while retaining relevance of both words and creating a new meaning now Facebook and YouTube . A good example. Suffusing this technique Number seven. We're having the metaphor. The metaphor is when we use our one mental image to typically convey certain characteristics. A good example is a British carmaker, Jaguar, with that metaphor there conveying the characteristics such as fast and powerful. And finally, we have the wild card naming things jobs, because now Apple comes to mind. And so do many other start ups and entrepreneurs and product makers that I've mentioned at the very beginning off this video serious. This tops of names have very little meaning or relevance to the company or its products. That can certainly be distinctive. But I really don't recommend this approach because unless you have large budgets and massive investors and the load of luck, there will be a very long role to educate your potential clients as the working brand actually does. What product us what it office. So without further ado, let's jumping to step one of generating name ideas 4. Step One – Brand Positioning: so to meet any bringing activity down with an absence off strategic alignment is like putting your money into a savings account that has no interest. So that's why I liked and show that I'm always working with a solid brand positioning because that gives me a solid foundation for any decision making. Now, what exactly is brand positioning, and why should we care about this? In the name of exercise, brand positioning is the ultimate way to differentiate yourself from your competitors. And when naming, you need to ensure that your line the brain position to show how you're different in how you're better. Naming things in that way will ensure that that your name is memorable and long lasting. Customers have choices, so if you don't stand out, you lose. Customers need compelling reasons to choose you over someone else. Now I have already discussed the brand position in my previous class, called creating Memorable Brands, so you can take a pick up some of those videos If you want to learn more about brand positioning now, for the purpose of this video, he's a simplified formula for coming up with your brand positioning statement. We are on a mission to insert your reasons why we insert your offering by instead you How that insert your customer's needs that have been met. For example, an online health product or service might have something like, We want to empower everyone. This is the why to take care of the health. This is the offering. We do this by creating a personal human connection with Beach Klein. This is the how focusing on the individual needs and tailoring information and services specifically to each one that's the customer needs being met. Also, make sure that you think about how that statement reflects and emanates your brand values as well. So let's have a look at some more well known brands. So we get a bit of context. This how a position statement can emanate the differentiation and ensure the point of difference, as well as convey the benefits for its customers. The very first example that I want to have a look at his Amazon now Amazon statement goes something like this. Our vision is to be the Earth's most customer centric company. That's their why. To build a place which is the offering where people can come and find and discover anything they might want to buy a line, which is the customer's needs being met. You'll notice that Amazon A meets the house. They feel there's not necessary to describe that in details. Now he's another example off Airbnb statement. We believe in making the whole world big community that we all belong to, which is the why we connect our guests and with unique, authentic local accommodation experiences. That's the offering provided by a host at competitive prices anyway. And everywhere. That's the customer's needs being met, utilizing the power off technology. That is the how. As you can see, you don't necessarily have to stick to the rules and have your statements word for word in the exact same order. Rules are made to be broken. Just make sure that the final position statement they come up with authentically represents your brand and your employees, and you keep people can send behind it. So if you do have ah larger team, make sure when you're coming up a position statement like this involve all of those lead the top people and those decision making people in the process as well. Typically, what I do for a large company. We would normally have a workshop where all of this Laetitia people are involved, and we first get them to do opposition statement individually. Then we would come together, refined and discuss each position statement until we can come up with one solidified, unified position statement that all of the decision makers can stand behind and believe in . If you're a cell preneurs, that's OK, you can come up this of disposition statement on your own. That's totally fine. If you do have a privilege off knowing someone who has intimately experienced your services of product and knows how you conduct yourself in business, perhaps send improve the position statement for their feedback so that they can let you know if they feel that represents how you conduct yourself in the business accurately and and then you can get some feedback from them and refine the position statement if required . Once you have your position statement, that's going to be one of our key criteria to validate our naming ideas, going to generate in some of the other videos down the tracks. So let's have a look at the next video 5. Step Two – Competitor Analysis: as we have talked about in the previous video of brand positioning, we want to enjoy that your name differentiates you from your competitors. So Step number two in the naming process is typically researching the competitors the existing names that have a zealous other key keywords and praises that they might be using . So using the worksheet list the names of your competitors, along with those keywords and any other customers that have come up with for their products or services well, ultimately, want to avoid using anything that's too similar to what your competitors might be using already. It could be tempting to kind of pick it back off existing bigger brands in your industry, but I don't It really doesn't work out at all, because when you're trying to piggyback often existing rule of brand and you're the new comma or or brand that's coming up trying to compete of this existing real brands, it's very hard to be noticed until you differentiate yourself balding. If you do decide to go off on existing Big Player, let's call them X y Z Company. Thing is, you'll forever be branded as that company that second fetal to exploit the company. And thing is, the customers and potential customers will keep going to X Y Z purely because nobody wants to go to someone that second rate in the next video, we're going to look at how friend personality plays a key component and key role in creating a major player. 6. Step Three – Brand Characteristics: Let's say you're talking to friends and they're describing someone they know. Let's call this person had them and saying that Adam is really resourceful, creative, adventurous, analytical. My mind starts to fill in the blanks based on the previous experiences who might have had with whom, where? So said it does come kind of descriptions with and as a result, might start to imagine what Adam's personality is like and what he might be like to deal with as a person. Additionally, next time when your friend mentions Adam, you might start to recall that he's adventurous or creative or resourceful. Now this is a powerful technique, and it can also be applied in branding in general, but also with naming for products and businesses and pretty much for my very early branding activities and exercises. I was always fascinated with brand personalities, pretty much from the first longer than I designed some 20 years ago. I loved to speculate what traits and characteristics that particular brand or product would have if there were a person, and to this day I still use this technique in generating ideas for logos, but also for naming businesses and products. Now brand characteristics are to be confused if your brand values Brenda Lee's are kind of your principles that your brand can uphold. Believe in brief for those values. This are the pillars off your brand, and they guide your decision making process. Brain characteristics are more like personality traits, so personality traits can be defined or established through different exercise is one of the most powerful techniques is brand archetypes. Now Brand Knocked Out is quite involved process as well in its own right. So we're not going to focus on brain archetypes today. But for this video, I'm going to give you a very simple but powerful tool that I used to define and establish some brand characteristics that rights. So, using the work ship product, I want you to have a look at the exercise and followed this along. So for step number one, I wanted to have a look at the promise. Write down. What is the promise that you make it to customers if they use your product or service, then write down your you speak what makes your product or service different, then write down. What is the transformation? So this is something that happens differently to when your product service is implemented. Step number two is the You actually write down the show description under each of those headings. Step number free, feeling the next column with 4 to 5 adjectives that represent each row. So let's say Google, what to do this exercise. It might look something like this. They would have the promise as something like Create a search platform accessible to all humans. From there, you might generate adjective such as accessible, convenient and universal. For the US, Pena might have things like predictive search results in the recommendations based on data collected on each user's preferences. Then the adjectives he might come up with from there are well informed, intuitive and resourceful for the transformation, Google might say, as if by magic, users are able to find more element results than anywhere else. Adjectives that might come to mind are things like Magical Dynamic and Weiss. So this adjective sedative listed in the second column can ultimately now become your brain characteristics. Granted, there is a little bit of digging that you have to do, and you have to make sure that you can resonate of them and your brand can resonate them for your products, resonate with them. Just make sure that when you're coming up with these adjectives and you listing them down, think about them in the context off. Kind of personality traits that your brand would have or your brother was have if you're a person. So with the brake characteristics created and defined, we can start to use those to stimulate further name ideas for your business or product. Let's have a look at that in the next year. 7. Step Four – Idea Generation: Now we finally come to the most exciting and creative part, and that's actually generating some ideas for your names. Now, as I mentioned previously, it's not uncommon. Sometimes go through hundreds of options, sometimes bad options, in order to actually come up with something interesting all before. Something great shows this pretty face. Now, just remember to keep this process loose and fast focus on generation off ideas rather than evaluation or judging off the ideas when instructed, you will be able to validate the options that you come up with. So let's fire up the work shoot, and we going to look at the brand traits and characteristics that have come up with earlier . If you are doing this with a group setting, I have provided a video towards the end of the class for some best practices to keep the idea generation optimal. Now, in the work ship you will see I have provided an additional table where you can list all of your finalized traits in the first column and also some additional columns for things like synonymous suffixes, associations and combinations. So, basically, in the second column, I want you to list any synonymous support your existing traits. You can look this up through dictionary that come officers that come, but don't be afraid to go more left field in obscure. For this, you don't have toe always stick to something logical and kind of regular. Now, suffixes and prefixes are a small group of flatters added to the beginning or the end of the world to change its meaning. You can play around in the next column with this suffixes and prefixes to either the traits or the synonymous that you have already generated. Now some common prefixes are R E as in Rebuild or U N. As in unkind and some of the common sexist, I thinks, like adding a Y or I N g. On the end. This rules are just a guideline. Feel free to get creative and add anything else that you may think off. This is all about creativity and generational ideas. In the next column, I wanted to trial be a little bit more blue sky, meaning think outside of the words that you already have, using them as springboards to see if any associations might come up for you, Not for me. Usually this is where some really interesting concept start to be. A Associations can be related very loosely to any of your existing words. Or they can't just be whatever your mind thinks about when examining in particular word in the loss column, have a look and see if you can combine some of the words or any other words and things that create a new combination. You can combined to more word that you already have on your least in your table. Or it might be an opportunity to come up with other words and add those into the mix. So remember, keep this fast and loose. Do not worry about the valuation. Judging of that is, just be creative and generate ideas. So, for example, if I started with an adjective called Resourceful, but I might end up within its anonymous combs his things like talented, inventive genius, then those might lead to words like talent Lee inventive eyes, these genius for my suffixes and prefixes column. Keep in mind that these geniuses maybe not a good example, but this is the point. You just generate ideas, not evaluating judge just yet. Then you kind of do more blue sky thinking and that might lead me to words like davinci Octopus in Atlantis. Remember, there is no right or wrong answer here. This is purely where my mind has gone, based on the words that I have seen written visually and also when I've heard them audibly so then from there might create word combinations like talent, oppose preventive and at land genius. This a purely examples that I've come up with in five minutes to show you how this exercise can be used. I think you'll agree that this simple exercise can be used to generate pretty great name ideas, or at least ideas that can springboard you to further ideas from just the deep. The most obvious and literal names will be unavailable for your domain name registration. Also trademarking. So you have to think laterally the most. The more laterally, the better. Now keep in mind that this table that I have provided is a great starting point. You might end up with some cool sounding names that you might be happy with, but the chances are you may not. So this is a great starting point for where you can further brainstorm third ideas and start connecting more dots and ultimately want to have about 50 to 100 different name options. That kind of sound. Okay. And then you shortly stores down to 10 to 15 names that sound the best from there. We're going to learn how we can validate the name options that you have in the next videos . 8. Step Five – Validating Names: congrats. You almost ready to have your awesome name picked out and start using it with only a few small steps left now with your worksheet referred to the name in metric stable provided it's pretty simple. Really. Use the table to list your top 10 to 15 name ideas and then rate each name against each provided cafeteria out of 10 totalling the number at end. I have six criteria items for you to rate your name against eso. You can confidently validator naming ideas to make sure that the meaningful, relevant and along with other manufacturers. So let's examine those six criteria. Number one. We have the customer focus. Think about your name and consider whether it alludes to what benefited customer might receive from your business. A product almighty salute to a particular customer need that might be met with your product or service. Now, Brenda Alignment. First, your brand positioning and your brand values when listening to the sound off the name option. Does it make you think about certain qualities values. So trades, which you may want to customer to associate with your brand or doesn't open up a conversation about what your brand promise of what your brand positioning might be. If you say the name out loud and wait for a while, can you or others recollect what it was 5 to 10 minutes afterwards, or is it gone completely? So an unforgettable name is simply something that this memorable and sticking now subject Livilla rate your name based on how unforgettable these now, obviously, the more forgettable you think the name is. The law of the school will be unique and distinct professed the name being different from your competitors as well as in general. For example, don't use generic words, especially don't use generic words that are Regula and standard wards for industry. That's certainly not going to be memorable or distinctive. So now I think about the product of business in 5 to 10 years, when it's possibly providing even more services or even more features that encourage the last. Now in that context, can the name be timeless, Which means can it really serve as a platform for many different stories to come? Or is it too restrictive in its use Now? Imagine if your name was dark colors, but in 5 to 10 years time, you think maybe you might expand it to other products, so maybe it might start selling cat food now. Naturally, Doc Wallace will be a very restrictive name and won't allow you to expand. And without really looking at your brand architecture and a costly renaming process, that's not going to be very easy. So you want to make sure that your name is timeless finally rate each time based on relevance. We talked about being different, but it's still advisable to maintain some level of relevance to the customer and to your employees, even if it only alludes to it could mean something to a potential customer. Or perhaps could you employs. Explain the name someone without that being confusing. Make sure when you're scoring and rating each name option. Keep its objective in the war in the mind off the context of the customer. So this is not using your gut feeling or your personal preference, but rather what put the customer be expecting to see so obvious rate your name options based on all of the criteria. With that in mind now, once you have totaled up all this course for all the naming options, you should have about 3 to 5 strong front runners and we're going to use those 35 options. Take them seven except in the next video. 9. Step Six – Registering the Name: well done. You have 3 to 5 shortness of name options. You will want to run the past, the most sarcastic and most shy person in the room to see if are there some embarrassing double meanings that you have missed. But with your short list what you want not to do, he's actually make sure that you can trademark and on those names now, trademarking bodies are different in every country, and laws are slightly very so referred to a professional that can help you perform this trademarking search for you. In a nutshell. You're looking to see if you can trademark any of the top options that you have in a particular industry sector and the trademark class in the fury. Now, if you have at least three options that are highly rated on your short list and also that trademark herbal now that's a good start, and you may want to also do, ah, life pole or serving with your target audience to see and test the names of them. But otherwise, that's a very good sign. Now you can use the worksheet document trademark availability, and don't forget to search the availability off the com name. Acela's that comes to you if you're in Australia or or the common name for your country. Sometimes it can be tricky to get the exact match for your trademark Andy of the main name , so you might need to get creative with some alternatives. For example, you won't want to broaden your search with other creative the main name extensions, like the TV or DOT net. Just that it gives you a few more options. Also, do a basic search off the social media channels that you think your brand might use and see if the Social media handles are available. If they're not available in the exact match again, you might have to get creative and see if you can come up with alternative. So I provided that in the work shit as well. Teoh least down alternative uses If the exact match for every platform is unavailable now once if picked out your best performing name, go ahead and launch the trademark in your associated class of goods and services. Get to the main name. Get the social media handles sorted out. Remember that sometimes acting fast can be very good in this instance, is but again ensure that trademark lodge mint is carefully considered based on the laws of your country. That's it. You're done now. In the next video, we're going to have a look at best practices if you're generating this names in a group setting. 10. BONUS: Tips for Teams: now. Over the years, I have worked with several teams and we've generated over 100 names for products, services, businesses and start ups and so on. And I want to share with you the different processes that have adopted and that worked for me to generate the names in the most effective and optimal way. Use them as, ah, loose guide. Do not literally follow every word for word. Again, rules are meant to be broken. But keep those steps in mind that I'm going to go from now. Keep in mind that this class is about naming. I'm going to assume that you have some brand positioning preliminary work already done. So for step number one in the team setting, we get your decision makers in the room. Now. This only works with people who ultimately will have a say in the selection off the name. What did lose you explain idea for the new business or product of service and any preliminary brand strategy work that you have already done, that being your brand positioning as well as the least of competitive names and keywords that they use? Step number two. Task everyone individually to explore words which describe the business product service based on the worksheet provided starting with synonymous suffixes and so on. Set a timer for about 30 minutes to one hour for these particular exercise. Now step number free group participants together, I find that groups off pretty for people is usually I deal and then task each group to further brainstorm everyone's answers to shortlist about 10 to 15 off the best name ideas again said the time for about 30 minutes for this exercise in Step number four. When the timer goes off, give them a further 15 minutes for each of the groups to raid the names using the naming metrics. So they each end up with a list of five top names. So Step number five combined all of the groups back together again and white board each group selections, then brainstorm and discussed the selections together and see if you can further shortlist the least down to about free top options based on everyone's input. From that least of free, you may be able to pick a winner. However, in some cases, the names don't always feel 100% right, and you might want to generate further name ideas based on your short list. If that's the case, then break up into smaller groups back again and do some further brainstorming all along, keeping the rating system going to repeat the rating system that you have used previously using the naming metrics in the validation for us. A sneak scribe now is a mentioned in my things that I have worked in the past. It wouldn't be unusual sometimes to go over 300 different options before we had some options that we're really proud. Often we could really think that that can really stand behind the brand and that the customers would associate with it will be the best fall from perspective of the customer. So here's some tips for running that in a team setting on and thanks again, I hope you enjoy the class. I'm going to have some final words and next video, but I hope that this class is used for you for naming your product and all business brand 11. Final Thoughts & Class Project: nice work. You should not have all the tools to create a unique and the stick name that is aligned to your brand and your customers. You should be able to stand proudly and boldly behind your new name. And don't be afraid if it's a little risky. It's all about what type of customer would come to you to purchase your product or service . Now remember, that's all about the customers. After all, that's why you're creating the product or service is to make the customers life a little bit easier or better. So I hope that you have enjoyed my class and I like to again to participate in the community and by Sabine in your class Project Azaz, the brand name that you've come up with or short list off brand names that you've come up with and also provide feedback to other students. And, of course, I would always appreciate on honest review for my class. It really helps me to keep it going. I hope to see you in my future classes. So thanks again for joining and turning Teoh. My channel called for the classes