5 top tips to get your brand name right the first time

Choosing a brand name isn’t an easy job and neither should it be. Your name is a crucial part of creating an identity for your company which will not only set the tone for everything you do, but also help you stand out from the competition. And as it tends to be the first element of your business customers will encounter, it’s vital it is distinctive and memorable.

It’s also important that anything you choose is fit for purpose not just now, but also in the future. Of course, it is possible to change your name, and lots of brands such as Opal Fruits, Hermes and BackRub (otherwise known as Google!) have changed their names for various reasons and with varying degrees of success. But it’s far better to try to avoid having to go through this time-consuming and costly process unless you really have to.

So how do you go about ensuring you get your brand name right first time apart from attending one of our brand workshops obviously?! We take a look at 5 useful tips to help get you started.

1. Define your brand

A brand name encapsulates who you are as brand and everything you’re about, which means, before you even start looking at names you should have a brand proposition, a brand ethos, and a brand role in place. These will help define who you are, what you want to achieve, why you are different and how you want to be perceived by your customers and employees.

And don’t be tempted to miss out this step, as without these in place it will be incredibly hard to get your brand name right and to ensure it will stand the test of time.

Also take a close look at your nearest competitors and see how they are positioning themselves in the marketplace and what kind of names they are using. This will give you some ideas on how can differentiate yourself, and an insight into what is the norm in your sector. You’ll then have a better handle on whether that would work with your brand, or whether you are better placed to go completely off-piste.

2. Brainstorm what names would work for your brand

While some branding agencies will insist the best approach for a new brand name is to make up a word as this will ensure it remains memorable (Accenture, Xerox, Kodak), others will say you should always describe what you do (British Airways, Lloyds Banking Group, Innocent Drinks). But the reality is it doesn’t matter what route you take as long as it’s right for your brand.

We recommend you have a brainstorming session with key people and come up with as many options as possible.  You should look at things like:

• Your founder’s name. Did you know B&Q was named after Block and Quayle?
• Descriptive words for what you do, and which can be easily aligned with your business and core values. Nike is named after the Greek Goddess of Victory while Virgin got its name because the founders were all virgins in business.
• Emotive words which encapsulate your values, offering and heritage.

From this list you should be able to pinpoint some which fit with your brand ethos and may even form the basis for making a completely new word. Matalan is actually named after the founder’s sons Mat and Alan!

Try and avoid buzzwords, as while they may make your brand name memorable initially, it could soon appear dated and potentially out of touch with the marketplace.

And remember your brand name is just one part of your brand identity. So, if you feel nervous about your brand name not describing what you do or the benefits you deliver, remember you can always do that in your strapline, which is exactly what De Beers have done with a ‘A Diamond is Forever’ and Walmart with ‘Save money. Live better’.

3. Make sure it’s unique

Once you’ve sorted out a possible brand name, you need to ensure its unique. This doesn’t just mean checking it against the competition, but also whether the name is used by companies in a different sector. This doesn’t need to be a deal breaker, but you need to be aware of the possible risk of confusion.

And if you want to trademark your brand name, not only do you need to ensure it’s not the same or similar to any other trademarks out there, but it also needs to be distinctive. Trademarking a made-up word is fine, but you’ll run into issues if you try and trademark something generic such as ‘restaurant’ or ‘ice-cream’ as then nobody else could use that word to describe their business without infringing on your trademark.

Also check whether the name is available as a domain name and as social media handles. It might be that you need to abbreviate the name or use an acronym. Vrbo actually stands for Vacation Rentals By Owner.

4. Test your name

If you want to ensure you won’t need to go through a costly rebranding exercise anytime soon, you need to double-check your name works. How does it sound when you say it out loud? Can it be easily misspelt? Is it easy to pronounce?  Or to put it another way, do you want to end up doing a Hyundai and producing a TV ad on how to pronounce your brand name?!

While some companies such as Siemens, Master Bait & Tackle and Kum & Go don’t seem to have done this test (or have done it and just don’t care!), you should always be 100% comfortable with what you choose. In Kum & Go’s case, their social media suggests they are completely happy with their name as it ties in with their spirited brand personality that embraces people laughing with and at them.

And of course, testing out your brand name applies tenfold if you plan to enter other international markets, as the last thing you want is for it to be inappropriate in your chosen market, something which global brands get wrong on a regular basis. When Mazda launched their Laputa Minivan, which provides “a smooth comfortable ride” and “a lightweight, impact-absorbing body” they quickly had to rename it after Latin American dealerships complained that ‘puta’ means prostitute! And then there was Vicks who introduced their cough drops into the German market. Sadly, nobody realised that ‘V’ in German is pronounced as a ‘F’, which meant ‘Vicks’ became slang for sex!

Also don’t forget to test your name with your target audience. While you might think your name perfectly encapsulates everything you want to convey as a brand, if it doesn’t resonate with your target audience, you’re on a hiding into nothing. After all, who wants to do a Royal Mail?! 

5. How does it sit with your overall brand identity?

Finally, now you have a name you and your target audience are happy with, you need to think about all those other elements which make up a great brand name, such as a logo and strapline. And remember consistency is key so all elements not only need to encapsulate the brand proposition you came up with in step one, but also be consistent across all your different business and marketing channels.

Above all, remember this is meant to be an enjoyable process as choosing a brand name stems from defining what your company or product is all about and then sharing it with the world. So, if you are struggling to get your brand name right, or don’t feel you are coming up with any viable options, book one of our branding workshops. It might just be the perfect way of helping you take the first steps to a great brand name.