The history of great brands shows that they were named according to fairly obvious principles. Today on the Step Link blog, we're talking about ways to come up with a name for a business, including online shops.
Method №1: Use the founder's name
Including the name(s) of the founder(s) in the company name is a common practice among entrepreneurs. A good example is the Hewlett-Packard brand. The company was named in honour of its founders: William Hewlett and David Packard. They tossed a coin to decide whose name would come first. Other examples of world-famous brand names include Johnson&Johnson, Ford, Lipton, Gillette, etc.
Among various boutiques and fashion brands, the tendency to use the name of their founder is unlikely to ever cease. Just open any glossy magazine to be convinced: Chanel, Dolce&Gabbana, Pierre Cardin and many others.
Method №2: Word combinations
Graphic designers play with fonts, while copywriters' main tool is words and their combinations. For example, combining two or more words or parts of words into a whole is one of the most popular ways to create headlines. The founder of Adidas was called Adolf Dasler and was known to his friends and acquaintances as Adi. The second part of the brand name is an abbreviation of the family name.
Method №3. In the same rhythm
You may remember that at school it was much easier to learn poetry than prose. This is due to the way the brain works. To make your company name memorable, emphasise its singability and rhythm. Examples: KitKat, Tic-Tac, Coca-Cola, M&M's, Chupa-Chups.
Method №4. Association game
Coming up with a brand name using this method leaves a lot of room for imagination. The main thing is to find a starting point from which to work towards the final result. In particular, you can play with stereotypes, templates, psychological anchors. It is important to find the exact word that will trigger the desired associations in the minds of consumers. Examples: Red Bull, Puma, Yaguar, Bounty, Burger King.
Method №5. Abbreviations
In cases where long names are unavoidable, acronyms and abbreviations come to the rescue:
An acronym is a type of abbreviation that must be spelled out;
Acronym - a type of abbreviation and acronym that can be read together.
History shows that the effectiveness of such names is very high. Examples include
KFC - 'Kentucky Fried Chicken'. This name reflects the specificity of the fast food restaurant chain and the place where it was founded.
IKEA - 'Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd' - the first and last name of the founder of the brand, as well as the name of the farm and town where he grew up;
BMW - 'Bayerische Motoren Werke GmbH' - a reference to the company's birthplace, the German state of Bavaria. It also refers to BMW's original product line: engines for different tasks.
To sum up. It is important that the name is easy to remember and does not evoke negative emotions. The rest is up to management and marketing, because even an ideal name can be ruined by poor service, products and reputation.
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