Name generation is easier if you decide on the type of name you want before you start developing names

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Before you start thinking about a new name for your business, product, or service, you should pause and think about what type of name you want. I developed the chart above in conjunction with a trademark attorney. It classifies names into 5 different categories and notes the trademark strength of each (trademark strength improves from left to right) . Let’s examine the categories (from left to right).

GENERIC NAMES

Generic names are not ownable. They are not trademarkable. They offer no real insight into what your product can do. In short, generic names are useless. And yet many entrepreneurs want to develop generic names.

Stop it please. I understand that a generic name like Hotels.com communicates a class of products/services, and therefore seemingly implies ownership of that class of products/services. In reality, the opposite is true.

Consider the efforts brands like Kleenex or Band-Aid or even Google undertake to avoid becoming generic names that indicate a category. The reason they do this is simple: If you become generic, you lose the trademark. Here are a few examples of brand names that have lost their trademarks because they became generic: linoleum, cellophane, zipper, trampoline, dumpster, escalator, laundromat, and even aspirin were all once trademarked product names that have become generic names.

Never seek a generic name!

DESCRIPTIVE NAMES

One step up the trademark scale are descriptive names. Sometimes trademarks are possible for descriptive names. Sometimes they are not. Unfortunately, there is no clear-cut rule to clarify this dilemma. But I have seen many descriptive names get bounced by the US Trademark Office.

Entrepreneurs love descriptive names. The main reason is entrepreneurs feel that having a name that describes what the product is or what it does is like getting free advertising. And that may be true. Unfortunately, most of the other entrepreneurs in your space had the same idea.

Here is an example. If you have developed a new food chopping device that enables you to chop food into smaller pieces faster, then you may want to name this product “Fast Chop” because “fast chopping” is the main benefit of the product. In doing so, you may believe that you will save money on advertising because every package of the product is a descriptive billboard that communicates the main product benefit!

Unfortunately, you may be failing to consider that the competitive set consists of products called EZ Chop, Speed Chop, QuickChop, TurboChop, etc. Nobody is going to notice your “Fast Chop” product even if the name is prominent on the package. Any advertising that is done will be wasted as well. Consumers may think the product is great, but when they get to the shelf, they will be confused by all the similar names and similar products.

Is a descriptive name a good idea? Possibly. Here is how I would decide. Get the names of up to 10 competitors of your product. Then place them on the graphic of the spectrum presented at the beginning. If your competition clusters around descriptive names, then you should avoid that area because you will never stand out versus the competition. If, on the other hand, your competition is concentrated in the fanciful or coined names area, a descriptive name might be welcomed by your target audience.

SUGGESTIVE NAMES

I’ll admit I’m biased, but I consider suggestive names to be the trademark sweet spot. They are usually trademarkable. They often suggest some benefits of your product or service. They have the potential to be differentiated against the competition.

And they can become quite powerful brand names. Consider these examples:

· Twitter — The dictionary defines Twitter as: A light, but frequent chatter from birds. Isn’t that a perfect name for a social media network designed to encourage brief conversation? (BTW don’t get me started on the switch to X!).

· Dove — Dove: A delicate bird with a soft cooing call. A perfect name for a gentle skin care line?

· Pampers — Pamper: Indulge every comfort and kindness. Isn’t that perfect for your baby?

The reason I like suggestive names is they create a “mind puzzle” with your branding. When the name is somewhat ambiguous, the customer will then have to find a way to make the connection between the name and the product. Often the customer will spend time trying to figure out why the name was chosen, which can lead to higher recall of the name later and positive attributions to the product. If you use a slightly ambiguous name, the consumer might actually enjoy the “mind puzzle” and won’t have to work too hard to get your point. When consumers solve the puzzle, they will then have a sense of accomplishment because they were able to figure it out.

ARBITRARY NAMES

Arbitrary names are another wonderful option. In this case you use a real word but use it out of context. Examples include Apple, Nike, and Amazon. In each case, the name is a real word that can be found in the dictionary, but the intended meaning of the brand name is different from the dictionary meaning.

They are a little more subtle than a suggestive name. A suggestive name’s meaning is closely aligned with a product benefit. An arbitrary name is not (although company founders often rationalize the name choice with a far-fetched story). Steve Jobs named the company Apple because he liked the fruit. Later, a backstory was developed to suggest the name Apple was a good fit for the brand positioning because Apple products are “fun, spirited and not intimidating.”

Arbitrary names require additional advertising and PR support to establish the linkage to product benefits. But in the end, they can be very strong brand names.

FANCIFUL NAMES

Fanciful names are the trademark attorney’s dream date and the marketer’s nightmare.

Names that are made up (like Exxon, Kodak, or Pixar) are the easiest to get trademarked because they have little competition. But they are a marketer’s nightmare because they require a substantial investment to generate meaning.

As a name developer, I love the freedom that fanciful names allow. But honestly, they are usually a difficult sale to a client (unless of course the client thought of it first!). Trying to convince a CEO that a random name makes sense for the product is never easy. And consumer testing of fanciful names is particularly frustrating because consumers have no context for the name and often rank fanciful names well below more traditional choices.

Despite the shortcomings, if you have the opportunity to launch a breakthrough fanciful name you can be perceived as innovative and forward thinking. If your situation allows fanciful names, you should consider them!

SUMMARY

In reality, 4 out of 5 of these categories of names will work (please say no to generic names). Obviously, you may have a personal preference for one category and if you want that type of name then go for it! Just be careful about the influence of existing competitive names.

Here is a visual way to demonstrate the competitive issue. In the three groups of circles shown below, the circle in the center is always the same size. However, as you can see, the center circle looks smaller or larger based upon the size of the other circles surrounding it. The group of circles on the right has six similarly sized circles, and you can see how it is impossible to distinguish one from another. It is far better to be the outlier, such as the center circle in the first two groups of circles.

Don’t be like the group of circles on the right. Make sure you choose the type of name that will help you stand out from your competitors.

Choose the type of name you want before you start brainstorming! It will make your task easier!

A professional name developer (me) suggesting that you use AI to generate names? Blasphemy!

Photo by Alex Knight on Unsplash

Yes, it’s true. I’m suggesting that you use AI to generate names. NOTE: I emphasized the word generate because I am not suggesting that you use AI to analyze or choose the name you will use.

I’ve always said the hard part of being a professional name developer is not generating names, but rather deciding on the best names from a massive list of names. The reality is you should not have a hard time generating names, but most of us don’t know how to pick the perfect name from the masses. That is why you pay a professional name developer!

But many people cannot afford to hire a professional name developer, and that is why a lot of people are jumping on the “AI Name Generation” bandwagon. And frankly, I know many name developers who use AI to generate names to round out the effort of human name generators (myself included).

The good news? AI is really good at generating names if, and only if, you provide it with proper direction.

The bad news? You will be inundated with names. So many names. You will feel like you are trying to get a drink from a fire hose. So the new challenge becomes “how do I choose the right name?”

Fortunately, there is a straightforward process to make AI work for you.

Step 1: Proper Direction

Giving AI proper direction to generate relevant names is not easy. In fact, “Prompt Engineers,” people who spend their day coaxing AI to produce better results, are a hot career option right now.

If you are not an AI whisperer, fear not. You can leverage the knowledge of others by looking at sample AI prompts on this website. Once you get the idea of what makes a good prompt, you can develop one for your name generation exercise.

I strongly suggest that you provide AI with as much strategic information on your naming task as you can. I would include specifics on your target audience, the market in which you compete, your unique selling proposition, the brand personality, and much more. If you want to get a better understanding of the strategic elements of the naming effort, you can check out my DIY Naming book (https://diynaming.com/).

I’ve constructed a sample prompt for you below (the product is a novel toilet plunger and the info below is totally made up). I used this prompt with ChatGPT and got the following:

ME: You are a professional naming expert with great skill in developing names. Come up with ten names for a toilet plunger that indicate the plunger minimizes the effort to clear a clogged toilet. Unlike other toilet plungers, you just have to push once and the clog is cleared. While other toilet plungers talk about power, we want to talk about easy to use. The toilet plunger will likely be purchased by men aged 25 to 65 at a home improvement store such as Home Depot or Lowe’s. Please give the meaning behind each name and your rationale for recommending each name.

CHATGPT: Sure, here are ten name options for a toilet plunger that minimizes the effort required to clear a clogged toilet:

1. EasyPush: This name highlights the ease of use by emphasizing that all it takes is one push to clear a clogged toilet.
2. OnePush: This name is simple and straightforward, emphasizing that users only need to push the plunger once to clear the clog.
3. QuickClear: This name highlights the speed and ease of clearing a clog with this plunger, with the emphasis on “quick” and “clear.”
4. Effortless: This name emphasizes that the plunger requires minimal effort to use and clears clogs easily.
5. PushClear: This name combines the action required to use the plunger with the end result of clearing the clog, emphasizing that all it takes is one push to clear a clogged toilet.
6. ClogEase: This name combines the words “clog” and “ease” to emphasize the easy-to-use nature of the plunger.
7. SwiftPlunge: This name emphasizes the speed and efficiency of the plunger, with the word “swift” conveying a sense of quickness.
8. OneShot: This name is concise and memorable, emphasizing that users only need to use the plunger once to clear the clog.
9. SmoothClear: This name combines the ideas of ease and efficiency, emphasizing that the plunger provides a smooth and easy way to clear a clogged toilet.
10. EasyClear: This name is simple and straightforward, emphasizing the ease of use and the end result of a clear toilet.

Overall, these names focus on the ease of use and efficiency of the plunger, with names like EasyPush, QuickClear, and ClogEase emphasizing the ease of clearing clogs, while names like OnePush and OneShot emphasize the minimal effort required. Names like Effortless and SmoothClear combine both ideas to emphasize both the ease and efficiency of the plunger.

So how did ChatGPT do? I’d give it a B minus. If you are looking for functional names that indicate the benefits, then you might score it higher. But there is no “Swiffer” equivalent here. Of course, you could tweak your prompt and try again until you get a healthy list of names that you like.

NOTE: I’m guessing that none of these names would pass trademark clearance, as functional names saturate most markets.

Step 2: Sorting and Screening

Once you get a list of ten names you like, you might want to pause and evaluate. There are 4 important evaluation steps you must complete:

1. Does the name align with your strategy? Does it address the needs of your target audience? Does it hint at your point-of-difference? Perhaps it suggests a rationale for the product. Is the brand personality expressed in the name?

2. Is the name clearly differentiated versus your competition? Does the name sound like your competitor’s name? Would people confuse the two? If you put your name on a competitor’s product, would it work?

3. Is the name available from a trademark standpoint? You can’t mess around with this one. You must see if the name is in use elsewhere. If you do a Google search and see someone else using the name, then in general you can’t use it. You should also examine the US Trademark Office records here: uspto.gov.

4. What does your target market think of the name? The best way to validate your name is to ask your target audience what they think. Big companies would commission a several thousand-dollar market research study to accomplish this task. You can do this for a fraction of the cost by using a cost-effective research tool like 1Q (https://site.1q.com/). Simply ask the following question using your final name selections, and you can get results for as little as $1 per question per respondent:

We’ve created a new toilet bowl plunger that minimizes the effort to clear a clogged toilet. What should we call it?

a. FastFlush

b. Magic Plunger

c. Perfect Plunge

d. MegaPlunger

e. Plungeriffic

You can spend $100 and get a good understanding of which names rise to the top from 100 members of your target audience.

If you need more details, each of these steps are covered in detail in my DIY Naming book.

Step 3: Decide

This one is easy! Simply use the Name Evaluation Tool (available free at https://payhip.com/b/VkI56 ) to score the name you have chosen. If your name scores well then you could be done! If not, rinse and repeat!

You can use AI to help you develop a winning name! If you need further assistance, feel free to reach me at www.NameFlash.com!

The Pac-12 college football conference no longer has 12 teams. In fact, after the recent departures, they are down to 4 teams. Conversely, the Big Ten Conference now has 14 teams and will soon have 18. The Big 12 conference will grow to 16 teams.

Confused?

Well, that is the issue with launching your brand with a name that immediately limits your expansion potential.

When the Big Ten Conference added Penn State in 1990 they grew to 11 teams. They tried to finesse their branding by including the number 11 in the negative space around their name:

The Big Ten had 11 teams for 20+ years until they added Nebraska in 2011 and then rapidly added Maryland and Rutgers. They modified their logo to just say “10.”

However, those clever logo gymnastics would not have been necessary if the people in charge of the brand had followed an important rule of name development: Names should allow for future expansion. Clearly the Big Ten Conference name was a gross violation of this principle.

Another brand name in the news has also demonstrated a violation of this principle: Overstock.com. When the company was started in 1997 it had a very niche positioning – selling excess inventory from other companies. But over time the name Overstock.com has proven to be limiting as the company grew to include many other product lines that were not just excess inventory.

Overstock.com recently acquired the digital assets of Bed Bath & Beyond, and has relaunched Overstock.com as Bed, Bath & Beyond. In particular, the “& Beyond” flexibility overcomes the limitations of the Overstock.com name.

But they would not have had to do that if they had chosen a more flexible name in the first place.

I get it. Companies with a niche positioning want to focus on the very narrow definition of the brand. And in the Big Ten Conference situation, I don’t think anyone was considering how significant the brand would become when it was named in the 1950’s.

But CEO’s need to provide long-term thinking and expansion possibilities when considering the name.

My advice is to always allow for future expansion in the name. That is one of the key points in my Name Evaluation Tool (available free at https://payhip.com/b/VkI56).

In the meantime, Big Ten, Big 12, and Pac-12…I’m available if you want to rebrand!

Photo by ABDALLA M on Unsplash

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) defines trademark bullying as “the act where the trademark owner uses its trademark rights to harass and intimidate another business beyond what the law might be reasonably interpreted to allow.”

The classic example of a trademark bully is Apple. Here is an example of their overreach. As detailed in this article, Apple is challenging farmers in Switzerland over their use of an apple in their logo as shown below. I don’t know about you, but this use of the apple image doesn’t seem like it is infringing on the Apple Inc. use of an apple.

This is not the first time Apple has pursued action against another company’s apple trademark. The most famous example is when Apple Inc. challenged Apple Corps (the record company owned by The Beatles). In 2007, Apple Inc. and Apple Corps reached a settlement of their trademark dispute under which Apple Inc. owns all the trademarks related to “Apple” and will license certain of those trademarks back to Apple Corps for their continued use.

I do understand the need to challenge other companies when a trademark application comes close to home. The law demands that a trademark owner defend its trademark against such incursions or else it can lose its trademark protection. However, I can also attest to the fact that these defensive actions are often perceived as “big company beating up the little guy” and can generate lots of negative PR.

The Taco Tuesday trademark fiasco is a different approach by a big company. “Taco Tuesday” has been trademarked for more than 40 years by Taco John’s, a fast-food chain from Wyoming. However, in May, Taco Bell filed a challenge with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, urging the agency to cancel the “Taco Tuesday” trademark so it would be “freely available to all who make, sell, eat and celebrate tacos.”

Let me repeat that. Taco Bell decided that a valuable trademark that is owned by a competitor should be invalidated, and started legal proceedings to challenge the trademark.

This is just another form of trademark bullying (or is it Trademark Blackmail?). In this case, Taco Bell, a large global company with deep pockets, has thrown down the gauntlet against a much smaller company, Taco John’s. Their actions indicated that they were coming after Taco John’s trademark and would be willing to sue to get it. I won’t try to predict who would win a lawsuit, but I tell you with certainty that Taco Bell would have a lot more funding and lawyers to persist in the lawsuit and appeals than Taco John’s would. Taco John’s CEO Jim Creel said in a statement that paying millions to defend the trademark didn’t “feel like the right thing to do.” “As we’ve said before, we’re lovers, not fighters, at Taco John’s,” Creel said.

Taco John’s gave up a valuable trademark rather than fight an expensive legal battle. They did so in noble fashion, by issuing a challenge to Taco Bell and other competitors. Instead of spending money on the trademark dispute, Taco John’s donated around $40,000 to the nonprofit Children of Restaurant Employees, which provides financial aid to restaurant workers when they, a spouse or their children face a life-altering crisis. “Let’s see if our friends at Taco Bell are willing to ‘liberate’ themselves from their army of lawyers by giving back to restaurant families instead,” Creel said.

But still…another big company gets away with “legal”  bullying…again.

Just Understand How People Process Information

If you’ve ever wondered why you understand things that other people do not, you might have a different learning style than other people. Or maybe you are frustrated because you cannot get other people to understand your point of view. Again, different learning styles might be the cause.

In the field of education, it is widely recognized that students have various learning styles. One of the most widely used summaries of learning styles is Neil Fleming’s VARK model (https://vark-learn.com/) which categorized people into 4 classifications:

1. Visual Learners — People who have a preference for learning from pictures or visual aids

2. Aural Learners — These people learn through listening

3. Reading-Writing Preference Learners — Those who learn through reading & writing

4. Kinesthetic Learners — People who learn through moving or active exploration

If you are trying to do a better job of communicating with someone, you can get them to do the VARK questionnaire on that website to evaluate which communication style is their preference. Once you figure it out, then you will know how to effectively communicate with him/her!

The International Journal of Linguistics and Communication (Vol. 5(1), June 2017) has a fantastic summary of the ways to appeal to each type of learner. Check this out!

When looking at learning styles, what is fascinating to me is there are few people who are 100% of any of these modalities (data from VARK website). Fewer than 2% of people are exclusively Visual Learners. Only 4.2% of people are exclusively Read/Write. Only 5.1% are exclusively Aural Learners. The biggest block of exclusive learners is Kinesthetic at 22.8%.

And yet, how many of us try to communicate with someone in a single way (usually by writing only or by talking only)?

Combining modalities enhances learning and gets your message across to more diverse people. Therefore, communication approaches that combine modalities (such as the visual and the auditory) can be beneficial to recall and persuasion of your messaging. In fact, the largest group of learning preferences is the VARK grouping shown in brown below, which combines all 4 classifications of learning.

The moral of the story is simple. To enhance your communication, engage as many human senses as possible in it.

Here is a practical example from television advertising: “Snap, Crackle, Pop — Rice Krispies!” If you are of a certain age, you not only heard the jingle that went along with that phrase, but you also heard the cereal itself (which really does pop when milk is poured on it). “Plop, plop, fizz, fizz, oh what a relief it is” is another good example, as that jingle for Alka-Seltzer built a million-dollar business (and, yes, the product performs as advertised). Both examples used visual, aural, and read/write modalities to get the message across.

If you want the “quick course” on engaging the senses, you should buy this amazing book: “A Natural History of the Senses” by Diane Ackerman. She touches upon all of the senses and explores the depth and breadth that can be reached in each one. I can assure you, you won’t think of the five senses in the same way after reading this book.

Obviously multisensory communication is not possible in every situation. But if you want to communicate in a way that maximizes the number of people who understand your message, you should use as many senses as possible:

· Work hard to insert quality visuals into your articles.

· Provide a podcast for aural learners.

· And make sure you have a hands-on guide that gets people working right on the spot.

Your communication will benefit from this effort!

But It Really Revs Your Brain!

Photo by Cleyton Ewerton on Unsplash

Almost everyone loves a good magician. The magician’s sleight of hand technique in making a coin or playing card disappear/reappear delights us, as we usually take pleasure in being fooled in this manner. Once fooled, our curious brain rapidly kicks into gear and tries to figure out how the magician did the trick. Sometimes you figure it out, and then you get even greater pleasure. Even when you can’t figure it out, you are still amazed!

Magic tricks only work if two things occur. First, the magician must divert your attention away from where the actual trick is happening, and second, your brain must fill in any missing information by combining what you already know with whatever you perceive at that very moment. Truth be told, the magician is not creating the illusion — your brain is creating the illusion that something has happened (when in reality the magician has done something else).

The science behind the brain’s “filling in” process is fascinating (read this Discover magazine article). The sub-headline of the article says it all: “The eye and brain work in a partnership to interpret conflicting signals from the outside world. Ultimately, we see whatever our brains think we should.”

Here is a great example of how the “filling in” process works. Quickly read the paragraph below:

It deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr all the ltteers in a wrod are. You can stlil raed it wouthit a porbelm bcuseae the huamn mnid wroks by a porecss of ptatern rceigontion. It dtemrines maennig bfoere porecssnig dteails.

Isn’t tihs amzanig? Your brain can make sense of even the most chaotic situation.

Another way the brain “fills in” to provide a seamless reality is dealing with blind spots. I’m not talking about the areas where you cannot see in the rear-view mirror of your car! I’m talking about the significant gaps that exist in your vision. You may not be aware of them, but there are parts of your retina that have no photoreceptors and therefore you are essentially blind in that area. Nevertheless, your brain fills in those gaps so your perception of reality is flawless.

The “filling in” process has been shown in numerous studies to be important to generating lasting recall and favorable persuasion of messages and experiences. If the person’s brain is engaged and filling in the gaps, then the person will remember the experience and usually be favorable towards it.

By engaging with a mind puzzle, your brain is demonstrating curiosity. Author Ian Leslie describes curiosity as a combination of intelligence, persistence, and hunger for novelty in his book Curious: The Desire To Know And Why Your Future Depends On It. He makes a strong argument that maintaining curiosity is critically important as we grow older and are subjected to ever-increasing demands on our focus.

In their Psychology Today article The Mind of the Puzzler psychologists Sternberg and Davidson argued that solving puzzles entails the ability to compare hidden information in a puzzle with information already in memory. More importantly, in order to solve a puzzle, the brain must combine the two types of information to form novel ideas. When the brain successfully identifies the pattern or twist that the puzzle entails, you will typically get an “Aha! Effect” which leads to a positive emotional feeling as well. Challenging your brain with puzzles has been shown to improve memory and brain function in numerous clinical studies (here is the latest).

Another great way to engage your curious brain is to read mysteries. Mysteries are often more engaging than puzzles because often there is no definitive answer as there is with a crossword puzzle. Mysteries are murkier, and the brain likes to be challenged with questions that are complex and interrelated.

Curiosity has been shown to be a great benefit to the human brain. We should all strive to be more curious about our lives, especially as we get older. So read a great mystery or do a daily crossword puzzle! Engage with a different group of people. Learn some new skills. Your brain will thank you later!