What is special about the name?
Shakespeare famously wrote, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” in his iconic play, Romeo and Juliet. But does this quote hold up under scrutiny?
In this post, we look at the question, “What does a name mean?” We discuss branding and branding and ask questions like, “How do I come up with a business name?” and “Which brand will resonate with my market?”
By the time you finish this post, you’ll walk away with two things: A thorough understanding of how to create your business name, and tips for effectively branding your brand.
Does your business name really matter?
There are two arguments to answer this question:
- No, it doesn’t. As long as you provide great service and meet the needs of your customers, your business name doesn’t matter.
- Yes it is! Your name affects how people think about you and therefore, how they will interact and interact with you.
Which one do you think has more value? We support position #2. We’ll explore why this is, but first, let’s talk about the power of names.
Names have deep personal, cultural and sometimes historical connections. It is a distilled representation of a thing. For example, instead of yelling, “Short lady with long brown hair, average build, and penchant for dialogue,” all one has to do is yell, “Natalie!” and my attention is theirs. That’s a pretty powerful thing, isn’t it? To give someone your name is to give them the power to attract your attention at all times.
Conversely, a good name will also capture the attention and mind of the person who says or thinks of it.
What is important to note about this last point is that people in all cultures and languages have preconceptions about certain names. Or rather, the sounds that include names. This means they will have formed certain ideas about you just by the sound of your name, even if they haven’t met you or been exposed to your brand yet.
Name and sound notation
Have you heard of the Bumba-Kiki effect? Also called the Maluma-Takete effect.
Think of two shapes, one round and the other sharp-angled. If you had to name one of them “Bumba” or “Maluma” and the other “Kiki” or “Takete” — which would it be?
Did you name the round shape Bumba and the sharp-angled shape Kiki? If so, you’re in good company.
In a variety of cultures, people believe that Bumba is the softer of the two names and Kiki the sharper. This assessment could be due to the mouth feel of the names, with Bubba coming off the lips while Kiki remains a staccato sound originating further back in the mouth.
Additionally, people may attribute sharper qualities to Kiki-type names and softer qualities to Bumba-type names. University of Calgary psycholinguist Penny Pexman says, “There’s something about how humans are fundamentally associative,” she continues, “we want to see patterns in things, we want to find connections between things, and we’ll even find them between sounds. , and the things these sounds represent in the world.”
How should sound symbolism affect your name?
As you decide on a name for your business and brand, keep these two factors at the forefront of your decision making.
- Your industry.
- How do you want your audience, clients and customers to feel about you.
Let’s use the examples of Joan and Steven. Joan is a family therapist who goes out on her own and starts her own business. Steven has been working in construction for years and is about to build his own steel mill. Both need names to attract customers to their new businesses.
Joan wants a name that conveys trust and warmth, while Stephen wants to name his business something that conveys strength and energy.
Knowing that people associate softer, rolling sounds with the qualities her consulting services represent, Joan chooses a Bubba-like name. Steven, on the other hand, chooses a name like Kiki as it represents the qualities of his business. Not only that, but anyone who hears their business names will associate these qualities with them, whether they’ve worked together or not yet.
As you decide on your business name, think about the qualities you want it to represent and let that influence your decision.
How to build a business or brand
At Domain.com, we are dedicated to the business of names and names. We are often asked, “What makes a good domain name?” For starters, it should match your brand.
When it comes to a good name, here are the basic tips you’ll find almost anywhere:
- Make it short and memorable.
- Avoid unique spelling, hyphens and excess numbers.
- Make sure it passes the radio test.
- If someone only heard your name, could they type it in and get to your website? Probably not if you use “Qu” instead of the letter “K” and have two dashes in your domain.
Now, while useful and true, these tips are more suited to evaluating a name you’ve already come up with rather than creating a new one. So how do you create a name from scratch?
Tips for creating names
There are a variety of business types and brands. As you find yours, consider the following types:
- Descriptive names.
- These names give a good idea of what the business is about.
- Examples: Cars.com, Domain.com.
- Abstract names.
- Fictitious or “made up” names. It does not consist of dictionary words.
- Acronym names.
- Short names made up of letters that stand for longer names.
- Geographical names.
- Names that speak of a geographic location.
- Eastern Mountain Sports, West Coast Choppers.
- Compound names.
- Names consist of a combination of two or more names.
- Examples: Netflix, YouTube.
- Personal names/names of founders.
- Business names are created using the names of their founders.
- Examples: Cadbury, Ferrari.
Not sure what type of business name to use? Here’s something else to consider: How will you promote your business?
You see, business names (and domain names) can be broken down into two categories: Branded or Discoverable.
A traceable name is a name made up of actual dictionary words, such as “Family Financial Advisors.” A branded name is not made up of dictionary words, instead it is made up, such as “Optimize”.
The former name may be based on inbound type traffic for site visits. This means that people who type these keywords into their browser will likely find this business as a top result. However, it will cost more for their domain name as it is likely to be already registered and a premium domain. The latter is manufactured, so there is a higher chance that the domain is unregistered and available. However, you will need to create a strong content marketing strategy to support your name so that it appears higher in search results.
Ready to name your business and brand?
Before settling on a final business or brand, make sure it is available as a domain name and on social media platforms.
Register your domain name today!
Once you’ve decided on a name, share it with us below! We’d love to know how you decided on your brand.
