Name gallery #20: 7/10

I like the hybrid name, the inventive use of the number in the logo and the way the number and the word for the number are perfectly integrated. Smart stuff.

Odd v/s Even

This post about a brand named '7 for mankind' got me musing on something odd about brand names with, or that are, numbers. A quick research will tell you that most 'number brands' prefer an odd number to an even one. (Cases in point are brand names like 3, 9, 7/11, 7-up, 57, 3663 and of course 7 for mankind, to name a few.) Why are odd numbers more memorable? Simple: Even is not odd enough to stand out. Takeaway tip: If you must put a number in your brand name, go with something odd.

I v/s U

An interesting thought popped into my mind. Much like Apple has captured the 'I' in our minds, Youtube seems to have usurped the 'U'. How did this occur to me? Well, I was playing the Name Game and the first brand that came to mind when I came to the letter 'U' was Youtube. (No, I didn't think iPod for 'I', but that's because Apple is a stronger brand.) Is it just me or is it also the same with you? Map this against the marketing strategies of Apple and Youtube and you'll realise how well the 'letter-capture' works for them. Apple is a company that's about individuality and Youtube is a brand about user-generated content. Hmm.

Country v/s Country

Going by the principles of naming expounded by yours truly, yours truly is of the opinion that India and China, to name but two, are good, memorable names to have for a country. So which is the least memorable name for a country? I don't remember. (Imagine if people felt that way about your newly, lovingly launched brand.)

Incidentally, if you did spend some time analysing country names, you'll realise how nicely they adhere to the principles of good naming. Examples: Japan, Russia, Pakistan, Bangladesh...notice the stop-start pattern?

Thingnamer v/s Brandnama v/s Brandaclaus

The Name Game is catching on. Here's my list of 26 names after each letter of the English Alphabet. Where's yours?
Adidas
Boyzone
Caterpillar
Du
Ebay
Folgers
Google
Haier
India
Joost
Kinkos
Lily
Mojo
Nike
Orange
Puma
Qualcomm
Rabobank
Sandoz
Tiger
U-tube
Viacom
Waterman
Xbox
Yellowstone
Zippo

Well, boys and girls what can we learn from this? Off the top of my head, this: That strong consonant sounds are the key to memorable brand names. That soft vowel sounds don't make as much of an impact on the mind. That a soft touch will only work as a counterpoint to a hard sound. And that's why you should always choose brand names that alternate between soft sounds and hard sounds. Go back to my top-of-my-mind list to see what I mean. Think of your own list and you'll end up doing what I mean.

Hungary v/s Bulgaria

And Bucharest v/s Budapest. Any name is a brand name minus the brand and that's why I'd like to spend a few minutes trying to understand why people confuse Budapest with Bucharest and Hungary with Bulgaria. I have a friend from Bulgaria whose country of origin I sometimes confuse with Hungary. Ever wondered why? I did. And no, it has nothing do with bad Geography. I rock in Geography. Ask me the capital cities of most countries in the world and I'll reel them off within and without the blink of an eye. So what makes me confuse Bulgaria with Hungary? The same things that you should keep in mind when picking a brand name for your product. Take a closer look at the cities and countries I have mentioned in this post. Look at where the 'G' in Hungary and Bulgaria is. Look at where the 'R' is. Look at where the word Bucharest stops for the first time. Look at where Bucharest and Budapest come to rest. See the connections? No? Look again. Look long enough and you'll learn a few valuable lessons in brand naming. Clue: Good brand names are about stop-starts and strong consonant sounds. End of this lesson.

FCUK v/s STIH v/s SIHT

Why is the brand name FCUK more evocative than the not-yet-brand-name STIH? both FCUK and STIH are rejigged from the original 'dirty words'. What makes FCUK more memorable is the fact that the first letter and the last letter of the original word is in the same place in the rejigged word. Lesson in dirty-word re-branding techniques? If you're looking to make up a brand name from the seven dirty words in the English lexicon and want your name to riff off the already branded-in-your-mind dirty word, make sure the first and last letters of your new brand name are in the same place as that of the dirty word. Example: SIHT will make a better brand name that STIH. Thanks for this dirty thought, Mr. Brandnama.

China v/s India

Brandnama has an analysis-inducing post on the top 20 brand names in China. The top 5 names in that list have the word 'China' in them. What does that say about the Chinese consumer and how different is he/she from the Indian consumer? What does it say about Chinese companies? I think what it says is that when it comes to marketing, Indian companies have the edge. So why is China so far ahead of India in the economic race? I think it has something to do with discipline and unity. Other things that the list of Chinese brand names says about India and China include things like Indians are more individualistic and prefer names that don't riff off 'India'. No, make that Indians were more individualistic. Today, if I had to choose between a brand name that alluded to India and one that didn't, I'd stick my neck out and bet on a name that drew on 'India'. 'Made in India' is a label that's on the rise, I think.

Name gallery #19: 7/10

Now this is what you call a great name. Lateral and memorable. Apt for the product it's hawking. Almost perfect. Perfect. (Because nothing can ever be perfect.) Elbows.

Bata v/s Nike

It's a no-contest, right? Or is it? When it comes down to just the name, I think Bata is just as good if not a better name than Nike. For one, Bata is easier to pronounce. For two, Bata is more memorable because of the repetitive sound it carries. For three, the 't' in the Bata is a stronger consonant sound than the 'k' in the Nike. So, given a choice, which brand would you buy? Exactly. Just goes to show why it makes sense to have a tagline to go with your brand name. The next time you come to me for a brand name, be prepared to buy into a tagline or two. Incidentally, I buy Bata.

.xxx v/s .com

An interesting defensive naming strategy is outlined in an article I read about the introduction of .xxx names for websites that want to identify themselves as having content of the sexually explicit kind. According to the article, the first people who will go ahead and register .xxx domain names are corporations that have nothing to do with sex and want to make sure nobody registers their names as .xxx domain names. Thought provoking.

NBA names v/s Names

I agree with brandnama in this post on names from the NBA. I think what makes them names so catchy and evocative is the fact that they are prefixed by cities/names that have already done some free advertising for the team names. So what's the lesson of this little story? If you want an evocative brand name, try to make a name out of a name that has already made a name for itself but isn't a registered brand name. Cases in point, the names for the teams in the Premier Hockey League: Chennai Veerans, Maratha Warriors and Sher-E-Jalandhar to name three.

Brand names v/s Mirror names

In a post on how to arrive at interesting and weird brand names, Brandnama illustrates some examples of doing so. What struck me about this was how similar the mirror brand names seemed to the original brand name they were a reflection of. The point I'm trying to make is a point I have been grappling with from the moment I started thinking about brand names. Do brand names become visuals in our mind's eye? How good a word looks might have a bearing on how memorable your brand name turns out to be.

Name gallery #18: 5/10

Interesting name but rather clumsy to say. What say?

Category v/s Category

When you have to come up with a brand name for a product, would you consider competing brand names as those in the same product category or from across product categories? In this day and age where the competition for mind estate comes from across product categories, it's an interesting thought worth considering. On the surface, it seems like a no-brainer. There seems no doubt in my mind that the only competition for name recall would be from other brands in the same product category. That said, I have a sneaking suspicion that information clutter affects brand choices across categories. For instance, if the 5 most important things on my shopping list are from across product categories doesn't that mean brand choice 2 in product category A is competing for mind space with brand choice 1 in categories B, C, D and E?

Aquasomething v/s Aquaspeciale

From this post I discovered that if you want to launch a brand of mineral water, the one thing you must not do is prefix it with the word 'Aqua'. (Make sure people ask for it by brand.) In fact, the reason 'Evian' water is special is because it repositions water as more than just water by moving away from 'Aqua'. Unlike in some other product categories, branded water should not allude to water in the brand name; it cheapens the brand. And it does so because water has been free for so, so, so long. No matter how much advertising you do, if your branded water is 'Aqua-something', it's not much more than 'branded' water. By branding it as 'Aqua-whatever' all you're doing is reminding people that they're paying for something that used to be free. Honestly, the more I think of brand names, the more convinced I am of the genius of the brand builders at Parle who came up with names like 'Thums Up', 'Gold Spot', 'Frooti' and 'Bisleri'.

Name gallery #17: 7/10

First launched in China, I love the fact that the name riffs off the very classy/sophisticated connotations associated with a 'Ming' vase.

S's v/s _'s

If you pick a name, try and make sure it has a comfortable apostrophe 's' sound. Asking for a name that doesn't lend itself to good apostrophe 's' pronounciation is just asking for a little more trouble in an already troubled, brand littered landscape. Consider this, how many brand name's can you think of with Joost/Boost like apostrophe 's' unfriendly sounds? Becks, Mexx...hmm, maybe there's a gap or three in this line of thinking. Maybe it's a rule that can be safely done away with. Well, I just thought it was worth thinking about. After all, if you're investing in a name, it doesn't harm you to invest a little time in some odd little other things.

Joost v/s Youtube

Youtube wins. It's just a much smarter name that Joost. It's also easier to understand. It alludes to the product category. It's easier to pronounce. It has better-placed consonant sounds. Joost just sounds wrong. Still, a name isn't the only thing that makes or breaks a product. So do watch that space, it's the future of TV. If I needed a name for a Youtube like product, I'd goose down to Brandnama, check out this post and then decide who to give the job to. Joost dissing apart, it does have a nice logo. Unfortunately, it's not an offline product - the only place a great visual logo is going to make a brand-shattering difference is offline and off the shelf. I think Joost is destined for namemory anonymity. If it succeeeds it will do so no thanks to the name.

Name gallery #16: 5/10

Don't care much for the name but love the logo.