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Is Branding Different from Naming?

Posted by admin in January 15th 2008

Naming is a subset of branding. Any combination of sounds, or phonemes, can compose a name, and perhaps be unique enough as to identify a product or service without ambiguity. But that is not enough to make it a brand.

For internal purposes, engineers or designers often use code names to identify their projects, such as PN96. To become a brand, however, a name has to be able to fit in its audience’s memory in a way that will make the brand’s attributes recalled. Thus, “PN96″ turns out to be the best selling vehicle in the US, the F150 truck, “Built Ford Tough.”

Nevertheless, naming is a critical step of branding, and it would be a missed opportunity to leave it to Tarzan or the CEO’s spouse. Deprived of access to the Brandchannel, Tarzan sought common nouns from his limited vocabulary to name his adopted son and quickly ended up with “Boy.” Little he knew! If new parents cringe at the idea of getting the new name past their mothers-in-law, brand managers have to deal with a long battery of naming tests (and eventually the CEO’s mother-in-law). On the bright side, a well-chosen name can be so powerful as to become a one-word commercial. It is especially critical for small businesses, which often lack of the necessary marketing budgets to promote their brand effectively.

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