Naming a brand is one of the hardest jobs in branding, and one that can easily go wrong if not done correctly.

A name is the first thing customers come across, and the word they search for when they want to find a brand again. A strong name can materially change the trajectory of a business. A weak or wrong one becomes a cost the company carries until someone changes it. Cocoa-free chocolate brand Win Win started life as WNWN. Its co-founder, Johnny Drain, told us on our Bear in Mind podcast that he spent about half his time at talks and on podcasts correcting how people said the name, until they changed it.

This is part two of our short series on brand naming. Part one covered the different types of brand name. This one is more practical. It's the proven five-step process we use at White Bear when we name challenger brands, plus the mistakes we see most often.

How to come up with a brand name, in short:

1. Start with strategy. Understand the strategy behind the brand first. Knowing what you are naming is crucial.
2. Look at the competition. See what your competitors are called, and assess for any potential gaps or opportunities.
3. Set your criteria. Agree minimum criteria, based on the brand strategy, before entering the creative process.
4. Create a long list. Expect hundreds of options.
5. Refine and check. Filter the shortlist against our checklist: is the name Memorable, Ownable (starting with trademark checks) and Scalable? This is our MOS™ framework.

A brand name is the first thing customers hear when engaging with a brand. Creating a sense of intrigue and association can go a long way towards differentiating one product or service from another. The best brand names become synonymous with the product or service they are offering. Think of Uber, Netflix, Hoover, and Coke.

Brand names are a marketer’s opportunity to communicate as succinctly as possible what makes them different from, and better than, their competitors. The brand name can convey, in one or two words, important characteristics of the brand story.
Dove, for example, immediately evokes thoughts and feelings of peace, care, and gentleness. All Dove products are known for being mild and caring to the skin. The name underpins the strategy. Likewise, Uber intentionally brings to mind the literal meaning of the word uber which is to be a supreme example or ‘above all the rest’.

Brand names give marketers an opportunity to generate curiosity in their customers, to create positive feelings and emotions about the brand, and boost brand awareness and memorability.

And the data backs this up – according to this Nielsen study a company or brand name can be one of the “most valuable assets a company possesses”, and up to 80% of consumers prefer to buy a product from a brand name they recognise.

1. Start with strategy

Before starting a brand naming exercise, it's important to understand the strategy behind the brand. Knowing what you are naming is crucial. Look to define a brand's purpose (why you exist), vision (where you want to get to) and mission (how to get there). This comes together into a brand story and tone of voice to convey throughout the brand, starting with the name.

Here's a quick test. Can you describe your brand in one sentence that a competitor couldn't also say about themselves? If you can't, you're not ready to name it yet.

2. Look at the competition

Line up your competitors' names on a scale. At one end are descriptive names, which say exactly what the business does. At the other are abstract ones, which are made up or borrowed from somewhere else. Most categories bunch up at one end, which shows where a brand could potentially stand out. That's not to say a name has to be different, and category conventions need to be considered, but it's a useful exercise to see where the opportunity lies.

When we worked with self-storage brand Caboodle, the category was full of names like Big Yellow and Lovespace. Seeing that clearly was where the naming started.

3. Define your criteria

Naming is so subjective that it can easily turn into an argument about personal taste, rather than an objective decision that underpins the brand strategy. Accordingly, set some criteria through which to start ideating. For example, the name should:

• fit the brand strategy
• be easy to understand and pronounce in every market you'll sell in
• make people feel what you want them to feel when they hear it
• leave room for the business to grow

4. Create a long list

There's no shortcut. Naming is a numbers game, and you'll usually need hundreds of names to find a handful worth keeping. Good places to look:

• the product itself: its ingredients, where it comes from, how it's made, what it does
• other languages
• metaphors: an animal, an object or an idea with the right qualities
• two words joined together
• the founders' story

Banam came from mixing two of these. For Europe's first banana water, we took the "ba" from banana and joined it to "naam", the Thai word for water. Five letters that tell you what's in the can and where the idea came from. See the Banam case study

5. Refine and check

Score each name against your criteria and cut the long list down to a shortlist. Then run the shortlisted names through four checks.

First, trademarks. Can you register it in the classes and countries you need? Most names fall at this hurdle, so check early. We explain why in brand name trademark checks.

Second, domains and social handles. Is there one you can use, or a sensible alternative?

Third, meaning. Does it mean something unfortunate in another language, or sound too much like a competitor?

Fourth, say it out loud. Try it on the phone or in a noisy bar, and see if it survives.

Finally, test your last two or three names on real people in your audience. Don't ask whether they like it. Ask what it makes them think of.

Once the names have passed these checks, we assess the final shortlist against our MOS™ framework below, looking for names that are as Memorable, Ownable and Scalable as possible.

At White Bear, we assess every name using our MOS™ framework: great brand names are Memorable, Ownable and Scalable. Memorable in the eyes of the consumer. Ownable to the brand, and ownable as a trademark. Scalable, with the flexibility to support future growth. Under each of these headings, we score names against the criteria below.

1. Memorability

Simplicity
• The name is simple to remember, say, and spell
• The name is memorable

Evocative
• The name evokes feelings or emotions in the consumer
• It sparks a level of intrigue

Distinct
• The name is distinct and a differentiator, and will stand out in its sector

Strategic
• The name aligns with the strategic goals/story of the brand

2. Ownability

Longevity
• The name is not faddish
• Avoid tying names to particular fads based on trends which may or may not be around in several years and which may become too ubiquitous. Try to make it evergreen. Examples include names ending in 'ify' and 'ly'

Ownability IP
• The brand name you choose is trademarkable in the relevant classes and geographies

Domain
• Relevant domains and social handles to your chosen brand name are available or there are alternatives you can use that include your brand name.

Strategic / Story Alignment
• Is the name ownable by the brand and aligns with the brand's story and personality?

Budgetary
• Can we afford it?
• Empty vessel names give a significant opportunity to create the type of brand emotional response that the marketer requires, however, given the consumer will have no prior affinity to the name, they typically require more marketing budget in order to build this affinity.

3. Scalability

Global scalability
• The brand/product name translates coherently across regions in which it will launch

Business scalability
• The name is fit for future brand development
• A name is, usually, for life. It is important to create a name that doesn't pigeonhole the strategic goals of a business by tying it too close to a particular product, service, or niche if it intends to grow beyond its current state.

Naming a product is different from naming a company. A company name has to last for decades and stretch across everything the business may go on to do. A product name has a narrower job: to stand out on shelf or online, while sitting comfortably within the wider range. The first decision is the naming architecture, meaning how the master brand and the product names relate to each other. There are four common models.

Branded house. One master brand, with products described plainly (Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Media; Google Maps, Google Drive). Best suited to a strong master brand where every launch should build it.

Sub-brand. Master brand plus a distinct product name (Cadbury Dairy Milk; Nike Air Jordan). Best suited to a hero product that deserves its own personality but gains from the parent.

Endorsed brand. The product name leads, the parent endorses it (Courtyard by Marriott; Kellogg's Coco Pops). Best suited to moving into a new segment or price point without stretching the parent too far.

House of brands. Separate brands, with the parent in the background (Unilever: Dove, Ben & Jerry's; P&G: Pampers, Gillette). Best suited to very different audiences or categories.

Within a range, a clear naming system keeps products consistent and makes every future launch easier to name. Three templates work well:

• Descriptor system: a consistent qualifier plus the product, such as Bold Bean's Queen range (Queen Chickpeas, Queen Butter Beans).
• Shared prefix or suffix: a signature part of the name carried across products, such as McDonald's McMuffin and McFlurry.
• Numbers or codes: a logical sequence that shows the range at a glance, such as BMW's 3, 5 and 7 Series or Audi's A3 and A4.

Whichever model is chosen, think about the next five products before naming the first. A name that works well on its own can limit the range later.

KA-ME's new hot sauce range is a good example of a descriptor system at work. Each product pairs chilli with a flavour from its origin: Japanese Chilli-Ponzu, Chinese Chilli-Lemongrass, Thai Chilli-Lime and Spicy Korean BBQ. The standout comes from Face the Flame, the anime-inspired packaging world we created for the range, so the product names themselves can stay clear and easy to shop. See the KA-ME case study

Sometimes the right name is a new one. A rename is a big decision, and it is usually driven by one of these reasons:

• The business has outgrown the name. It describes what the company used to do, not what it does now. Dunkin' Donuts dropped "Donuts" in 2019 to reflect how much of its business had moved to coffee.
• A change of strategy or positioning. When Dalston Cola Company moved from craft into the mass market, it became Dalston's Soda. Co-founder Duncan O'Brien explained on our Bear in Mind podcast that its alternative cola had been its least popular product.
• Legal or trademark problems. A name that can't be protected, or that clashes with someone else's, has to go. Andersen Consulting had to find a new name, Accenture, after separating from its former parent.
• Confusion. The name is hard to say, spell or find. Win Win's co-founder spent about half his time correcting how people said WNWN (hear Johnny Drain on Bear in Mind).
• New markets. A name that works at home may not translate, or may mean something unfortunate elsewhere.
• Mergers, acquisitions and demergers. Two businesses coming together, or one splitting off, often needs a name that belongs to neither past.
• Negative associations. The name has picked up baggage it can't shake off.

A laser-cutting business came to us still called "Capital Models Laser Cutting Department", long after it had become much more than a department. We renamed it Swordfish Works. The swordfish says fast and precise, which is what they do, and the name gives them room to grow. Production company Elsy needed a name with a bit of ambition and grandeur, to match what the brand promises its clients.

If a rename is part of a bigger change, our guide on when to consider rebranding is a good place to start.

The ones we see most often:

• Settling on the first name that feels right. Early favourites often win on familiarity rather than strength. Test every contender against the agreed criteria before deciding.
• Leaving trademark checks until the end. This is the most common reason a favoured name falls at the final hurdle. Check early and often (see our brand name trademark checks).
• Following naming trends. Names ending in "-ify" or "-ly" date quickly and are hard to protect.
• Naming for today, not tomorrow. Descriptive or place-based names are easy to understand but can tie a business to what it does now. As Pete Johnson told us on Bear in Mind, The Spice Tailor's name let it move beyond Indian cuisine into any food where spice travels, while San Francisco Bay Coffee is tied to one place in people's minds.
• Deciding by committee or personal taste. Use the criteria agreed at the start to settle the debate, rather than the most senior opinion in the room.
• Not testing how it sounds, spells and translates. If people can't say or spell a name after hearing it, they can't recommend it or search for it, as WNWN found. And a name that works at home can mean something unfortunate in a market you plan to enter.

Before you commit, check the final name against our MOS™ framework.

☐ Memorable: easy to say, spell and remember
☐ Memorable: stands out from competitors' names
☐ Memorable: makes your audience feel what you want them to feel
☐ Memorable: fits the brand strategy and story
☐ Ownable: can be trademarked in your key classes and markets
☐ Ownable: has a usable domain and social handles, and won't date quickly
☐ Scalable: doesn't limit future growth
☐ Scalable: translates well, and means nothing unfortunate, in the markets you plan to enter

A name is one of the biggest decisions you'll make, and one of the hardest to undo. If you're naming a new brand or product, or thinking about a rename, our Named Unforgettable programme takes you from strategy to a shortlist of names we've already checked for risk. Book a discovery call

Naming a new brand or renaming an old one? See our Named Unforgettable programme.

Written by Dave Endersen, Managing Director at White Bear. DBA Design Effectiveness Gold winner.