What’s in a name?
So, you’ve got a shiny new product. It probably has some kind of horrible internal name everyone has gotten used to by now and wants to use out of sheer momentum. The iron is hot to strike and propose something new before it hits the public. But what to do?
Let’s start at the end; the goal of naming is to create a name that is:
Defensible — (e.g. Establishing copyrights or at least carving out territory). Don’t get sued by the mouse, become the mouse
Recognizable — Is this label something that makes sense? Can I tell by name alone if that product is petrol or perfume?
Memorable — What was that one again? The granola I liked? Oh yeah, it had a bee on it…
Desirable — Something that reflects the personality and point of your brand to your user group
In its essence, a name is a storage unit of organization in the brain. It’s a little label on a neuron folder, something that someone can pick up, mentally or physically, and say to themselves “Yep, this is the thing I was looking for”
A collage of different brand names
Tip: Short names are better than long ones
Think about it. Is a product called Waxahachie* better than a product called Waxie? (*Again, my Texas is showing)
Try to keep your app name to 11 characters or below
Due to the size of different screens and the fact that we have long been mobile-first as a planet, it needs to be short enough to fit on a small screen comfortably
Being shorter will also make it easier for application users to remember, recall, and tell to friends
Tip: Avoid using Acronyms and Initialisms.
A name needs to not only represent what it is to your users — it also must represent what it is not. Take this list for example. Let’s say you’re given a list of names in a search or maybe these are names you see on your app cloud portal:
Which application will help you plant a garden?
Which application will allow you to request diet restrictions in your meal?
Which application will allow you to plan to go to a gun range*? (*I live in Texas, forgive me international readers)
Which application will teach you different dancing techniques?
Which application will help you to determine whether your medical issue requires the presence of a medic?
Which application will allow you to purchase a pineapple flavored candy?
1. SKIJ
2. Stage
3. Heal
4. Greenhouse
5. Ammo List
6. MealPlan
7. SKSH
8. Left Foot
Did you have trouble with that last one? Let’s say that it was SKSH — a site that sells Pineapple candy of course! Did you notice in your mind how much confusion the initialisms caused? How much easier the intuitive names were to find? Even if you’re an insider, and you use the term SKSH a lot, having to also differentiate from SKIJ will slow you down for finding and understanding other products relative to it. Effectively, an initialism is a brain drain.
Up for Debate: Intuitive names vs. Abstract names
Let’s say you are wandering down an aisle in a luxury store filled with perfumes. You have already driven to the store, walked to the isle, and thus the subject perfume has been pre-located. You’re looking at fifty different bottles in a variety of shapes and hues. Some hourglasses, some vessels jut into space — threatening the other perfumes with their angular shoulders. The smell of pepper and musk overwhelms you with softer hints of Rose, Soap, and Cardamom. Your eyes water as you scan over the names. The perfume that finally grabs your attention entices you by being distinct from the other perfumes. It harnesses this great opportunity for having an abstract name. For example, something like Blueberry–Sal or Capri or Napoleon Lace. You pick up Napoleon Lace and smell it, then drop it in your basket.
Conversely, let’s say that you are again searching for perfume. This time you are doing a google search for perfume. You haven’t found a “store” or even a product category yet. You type the word “perfume” into a generic search bar on the internet. A list of names containing the word “perfume” comes up, including a few top-paid listings at the top which more-or-less match anyway. An abstract name would lead to the wrong result in this case, it wouldn’t even get on the list (sorry Napoleon Lace). The perfume that grabs your attention in this scenario is the one that most closely resembles the search term and its SEO ranking. This is a great opportunity for an intuitive name. For example, Perfumery or perfume.com or purefume.
Upsides to intuitive names, like “Perfume.com” or “Forms”:
They already have a high level of information scent about what the product does
Requires less marketing
Easier to find in search results
Great for systems where a user has already been converted, and is trying to navigate between options
Downsides to intuitive names:
Harder to differentiate in a crowded marketplace
Lower emotional appeal
Less branding scent
A collage of brands with intuitive names
Upsides to abstract names, like “Napoleon Lace”:
Can help differentiate a product in the marketplace from other similar products
Can be easier to remember once learned
Stronger branding. By associating with Apples, Apple computer associated with things that are tasty, comforting, healthy, and smart (associations presumably include an apple for teacher, apples to keep doctors away, crispness, cool weather, satiating hunger, etc.)
More opportunities for association. e.g. by aligning with something people come into contact with or think about more, a strong association can form and overlap with your product. Marketing can of course reinforce this. For example, associating a product with a common routine such as drinking coffee or starting the weekend can lead to more opportunities to associate the product.
Downsides to abstract names:
Requires significantly more marketing to associate the product with the name. Apple spends billions a year on advertising.
Harder to understand its meaning when it is a new product, especially when starting from a blank search
Abstract names illustration
Tip: Test it first
So you’ve brainstormed and narrowed down your list of potential names to the top 3–5. Before doing all the branding, test it first. Ask users questions like “What do you think this would do?” and “Who did you think this is for?”. See if it matches what your product does and its intended target audience. This can also be a great use of a focus group — get a bunch of people together to talk about the name. Bonus points if you get some teenage boys to try to make fun of it and see what they come up with. Try to get ahead of interpretations and possible misappropriations before release. For example, one company was going to name a product something that we discovered had an unintentional negatively racially charged interpretation that was only discovered through testing with a multicultural audience. Good thing we got ahead of that one!
In general when naming you can consider:
Appeal to the target audience
Consider hinting at the function of the application
Make it memorable and distinctive
Easy to say, spell and read
Consistent with your brand marketing
Consider how key stakeholders may perceive the name
How do you entice your company to embrace naming strategy you ask? Why, run a naming workshop. Invite some key stakeholders, your product group, and maybe even a few potential users. Naming and other workshops are something we can help you with here at Tanzu Labs.
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