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CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME: A Blend of Art, Science & Whimsy

CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME: A Blend of Art, Science & Whimsy. Michael Piczak March 2006. HOW TO CHOOSE. The activity of choosing company names has trends just like any other aspect of business Choosing names is a blend of fashion, science, art, alchemy, whimsy, expedience and playfulness.

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CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME: A Blend of Art, Science & Whimsy

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  1. CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME: A Blend of Art, Science & Whimsy Michael Piczak March 2006

  2. HOW TO CHOOSE • The activity of choosing company names has trends just like any other aspect of business • Choosing names is a blend of fashion, science, art, alchemy, whimsy, expedience and playfulness

  3. SQUEAK OR STRATEGIC RELEVANCE? • Some will argue that the name means nothing as names represent squeaks from our voice boxes • Others will argue that choosing a name is a strategic act and that the name selected should reflect choices gauged against CAREFULLY selected criteria

  4. SOME CRITERIA • Being memorable but easy to spell (Warner Brothers; Xerox; IBM) • Possessing a visual element (Memorex; Virgin Airlines; Village Roadshow Pictures) • Possessing a positive connotation (Waste Management Corp. not Waste or Garbage Corporation; Waxman Recyclers not Waxman Scrap Metal; Virtucon Corp.)

  5. MORE CRITERIA • Needing to include information about what your business does (Zenon Environment Services; Abell Pest Control) • Being fairly short (Fido, Bell, ABB) • Being unique by choosing a coined word that has no meaning (look at drug names) • Being able to use the name in an internet based environment (.com, .org, etc.)

  6. AVOID • Employing the "train wreck" method of creating a name where there is a collision of two names made into one (QualiServ) • Using words so plain they'll never stand out in a crowd (1ST National Bank, GE and GM get away with it as they are the first and now the biggest) • Taking the atlas approach and using a map to name your company (St. Petersburg Plumbing) • Making your business name so obscure, customers will never know what it means (Aegius Ltd.) • Getting overly hung up on phonetics (Kwalitee) as you try to come up with a unique name • 5th Third Bank???

  7. NAMING TRENDS • mystery letter X • Q in naming radio stations • Z in the name • e (electronic) • i (internet) • names that work in English and French • Roman, Latin or Greek sounding names (Aegius, Maximus, Rensus, Altria, etc.) • the latest - using first name branding also known as user friendly names (Tommy, Fido, Ben & Jerry’s, Annie (a call center), Ben (a cell phone), Alex (on-line broker), Lulu (an on-line publisher) • Fashionable words (magic, virtual) • letters strung together that mean nothing in any language (Celica, Toyota, Corolla)

  8. SOME SAMPLES 1 • HMV Records (His Master’s Voice) • RCA (Radio Corporation of America) • CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) • CNN (Cable News Network) • SKG Dreamworks Pictures (Spielberg, Katzenburg, and Geffen) • IBM (International Business Machines) • Rand Corporation (Research and Development Corp.) • BMW (Bavarian Motor Works) • VW (Volkswagen) • GO Train Service ( of ) • DELCO (Dayton Electric Company) • M&Ms

  9. SOME SAMPLES 2 • EFFEM Foods • ABB (Asea, Brown, Boveri) • Yahoo • Google • Budget Environmental Disposal Corp. • Exxon • Amblin Entertainment • THX Sound • Moe-Tion Pictures Productions • Apple Computers • Apple Records

  10. SOME SAMPLES 3 • Virgin Records • Bubba Gump Shrimp Restaurant • Dofasco • Stelco • USX • Tim Horton’s • 3M (MINNESOTA MINING AND MANUFACTURING) • Decca Records • MoTown Records

  11. SOME SAMPLES 4 • AAAAAAA AAAAAAA AAAAAAA AAABCO Door Company (this is a real one…check the phone book) • KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) • Two Small Guys with a Big Heart Moving Company • Two Guys with a Truck Moving Company • iPod

  12. SOME SAMPLES 5 • Z28 Camaro • Z3 BMW • Z103 • Jeep (General Purpose Vehicle) • MGs (Morris Garage Car Co) • Give me some more

  13. LOOKING FOR TROUBLE? • WRAPTORS • BLOOMINGDALE’S • OLYMPICS ANYTHING • PETER PAN RESTAURANT • STARBUCK’S COFFEE SHOP • HAIDABUCK’S CAFE

  14. QUESTIONABLE NAMES • High Maintenance Bitch • 10W30 • Sin’s Flower Shop • Hayne’s Fanny Hose

  15. TO THE NET IN .13 SECONDS HOW MANY HITS? THE SEARCH ARGUMENT

  16. How many?

  17. AT THE END OF THE DAY • It is your call • Most names represent a compromise across the various criteria cited • Prioritize your criteria • Stay away from mistakes • No swear words • Check NUANS “Who is” net search

  18. TOP NAMES??? • Cat’s Pee on a Gooseberry Bush • 2 Small Guys with a Big Heart Moving Company • Budget Environmental • Scrotum-Design Limited

  19. CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME: A Blend of Art, Science & Whimsy Michael Piczak March 2006 THE END

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