In a competitive marketplace, every company regardless of size wants to be as distinctive as possible, starting with its name. However, creating a brand name goes beyond stringing words together — it affects the entire business strategy and requires the commitment of every employee.
According to Lawrence Chong, Director for Strategy Development at Consulus Cato Partners, companies must avoid overloading their brand names with functional descriptions and mindlessly conforming to trends.
“We have to communicate in a clear and simple language to convey the purpose of the brand to all stakeholders,” Chong said during a branding talk on 26 August 2009.
The talk, No Name, No Game, which focused on the State of Influence from Consulus’ Three States Methodology, was the third instalment of the Shape The World workshop series co-organised by Consulus and the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCCI).
While no rule of thumb to defining the perfect brand name exists, there is one approach that can guide a company towards the right name. In his presentation, Chong shared how the inside-out approach to branding enables brand managers to align the company’s name to its history and values, thus creating a consistent identity.
Nicole Brion, a communication consultant at Consulus, then presented actual cases to stress the importance of conducting preliminary research before embarking on corporate re-branding. The selected cases showcased the ability of a good brand name to communicate a company’s true purpose.
The interactive workshop had participants working in groups to develop brand names and tag lines for two anonymous companies. Given the business model and some background information on its assigned company, each group had to come up with a naming strategy that:
- Expressed the brand’s purpose and identity;
- Could grow with the brand;
- Would resonate with the stakeholders; and
- Would contribute to the overall brand experience.
Attendees also got a sneak peek at the upcoming Shape the World Conference, which will be held on 22 October 2009. The one-day event will include case studies, brand labs and the inaugural Shape The World Award.
