2020’s Most Creative Brand Names in Review
By: Neal Jatekar
No matter how you slice it, 2020 was an unconventional year. With so much noise polluting the airwaves and digital world, it is all-the-more impressive when brands are able to shine through. At NameStormers, we value brands that make a difference, provide opportunity, and have the ability to cut through the noise with a ringing message. Here are three of the most creative brand names from 2020:
1. Moment. What do you get when you mix Harvard-educated operations and Google product experience? In this case, you get Faheem Kajee and Aisha Chottani’s meditative beverage, Moment. Appearing on NBC’s Shark Tank, the couple’s Zen-influenced drink is packed with natural adaptogens, which increase alpha brainwaves to help create the “clear mind” feeling, similar to the effects of mediation. These drinks have taken the internet by storm, and with a name like Moment, it’s no wonder why. Research has demonstrated that disyllabic (two-syllable) words are easier to remember. Further, “Moment” perfectly captures the product’s value proposition of “taking a moment” for yourself to relax and recharge, akin to meditation. “Moment” further establishes itself as one of 2020’s most creative brand names by differentiating itself from the more exciting or energizing names that are often associated with beverages, such as Monster, Sprite, and Olipop.
2. Off-White. For better or for worse, few celebrities are more influential than those affiliated with Kanye West. An understudy and friend of Mr. West, designer-turned-director-of-Louis-Vuitton Virgil Abloh has been on a meteoric rise with his brand Off-White. From game-changing collaborations with Nike to innovative production with IKEA, Off-White has taken the design world by storm. When asked about the brand’s curious name in an interview with Vogue, Abloh noted that the brand exists in “the gray area between black and white as the color Off-White”. So what makes this name work so well? Outside of the two-syllable approach, Off-White as a name is deeply representative of the kind of work that the brand produces. Most of Abloh’s most successful designs are new takes on old wardrobe staples, hence the comparison of White vs. Off-White; tinkering with classic to make something completely brand-new without completely changing the original product. Between utilizing naming psychology and razor-sharp communication of design mentality, Off-White is one of our most creative brand names of 2020.
3. SpaceX. Real-life Tony Stark. Mercurial. Genius. All these words have been used to describe eccentric billionaire Elon Musk. Between pioneering electric car design with Tesla, independent solar powering of SolarCity, and building hyper-speed trains with The Boring Company, it is hard to believe that Musk has time to work on his space project, SpaceX. However, as of Summer 2020, SpaceX is the first (and only!) private company to successfully launch into space. SpaceX is a successful, creative brand name for a number of reasons. Quick to say and easy to remember, SpaceX’s disyllabic nature takes the complicated concept of space travel and distills the company’s purpose into a single name. with the “X” suffix, the name implies that space as we know it is not the limit for the company, as they hope to multiply or take space to the “xth” degree, whether in innovation, travel, or community.
While 2020 was one of the more chaotic and unhinging years of recent, these three brands found a way to differentiate themselves and solidify their place as one of 2020’s most creative brand names. As we look to what 2021 holds, it will be more important than ever to be cognizant of the ever-changing landscapes of business and society as a whole. Consumers will have new demands and interests, and it will be vital to create brand names that resonate with political and cultural arenas as they shift. While the naming endeavor can be daunting, choosing a brand naming agency like NameStormers can help you and your company build better names for better opportunities. In the midst of uncertainty, there is good work to be done!
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