Naming is Changing

Key Takeaways:

1. Evolutionary Shift: Naming adapts alongside changing consumer behaviors and digital trends.

2. Brand Identity: Naming is pivotal in shaping brand identities and fostering lasting connections with your target.

3. Authenticity: In the world of AI and deep fakes, authenticity is something to lean into.

4. Adapt or Fade: Adaption is essential for naming to remain relevant and impactful in capturing audience attention and loyalty.

Introduction:

In an era dominated by technological advancements and digital transformation, every aspect of our lives undergoes a constant evolution, including the art of naming. This week we dive into the dynamic landscape of naming in the AI age, exploring how it’s adapting to meet the demands of an ever-changing world. 

The Impact of Video on Naming: 

In today’s digital realm, video content reigns supreme, captivating audiences and shaping brand identities. However, amidst the visual spectacle, the role of naming remains crucial. Memorable names must not only accompany captivating visuals but also stand independently, aiding in recall and searchability.

Navigating Digital Clutter:

With an abundance of content flooding the digital space, the competition for attention is fiercer than ever. Names must navigate through the clutter, capturing audience interest in mere seconds. Real-world examples illustrate the shift from generic descriptors to evocative names that resonate with consumers.

The Power of Authentic Content:

As marketing evolves from outbound to inbound strategies, authenticity becomes paramount. Consumers seek genuine connections and meaningful experiences, reflected even in the names of products and services. Discover how authenticity intertwines with naming, shaping perceptions and fostering brand loyalty.

Transcription:

Ashley Elliott (00:10): 

All right, well, hello everyone and welcome to naming in an AI Age. How do you think the name game has changed these days? I’d love to hear your thoughts. 

Mike Carr (00:19): 

So the three areas. Three areas that I wanted to cover today. And let me start with the first area, which I think is something that a lot of us have been talking about and thinking about, which is video. So one of the things that we have conversations with the clients about is engage your target, but with video, whether it’s a Super Bowl ad or a short on Facebook or a reel, often the video creates the engagement. Not only do they have to be memorable, you have to be able to spell ’em and say them, and sometimes on the video they’re pronounced, but then when you go to try to search them, you misspell it, right? So one name is A-D-O-B-E, Adobe, but it’s not pronounced Adobe. It’s pronounced Adobe. But let’s take another name. H-Y-U-N-D-A-I. Hyundai. Okay. I challenge you if you’ve never seen Hyundai spelled out, if you would spell Hyundai the way it sounds and the way you might hear it on a video. So video’s becoming more important and we certainly think spell ability of the name as well as nce ability of the name is going to be even more important than it has been in the past. 

Ashley Elliott (01:39): 

My daughter’s four, and we’re trying to teach her very little of letter recognition and what sounds make, and sometimes it’s not intuitive, especially with the English language and we borrow so many names. If you think of Adobe from a Native American standpoint versus the English standpoint and how we pronounce things very different, what about the next thing that you think is changing with, 

Mike Carr (01:57): 

Well, another thing besides video I think is just the clutter in the digital world. So you think about how much noise is out there, it’s so easy to scroll through on TikTok, right? Or click through on YouTube shorts. So this idea that it’s got to be quick, it’s got to be engaging, it’s got to be interesting, are all things that put a lot more pressure on the name. It has to be relevant. An agency came to us and they were in the website creation business and their old name was Web Inertia. Now that was a little bit dated. The new name we gave them that they’re using now is Clear Digital. So you’ve got Web Inertia or Clear Digital. So Clear Digital says a lot more about, Hey, we’re about adding clarity. We’re in the digital space. We’re about building websites and even a digital strategy for you. 

(02:49): 

So Clear Digital has a more modern vibe. It’s easier to say and spell than Web Inertia. Another example in a totally different category is a very large retailer came to us and they had a dog food on the shelf. They’d been doing well for decades, Roy. And the problem with Roy though is it didn’t convey anything about why was this dog food better than all the other dog foods, and they wanted to come out with a premium line that really resonated with millennials and spoke to the quality of the ingredients that there wasn’t all this filler and all this other garby that’s often in dog food. Well, the name we came up with was Pure Balance. So Pure has to do with how clean the dog food is. So Pure Balance conveyed a lot more about the value prop than Old Roy did. 

Ashley Elliott (03:40): 

Are there any other aspects you think that play into how naming is changing? 

Mike Carr (03:46): 

10 years ago, marketing was still mostly outbound driven. That is, you would advertise, you would push messages out in front of the face of your consumer, your customer. Of course, that doesn’t work anymore in most cases. So now it’s much more about inbound that you’re pulling them in. Well, how do you do that? Well, you pull them in with content that’s insightful. Well, the same’s true of a name. The name needs to convey something that’s important or compelling or engaging as opposed to something that’s more generic or descriptive. So for instance, in the credit card space, we had a credit union come to us, very large one, and they wanted a business card for small businesses. Well, the name we gave them was just five letters, G-O-B-I-Z, go biz. This card is going to help you grow faster. It’s active, it’s moving forward. So that sense of motion and movement is a much more engaging, compelling message to include in a name. 

(04:48): 

And then in a totally different category that we’ve worked in flooring, you could have a name like Premium Laminate Flooring versus a name that really does convey that this is a premium flooring like Timber Craft. It speaks to, hey, there’s some real attention to detail here, right? That this is a flooring that’s going to look amazing. It was crafted by folks that really paid attention to the details, how that flooring was going to look. So just to recap for today, there are three things that are going on in particular, the fascination with video. The second thing is all the digital clutter, all the noise that a name now has to cut through for you. And then the last thing is just content and authenticity and something that’s different and unique and concise and resonates versus something that’s descriptive and generic. 

Ashley Elliott (05:39): 

Oh, I definitely agree. I think you hit the nail on the head with saying authenticity in the content. You can’t just have good content. I mean, being authentic about the content you’re providing as well as making it evocative or something that does cut through that digital clutter is something that finding the balance, the pure balance between all of that. Great. Thanks so much. Yeah, thanks so much for joining us. We’ll see you next week as we talk more. See you. Bye.