The Practice of Naming

Quite a few moons ago, Kristen and I, were dreaming during our many free times together, about a design firm we would start together. We would of course start out from our rooms, then we would grow into something so big, people would compare as to Pentagram and Landor. And like many designers and creative types, we gave the firm a 'creative' name. 12x40. Twelve by Forty. Twelve times Forty. 12[Forty] Why? No reason of course. That adds to the allure sexy creativeness we thought. And it doesn't hurt that Twelve by Forty has a nice modernist ring to it.

In a world of people trying to be different and radical, it's forgivable perhaps that we have design and creative firms with names like Ffurious and 10AM. And both said companies, happen to be successful Singaporean firms.

To most start-up entrepreneurs, choosing a name for their companies is probably one of the more enjoyable and personal pursuits. Unlike thinking of a marketing plan and setting sales goals, naming is an instantaneous and significant decision that seems easy. Naming is also a symbolic decision that reaffirms who's boss, since only principal partners and owners are usually allowed to participate in naming. And names – wisely – are usually permanent. Naming is important, yet usually not much thought is put into it when practicing naming.

And perhaps because of this, we have design/branding firms, offering naming services. Heck, even naming specialist consultancy have arisen. The science of naming, is no longer a personal choice of what you want to appear on your business card but now part of a bigger identity and branding solution.

A hundred monkeys, a naming consultancy state that naming is marketing and strategy, and a boring name means an almost certain early death. With a name like A Hundred Monkeys, it would be hard not to take them seriously.

Yet with all this naming business, there is a risk that other real business issues are cast aside. Naming, like branding and identity design are important to businesses but they are not magical pills of success. The success of a name is tied to the success of the business, and perhaps no surprise here, just like the success of a design. All a good name, just like a good brand or design could deliver – and I'm misquoting Paul Rand here – is recognition and a promise of meaning. A promise that can only be fulfilled over time. That is something everyone who engages in the practice of naming should understand, either they be designers or naming consultants.

Technorati Tags: branding, naming, design, business