Better Brief, Better Name — Part 1

In these situations, you can end up with names like Boaty McBoatface. Amusing? Yes. Commercially viable? At a stretch, perhaps. Long-term suitability? Unlikely. Look up the story of ‘Boaty’ if you haven’t heard of it.

It’s a good example of what happens when you have an open name brief, and the creative process is executed via competition and popular vote. It ticks all the boxes for ‘inclusion’ but proves that mob rule never ends pleasantly.

I appreciate that not every school of thought will agree with me on this one. Boaty garnered a lot of attention at the time. However, a brand name is not designed just to satisfy immediate needs; the intention should be for it to last indefinitely.

In my experience, competitions don’t work for a number of reasons. For a business that is renaming, it’s a nice idea to get the team involved in the pursuit of ‘buy-in’ and ownership. However, it can put a lot of pressure on the management team, as they need to be ruthless with what ideas make the cut and what gets tossed out.

What may be a great team-building exercise, in theory, could result in having to tell someone who is exceptional at their job that they’re no good at marketing.

For that reason, I find naming competitions unfair and precarious. The element that’s lacking in the team effort approach is typically the naming brief — or, more importantly, the process of creating the brief.

What really is a brand name brief?

Briefs of any kind are often viewed as ‘dry’ documents used by managers rather than creatives to rationalise budgets and justify projects. While these sorts of documents are necessary for broad-view project management, they are not helpful at the pointy end of developing and assessing creative output.

An effective brief for a naming project provides both creative direction and a framework to argue suitability. If you’re working with a creative professional, the generation of name candidates often won’t be the stumbling block of the project.

Where decision-makers come unstuck is being able to choose from hundreds — and sometimes thousands — of options. A tool is needed to justify ideas and argue why a name candidate should be shortlisted, reworked or rejected.

You’ll have to confront words that may not sit comfortably with your personal expectations — however, they may be commercially viable. In these situations, it’s folly to toss aside a name simply because a word sounds odd or you don’t like it. Of course, you have to like the name if it’s your brand, but the best name might not be love at first sight.

“A creative brief isn’t a limitation; it’s a guide to focus energy and make ideas commercially sound.”

Commercial creativity is derived from focus. Naming briefs are about excluding concepts and themes to focus energy and thought processes on what needs to be achieved. As a brand manager, creativity is your business, not just the reserve of those you pay to develop ideas.

For these reasons, a name brief must provide a narrative. Rather than scrutinising names from the perspective of personal judgement, you need to be able to view each name candidate through a narrative lens. Will the word support and drive your story?

This clarity is the most vital step, as you’ll need to revisit this document regularly to ensure you’re on track. It’s easy to get carried away with ideas, so you need to stay focused on what makes commercial sense.

A good name brief is necessary for focusing your subconscious. Although significant grunt work is required to put pen to paper and create candidates, some of the best ideas will come to you ‘away from the desk’.

Being crystal clear on your goal will allow your subconscious to work for you. As with physical training, the cool-down is as important as the actual workout. When you’re mentally set free, the quality of your creativity will dramatically increase.

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” — Abraham Lincoln.

In his book Getting Things Done, David Allen talks about the idea that your mind is for having ideas, not holding them. Similarly, a good naming brief helps you offload the ideas that take you off on unhelpful tangents. It keeps the guardrails in place without boxing you in.

What Your Naming Brief Should Include

At its core, a naming brief is a strategy document. It should define your objectives, constraints, and desired outcomes — but more importantly, it should construct a narrative. That narrative becomes the lens through which every brand name idea is evaluated.

Why the Narrative Matters

Names are inherently subjective. You’re choosing a single word (maybe two) to represent everything your business stands for — now and into the future. Without a unifying story, you’ll fall into the trap of debating names on taste alone.

How to Build Your Brand Name Narrative

Here are some prompts to help you develop a helpful narrative in your naming brief:

Your ‘Why’

• Why does your company or product exist?
• What motivated this business, this brand, this offer?
• What problem are you solving — and why do you care?
• Why should your customer care?

Your Future Self

• What do you want people to believe about your business in 1–3 years?
• What do you not want people to assume?
• What kind of clients or customers are you trying to attract?

Your Brand Personality

• Is your brand confident and bold, or humble and helpful?
• Should the name feel more classic or inventive?
• What emotional tone do you want the name to carry — seriousness, mischief, aspiration?

Your Differentiators

• What do you do differently from others in your space?
• What do your clients thank you for?
• Are there metaphors or parallels (from nature, sport, film, etc.) that capture this difference?

Your Dealbreakers

• Are there any phrases, words, or styles that are entirely off-brand?
• Is there industry jargon or category language you want to avoid?

Imagery & Metaphor

• What images or concepts would you love to associate with your brand?
• When someone sees or hears your name for the first time, what would you want them to think? What imagery do you need to convey?

Keep it real. Yes, we all want global market dominance, but start by looking at what you want to achieve commercially, how the name needs to perform, and what will keep it relevant in the decades ahead.

Although a name and the process of naming can be highly emotive, a name is ultimately a marketing tool. And if used and applied carefully, it will become a powerful brand. A name only grows into something with its own gravity when you carefully consider your choices at the outset.

In Part 2, we’ll dive deeper into how to write your naming brief and name narrative.