How To Name Anything
When starting out, you might pick a name that tells people exactly what you do.
You might use a name generator.
You might ask ChatGPT.
Or you might think a name isn’t even important, and pick whatever.
While these sound like harmless ideas, they create strategically bad names.
Bad names cost you time and money.
Imagine this: you pick a random cool-sounding word because your friend thinks it’s clever.
A year goes by, the name no longer fits.
It’s confusing.
It’s limiting.
Or worse, you find out it’s already taken.
Now, you have to change everything.
Don’t be this person.
Do this instead:
the naming process
1. Start by looking at your audience.
These are the people who have a problem you’re solving.
The more you get to know them, the better you can speak to them.
Understand basic things about who they are, their circumstances and situations.
Example:
People between 18 and 54 years old, who use food delivery apps.
They live in cities and make less than $75,000 a year.
2. Understand their fears and desires.
What are their challenges, prejudices and deeply held beliefs?
What are their assumptions? What’s their worldview?
How do they feel about the thing you’re trying to help them with?
Example:
▫️Fess are high and not worth the inconvenience
▫️Customer service doesn’t exist or is ran by bots
▫️Incorrect orders and late deliveries
▫️Inconsistent menus and prices
3. Develop a solution to help them overcome those fears and achieve their desires.
This is the thing you’re trying to name.
This is your product, or service, or business.
It solves the problem they’ve been dealing with.
Example:
Imagine if Groupon and Doordash had a baby.
This app give you deals and discounts at your favorite restaurants.
You save whether it’s delivery or takeout.
4. Consider how you behave, how you speak, and what makes you different.
This helps you stand out.
What makes you uniquely you.
Take these into account when coming up with ideas to make sure they’re relevant to you.
Example:
Personality: Practical, Resourceful, Relatable
Tone of Voice: Playful, Curious, Clear, Genuine
Positioning: We save you money on every single meal. Delivery, dine in, or pickup.
5. Define the most important things for your audience to remember about how you can help them.
What solution do you provide?
What tangible value do you offer?
What emotional benefit do you give?
How are you different?
Find single-word answers to these questions.
The point is to express as quickly as possible what people can expect from you.
6. Review all your info and write down as many ideas as possible.
A name is essentially a word.
(Or two. Longer names are harder to remember)
It makes sense that your name would come from words that describe you.
All these words make up your “Naming Bucket.”
Take every word, and use different techniques to add more ideas to the bucket:
▫️Mind maps
▫️Word associations
▫️Metaphors
▫️Similes
▫️Puns
▫️Foreign languages
After that, take each word in your bucket and research them further to find even more ideas:
▫️Thesaurus
▫️Wikipedia
▫️Literature
▫️Lingo
▫️Mythology
▫️Pop Culture
▫️Portmanteau creations
▫️Linguistic deconstruction
The only way to come up with a good name is to have lots of options.
You’re not looking for the right answer. You’re looking for lots of ideas.
Example:
7. Check legal/domain availability.
Out of all the ideas, pick a short list of your absolute favorites.
These are the ones that make you so happy, you can already see the logo.
You want to check them for availability, one by one.
▫️Use your country's trademark office site (USPTO for the US, EUIPO for the EU) to make sure no one owns it.
▫️Use a WHOIS database (ICANN) to make sure the url exists.
▫️Use a username search tool (Namechk) to make sure social media handles aren’t taken.
It’s best to seek the advice of a trademark lawyer to make sure you're making the right decision based on your location and circumstances.
8. Choose the best idea, based on availability.
Example:
Savor
A double entendre, bringing up ideas of “Tasting food” and “Saving money.”
Whether it’s the first day of spring or the last slice of pizza, when you savor something, you enjoy it to the fullest.
Conclusion
Your name sets the tone.
It's a million first impressions.
The first chance you get to tell a story and deliver your message.
A strong name can:
▫️Help you stand out
▫️Make you memorable
▫️Build credibility
▫️Drive more sales
On top of that, it can have a huge impact on SEO, making it easier for people to find you online.
A shitty name might:
▫️Confuse people
▫️Limit recognition
▫️Create legal issues
▫️Cost you money
Put time and thought into finding the right name.
One that accurately reflects you and connects with your audience.
If you need help, I’m available for a naming project.