Naming Analysis

Even before the first creative idea is generated, aspects relevant to names have to be examined. In this early phase, at the naming agency, we think about knowing everything which is important to support the later brand name over the long run. The macro environment, with its various subsets of economics, technology, ecology, law, society, and politics, is just as meaningful as the micro environment of the company, which refers to the market and competitors, market developments, target audiences, and one’s own aims in the market. A solid knowledge base of the market and brand environment relevant to the name is the prerequisite for conducting the next steps in the naming process; namely, strategy and creation.

Early in the early phases of evaluating naming ideas, two more fields of analysis are added at the agency: linguistic evaluation and conflict research.

In international markets, today it is absolutely imperative to take into account the meaning, associations, understandability, and pronunciation of a new name. Linguistic evaluations take place during the entire creation and evaluation phase. First, the focus is on viewing the most common languages of the world. The more the evaluation concentrates on a few names toward the end, the more languages, and partly dialects, there are to check. In this phase, one creative idea after another is taken out of the race to avoid language blunders.

The same is true for possible older trademark rights that are not permitted to be infringed on by a new name. At the agency, the ongoing research in international trademark databases provides a view of the naming environment. To avoid possible opposition by trademark owners during the phase of registering the trademark at the trademark offices, it is important to know which exact or similar names have already been assigned in the relevant trademark classes. This ongoing trademark research is important during the evaluation phase so that, at the end, the desired brand name can be registered as a trademark.