The conventional school of thought holds that a brand should convey what your company does, like International Business Machines or National Cash Register. Balderdash!
Last weekend my husband and I were discussing the virtues of Google vs Yahoo when he turned to me and commented on how it seemed like we were talking baby talk! No kidding! Today's Internet market is Delicious and full of Googles and Yahoos and Amazons - but these names are easy to remember and stick in the viewers minds.
National Cash Register doesn't just make cash registers anymore, so the name is almost antiquated. And who would remember this if it hadn't been shorted to NCR? How many people remember that IBM stands for International Business Machines?
Google, as a brand, is now one of the most highly valued brands in the business. Creative naming as a strategy is proving to create quicker brand recognition and unique value for the companies deploying it.
When you are tempted to go the route of 1980's blue-suit wearing monoliths in your naming and branding discussions - think Google, and smile!
