How can you determine a name's potential for successfully building your brand? At Metaphor, we evaluate the effectiveness of name candidates based on the following criteria:

Basic Criteria

Is the name --

• appropriate?
  for the endeavor, and credible in a competitive context
• appealing?
  pleasing to the eye and ear
• distinctive?
  unique among your competitive set
• unambiguous?
  easy to spell and pronounce
• available?
  ownable and useable in key markets

Great Name Criteria

Does the name --

• speak to the target audience?
  addressing real market needs and expectations
• map to defined strategic objectives?
  illuminating your competitive stance and advancing marketing objectives
• evoke unique character and personality?
  providing a cornerstone for your other brand-building efforts
• communicate key benefits, not features?
  ensuring relevance and longevity
• inspire promotional and advertising campaigns?
  generating market interest and engaging the target audience

Even a great name, however, is not the right name unless it is also appropriate to the culture, internal and external, to which it belongs. The right name for your brand is one that fits "from the inside out," resonating as powerfully with those who must "speak" the brand as among those who will "hear" it.

Page 4 of 4

This document available in PDF format. (NamesAndBrands.pdf 64k)

Download Adobe Acrobat Reader