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How to make your name stick
In our overcommunicated society, we are constantly bombarded
with messages that seem to be just one big blur of sameness. Limited by
society's very short attention span, your marketing message has to be
effective to the degree that it must communicate its essence and create
top-of-mind awareness within an extremely short amount of time. Names
are often the best tools -- and sometimes the only ones -- for accomplishing
this efficiently.
When positioning your company or product, your name has to stick firmly
in the mind of the marketplace and must do so instantly. While uniqueness
is an important factor, there are many other elements that can help the
anchoring process -- elements that help a name memorable as well as chosen
when a customer experiences a specific need or desire. So, here are some
simple rules to follow when choosing a name for your company or product.
What Does it Do?
To make a company or product name truly memorable, it should convey its
main feature or benefit. If I give you the word "Die Hard" for
instance, you will think of a battery that dies hard. If I tell you "Jiffy
Lube," you will naturally assume that it's a garage offering oil
changes in a jiffy. If I tell you "Band-Aid," you will picture
an adhesive bandage that comes to your aid.
Names that do not convey at least the basic nature of a company will
be easily forgotten. This includes hard-to-pronounce words, abbreviations,
and acronyms such as "MGF Holdings Limited." It also includes
self-titled companies such as "Michel Fortin International"
(which was, believe it or not, the name of my original company -- one
that nonetheless failed).
Benefits are particularly effective because such a name would make a
company or product appear as if it had some added value. When placed alongside
a competitor offering an identical product, a benefit-based name positions
itself above the competition in the mind. As a result, the name will thus
be quickly remembered when people make their decision to buy.
Rhymes Move Minds
Since the invention of the printing press, the written word has made
it easy for us to forget names. Consequently, the process of rhyming has
in the same way gradually fallen out of favor. But strangely, what we
remember the most are, for example, the nursery rhymes that we were told
as children. In today's memory management courses, people are told to
use rhymes and word association in order to improve their memory. Rhyming
is therefore effective because it is pleasing to the ear and helps to
hook words easily in the mind.
Beyond ease-of-recall, rhyming also tends to add credibility. Psychology
professor Dr. Matthew McGlone has found that rhymes not only make a phrase
more memorable, they also make it more believable (read his research results
at http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~mcglonem/rhyme.htm).
According to his research, people preferred "woes unite foes"
over "misfortune unite foes" or "woes unite enemies."
As he points out, "People often attribute the aesthetic quality of
a rhyme to the statement's validity, which suggests that people may unknowingly
equate beauty (a rhyme's singsong quality) with truth." In other
words, rhymes confer a greater sense of credibility.
While some names can easily rhyme since they use multiple words (e.g.,
"Blinds of All Kinds" or "Ronald McDonald"), most
names are made up of only one word. If they can not rhyme at least within
themselves (e.g., "Rodeo" or "Coca-Cola"), then the
job would be conferred unto their taglines -- those small sentences that
follow and complement names.
For example, if I said "It takes a licking but keeps on ticking,"
you will probably remember this phrase if not instantly recognize the
product with which this tagline is associated. And if the tagline rhymes
with the name (such as "Uh, Oh! Better get Maaco!" or "When
you need an edge, use Pledge"), the name will stick even more effectively
as a result.
Repetition Resonates
What do "Saran-Wrap," "Coca-Cola," "Willy Wonka,"
"GI Joe," "Barbie," "Hamburger Helper,"
"Crispy Crunch," and "Blockbuster" all have in common?
Similar to rhymes, the repetition of consonants give a name that pleasant
and obviously effective singsong quality. Repetition makes a name memorable
by making the pronunciation more simple. In other words, it is definitely
easier to remember a string of similar sounds than it is to remember a
combination of totally different sounding words. Did you "see the
softer side of Sear's" lately?
Rhymes and repetitious consonants used in order to make a name more memorable
are called mnemonics. Mnemonics are not only useful but also effective,
particularly in the branding process. From the simplest product to the
most abstract or complex technical service, a memorable name helps to
make the company or product memorable as well.
About the author
Michel Fortin is a direct response copywriter and consultant dedicated
to turning sales messages into powerful magnets. Get a free copy of
his book, "The 10 Commandments of Power Positioning," when
you subscribe to his free monthly ezine, "The Profit Pill."
See http://SuccessDoctor.com/
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