How to Create and Protect a Product Name
When you're naming your product, you need to create a name that is descriptive, unique, and that sticks in the mind of the consumer.
Your product name must fit within the umbrella of your company name and other brand names, and must also lend its own information to consumers.
It must be memorable, findable, understandable, and relevant.
The following 10 tips can aid you in making your naming process more efficient, effective, and creative.
You will need to conduct your own market research: these tips may only act as guidelines.
Tip One: Get Descriptive The simplest way to name a product is to describe the function it performs, or one of its physical attributes.
While this may seem like an obvious naming technique, it can also be an effective one.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer is a popular search engine: it is used by consumers to explore the internet.
The product name is short and sweet, and yet consumers use it worldwide.
Beware being overly descriptive.
Your product name can quickly go from effective to undistinguishable amongst the competition.
An overly descriptive product name is also difficult to register as a trademark due to its lack of individuality.
Tip Two: Twist Real Words Around The beauty of the English language is that it does not need to be used literally.
Use real words to infer meaning.
For example: a Ford Mustang is not a wild horse, but the name infers speed, elegance, and wildness.
All of these attributes are a subtle appeal to the consumer.
Tip Three: Use Prefixes or Suffixes You can transform a generic term into a product name by simply adding a prefix or a suffix onto it.
A perfect example of the successful use of prefixes and suffixes is by Apple: the iPod, iPad, and iPhone, are all highly successful product names.
Tip Four:Create New Words with Compounds It can be difficult to register a product name, as so many are already trademarked or registered as domain names.
Because of this, many brand names are compound names.
You can create an entirely new word by sandwiching to generic terms together.
Pinterest, Photoshop, and Band-Aid are all examples of successful compound names.
Tip Five: Make Up an Entirely New Word The ideal way to ensure the uniqueness of your product name is to make up an entirely new word.
Gatorade, Sustagen, and Kodak are all made-up names.
Tip Six: Modify Spellings You can misspell your product name to ensure its individuality.
You can also use this trick if a name you desire is already a registered trademark or domain name.
Fantastik and Krispy Kreme are brand names with incorrect spelling.
Tip Seven: Portmanteau If you can't quite describe your product in a single word, you can modify words in new combinations to create your product name.
For example, Pinterest is a name created of two words that describe the product: pin and interest.
Pictionary (picture and dictionary) is another prime example.
Tip Eight: Use Existing Names You might use a founder's name, a founder's nickname, or a conjunction of different names to identify your product.
You could even use a geographical location to name your product.
Law firms are often named after their founders, as are large companies and corporations.
The Clark Bar was named for its founder, David L.
Clark.
Be wary in using people's names for product names: should you want to expand out of a particular area, or if the founder of your company leaves to work for a competitor, you may come up against complications.
Tip Nine: Acronyms, Initials, and Numbers There are a number of successful acronyms or numbered brand names: for example, IBM.
However, for a business not yet established in the marketplace, acronyms and numbers can be risky.
Acronyms do not say a lot for themselves: it can take much more time for the consumer to develop brand recognition with a name that consists only of numbers and letters.
However, IBM is a testament to the success of acronyms as brand names: similarly, the Honda CRV, Toyota Rav4, and Formula 409, are all examples of successful numbered brand names.
Tip Ten: Verb Use You might decide to use a verb as your product name, or turn your product name into a verb.
For example, Skype is both the brand name and the verb used to describe the product function.
Register Your Product Name as a Trademark The individuality of your product name is important for both marketing and trademarking purposes.
Trademark registration is not essential, but in order to truly protect your mark against infringers, you should register your product name as a trademark.
You can state your claim to the exclusive use of your product name by using the ™ symbol in conjunction with it.
However, this symbol does to permit you to take action against illegal infringers.
To enforce penalties against infringers or copiers, you must register your trademark with your local trademark office.
You can also register your product name internationally.
You would do this is you traded overseas, or if you one day hoped to expand your business over international borders.
You can register your product name in a number of jurisdictions through the Madrid Protocol.
Even once you have registered your trademark, you need to protect your rights as the owner of that mark by constantly using your product name and logo on your marketing, advertising, and packaging, as well as on such things as correspondence.
You can lose your product name to another company, or have it removed from the register, if you do not prove that you require that mark to identify your products and services.
A trademark professional can aid you in filing your applications, managing the registration process, and even in searching the relevant databases to ensure that your product name is not already in use.
You should speak to a trademark expert before you attempt to register your product name as a trademark, or even before you use your new product name publicly.
You could be unwittingly encroaching on the rights of a trademark holder if you have not conducted searches to ensure that your product name is truly unique.
Your product name must fit within the umbrella of your company name and other brand names, and must also lend its own information to consumers.
It must be memorable, findable, understandable, and relevant.
The following 10 tips can aid you in making your naming process more efficient, effective, and creative.
You will need to conduct your own market research: these tips may only act as guidelines.
Tip One: Get Descriptive The simplest way to name a product is to describe the function it performs, or one of its physical attributes.
While this may seem like an obvious naming technique, it can also be an effective one.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer is a popular search engine: it is used by consumers to explore the internet.
The product name is short and sweet, and yet consumers use it worldwide.
Beware being overly descriptive.
Your product name can quickly go from effective to undistinguishable amongst the competition.
An overly descriptive product name is also difficult to register as a trademark due to its lack of individuality.
Tip Two: Twist Real Words Around The beauty of the English language is that it does not need to be used literally.
Use real words to infer meaning.
For example: a Ford Mustang is not a wild horse, but the name infers speed, elegance, and wildness.
All of these attributes are a subtle appeal to the consumer.
Tip Three: Use Prefixes or Suffixes You can transform a generic term into a product name by simply adding a prefix or a suffix onto it.
A perfect example of the successful use of prefixes and suffixes is by Apple: the iPod, iPad, and iPhone, are all highly successful product names.
Tip Four:Create New Words with Compounds It can be difficult to register a product name, as so many are already trademarked or registered as domain names.
Because of this, many brand names are compound names.
You can create an entirely new word by sandwiching to generic terms together.
Pinterest, Photoshop, and Band-Aid are all examples of successful compound names.
Tip Five: Make Up an Entirely New Word The ideal way to ensure the uniqueness of your product name is to make up an entirely new word.
Gatorade, Sustagen, and Kodak are all made-up names.
Tip Six: Modify Spellings You can misspell your product name to ensure its individuality.
You can also use this trick if a name you desire is already a registered trademark or domain name.
Fantastik and Krispy Kreme are brand names with incorrect spelling.
Tip Seven: Portmanteau If you can't quite describe your product in a single word, you can modify words in new combinations to create your product name.
For example, Pinterest is a name created of two words that describe the product: pin and interest.
Pictionary (picture and dictionary) is another prime example.
Tip Eight: Use Existing Names You might use a founder's name, a founder's nickname, or a conjunction of different names to identify your product.
You could even use a geographical location to name your product.
Law firms are often named after their founders, as are large companies and corporations.
The Clark Bar was named for its founder, David L.
Clark.
Be wary in using people's names for product names: should you want to expand out of a particular area, or if the founder of your company leaves to work for a competitor, you may come up against complications.
Tip Nine: Acronyms, Initials, and Numbers There are a number of successful acronyms or numbered brand names: for example, IBM.
However, for a business not yet established in the marketplace, acronyms and numbers can be risky.
Acronyms do not say a lot for themselves: it can take much more time for the consumer to develop brand recognition with a name that consists only of numbers and letters.
However, IBM is a testament to the success of acronyms as brand names: similarly, the Honda CRV, Toyota Rav4, and Formula 409, are all examples of successful numbered brand names.
Tip Ten: Verb Use You might decide to use a verb as your product name, or turn your product name into a verb.
For example, Skype is both the brand name and the verb used to describe the product function.
Register Your Product Name as a Trademark The individuality of your product name is important for both marketing and trademarking purposes.
Trademark registration is not essential, but in order to truly protect your mark against infringers, you should register your product name as a trademark.
You can state your claim to the exclusive use of your product name by using the ™ symbol in conjunction with it.
However, this symbol does to permit you to take action against illegal infringers.
To enforce penalties against infringers or copiers, you must register your trademark with your local trademark office.
You can also register your product name internationally.
You would do this is you traded overseas, or if you one day hoped to expand your business over international borders.
You can register your product name in a number of jurisdictions through the Madrid Protocol.
Even once you have registered your trademark, you need to protect your rights as the owner of that mark by constantly using your product name and logo on your marketing, advertising, and packaging, as well as on such things as correspondence.
You can lose your product name to another company, or have it removed from the register, if you do not prove that you require that mark to identify your products and services.
A trademark professional can aid you in filing your applications, managing the registration process, and even in searching the relevant databases to ensure that your product name is not already in use.
You should speak to a trademark expert before you attempt to register your product name as a trademark, or even before you use your new product name publicly.
You could be unwittingly encroaching on the rights of a trademark holder if you have not conducted searches to ensure that your product name is truly unique.