26/11/21

Spinach Branding on how to create a powerful brand name

Branding

The brand name has the power to make or break a business. It’s the first impression of a company, and it needs to work on multiple levels. An enduring name will be original, authentic and memorable. It will be culturally sensitive, and it helps for it to be broadly understood internationally. Many companies will see the process of naming as compiling a string of letters to make up words. This may work on some levels, but to create a compelling brand name requires a more systematic creative approach more akin to design. Following a tried and tested process with a set of guidelines will ensure the best possible name which will connect with the brand’s target audience.

Spinach Branding has worked with numerous businesses to help create new brand names. The London-based international agency sees a strong name as the result of a powerful positioning strategy. Be it working with aviation specialists Unilode, international drinks giant Entoria&Coe, fintech firm ieDigital, Japanese restaurant Bisushima, or architecture practice Woldon, the team tend to use a simple yet effective name development process. It includes a set of key stages of activity: discovery audit, name positioning platform document, name development, name evaluation and shortlisting, trademark checks, creative testing, name selection presentation, and legal registration.

Following the discovery audit, Spinach conducts a naming workshop to involve management and staff. The idea is to instigate a discussion across the company. These workshops can be intense, but they work incredibly well to unleash unexpected ideas. And they can be fun. The Spinach practice is not to dictate a name, or impose an idea. ‘Our job is to guide and instigate the spark, then to make it conceptually and visually come to life,’ says director of branding, Leigh Banks.

Creativity is at the heart of company naming. At the Spinach studio, highly experienced branding experts, copywriters and designers work collaboratively with the client. Banks explains: ‘The key is to find a fresh way into the hearts and minds of the customers, redefine and own the conversation in the industry, and engage people on as many levels as possible. The best company names represent the ultimate process of distilling these elements, reducing them to a single word or two. Our ethos is always to work intimately with each and every client, to give them the best possible service.’

Images: Woldon, Unilode, ieDigital and Bisushima brand names created by Spinach Branding.

Take a closer look at Spinach’s brand naming our process here.

Spinach Branding is a specialist branding agency based in London. We work with established businesses and start-ups around the world to build and refine their brands. See how we work and get in touch to discuss your brand.