Naming Process
Positioning
Understanding the brand or product positioning and distinctive qualities of that make it special and the reason for the company, product or brand's existence. What do people think, perceptions of the category or industry.
competitive
A topline discovery of competitors in the space, if any exist. Or a review of those that closely resemble the new brand or refreshed brand. What are the category norms, expectations and understandings? Where is the white space?
platforms
Based on the brand's positioning and the competitive review, a set of "platforms" or conceptual territories are developed for exploration. For example, if your brand is all about health, we may break down health into territories that ladder up to health, like fresh, vitality, endurance, etc.
construction
Name types are several: evocative or suggestive, descriptive, invented, historical, founder-based, geographic, lexical, acronym. One method for name candidates is by combining morphemes, the smallest unit of language, to create new words called neologisms.
function
In addition to evaluating names for positioning fit, we need to consider the ability to pronounce the name, that includes how it fits phonetically. The brain recognizes sound over proper spelling so phonetic names have strong recall.
pre-screen
If the name is going to be registered (not all are), then a pre-check of a short-list will be done for trademark within the U.S. This is not extensive, so your legal team will need to get engaged for final name candidates.
no-trademark
Many event, product, color and collection names are not registered. They are short-lived, for example a seasonal swimwear collection may last only for spring. It may be wise to do a legal check to ensure the name can be used legally and doesn't infringe on a registered brand, even if only for a season.