What is a naming agency?- While it may sound like something akin to the sorting hat ceremony in Harry Potter or a new trend for choosing your baby’s name, naming agencies is an important service for businesses.

In short, a naming agency helps companies in their infancy craft a name and brand that are effective, engaging, and stand out from the crowd (because “crowd” is a delicate way to say “overwhelming avalanche of competition in your space”).

But what services does a naming agency provide, exactly? And how do you go about choosing one?

Here is a simple guide to naming agencies.

Why hire a naming agency?

The fact is that names matter. Choosing a name for your company means putting a face on your company, product or service that you hope will create an emotional response in everyone who comes across it. You want a name that is aligned with your values and purpose as a company and that you can build customer loyalty and trust on.  You also want a name that is strong, engaging, compelling and most importantly, hard to forget!

Brand naming is harder than it looks. It takes knowledge, skills and a level of creativity that is not accessible to the average Joe. Brand namers combine experience, instinct and intuition to craft brand names that are unique, powerful and of course (the main purpose), help you reach your key business objectives.

If you are looking to position or strengthen your brand, employing the services of a trusted naming agency is the place to start.

Services

As the moniker suggests, a naming firm is responsible for helping you perfect a company name, brand name or product names that meet your unique vision, purpose and characteristics.

Sometimes, that means sitting down with a fledgling company and fleshing out what your new brand is going to stand for and what you are all about. In other scenarios, it means rebranding an existing company, service or product to change the conversation about it or embrace a new direction.

A brand name change can boost your current brand to be more engaging and help you build on it–a solid foundation will go a long way toward helping you tailor your marketing efforts in the right direction.

Finally, branding agencies can not only help with creating your name; they can also help with broader marketing strategies centered around your branding initiatives.

What to expect

First and foremost, a naming firm has to start with information before imagination comes into play. They will sit down with you and ask all about your business’ origin, vision, purpose, services and market sector. Expect some high-level listening skills to be brought to the table!

Next, you’ll be asked to share your business objectives. What do you want to accomplish? Where do you want to go, what are your long-term goals? If you grow and scale, what other related services do you see yourself branching out into?

When this information session is wrapped up, the naming firm gets to work.

The creative process

They will do lots of research on your market space and current trends. They will pull together their team of creatives and get the ball rolling with words, names, ideas. Some will be great, some won’t…but that’s all part of the creative process. The client is often included in this process by providing ideas and words to the melting pot.

Copywriters, designers, marketers, business people, naming specialists and techno-wizards all work together to explore concepts, exchange ideas and consider any and all issues with the ideas that come out. Is the name too long? Can it be easily pronounced? Does it sound pretentious? Is it too short? Does it mean something unfortunate in another language?

The process requires branching out into themes, images, taglines, descriptors…anything that could be on-brand and related to your needs and vision. All avenues will be explored, and no stone will remain unturned! What will the name look like online or in print? How do different fonts or colors affect the feel of it?

Don’t forget the legal stuff

Of course, the legal side of things is handled. Naming agencies you can trust have a firm grasp of copyright and trademark laws. Trademark lawyers are on hand to make sure there is no existing overlap, that domain names are available and that any potential legal hurdles are cleared. Domain name registration is often a part of this process as well.

Turning to a naming agency to get your brand off to a strong, successful start is an intelligent, business-savvy decision that is worth its weight in gold. Building an established, far-reaching, long-lasting brand starts with a solid, unique name.

Looking for more marketing support as your business grows? Megan Killion Consulting is a team of experienced, professional experts who can take over your marketing and branding so you can get back to what matters. Contact us today so we can discuss your business needs and how we can help your startup thrive.