Provides brand naming frameworks, evaluation criteria, and templates for startup naming work. Auto-activates during brand name development, name evaluation, domain checking, and trademark research. Use when discussing brand name, company name, product name, naming strategy, SMILE SCRATCH framework, domain availability, trademark, name evaluation, sound symbolism, or naming matrix.
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reference/templates.mdQuick reference for strategic brand naming using expert methodologies from Lexicon, Eat My Words, Catchword, and Igor.
"A name should make you smile instead of scratch your head. If it makes you scratch your head, scratch it off the list." — Alexandra Watkins
| Letter | Quality | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Suggestive | Evokes something about your brand | Amazon suggests vastness |
| M | Memorable | Makes an association with the familiar | Apple connects to something everyone knows |
| I | Imagery | Aids memory through evocative visuals | Jaguar creates immediate mental picture |
| L | Legs | Lends itself to extended wordplay and branding | Nike allows "Just Do It" mythology |
| E | Emotional | Moves people | Patagonia evokes adventure |
"Legs" Explained: A name should provide "a theme with mileage you can build a brand around."
| Letter | Deal Breaker | Red Flag |
|---|---|---|
| S | Spelling Challenged | Looks like a typo |
| C | Copycat | Sounds like existing brand |
| R | Restrictive | Limits future growth (Boston Market) |
| A | Annoying | Forced, excessive wordplay |
| T | Tame | Flat, descriptive, uninspired |
| C | Curse of Knowledge | Speaks only to insiders |
| H | Hard to Pronounce | If people avoid saying it, they avoid you |
| Sound | Psychological Impact | Example Names |
|---|---|---|
| V | Vibrant, alive | Corvette, Vercel, Viagra |
| B | Reliable, solid | BlackBerry |
| Z | Attention-getting | Azure, Zara |
| X | Innovative | Xerox, SpaceX |
| Plosives (b, c, k, p) | Memorable | Coca-Cola, Kodak |
| Soft sounds (l, m, n) | Approachable | Lululemon, Amazon |
Position names on two axes — Approach (descriptive to abstract) and Construct (real-word to coined):
CONSTRUCT
Real-Word Compound Coined
↓ ↓ ↓
┌─────────┬─────────────┬──────────┐
Abstract │ Roku │ YouTube │ Xerox │
│ Apple │ Snapchat │ Kodak │
↑ ├─────────┼─────────────┼──────────┤
│ │ Amazon │ Airbnb │ Spotify │
Suggestive│ Slack │ Pinterest │ Verizon │
│ ├─────────┼─────────────┼──────────┤
↓ │ PayPal │ Salesforce │Accenture │
Descriptive│General │ TripAdvisor │ (rare) │
│Motors │ │ │
└─────────┴─────────────┴──────────┘
APPROACH
Descriptive ─────────── Suggestive ─────────── Abstract
100% clarity Sweet spot 100% creativity
0% creativity Balance of both 0% clarity
Sweet spot for most startups: Suggestive names (Netflix, Airbnb, Slack)
A great name should be:
| # | Touchstone | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Available | .com and social handles obtainable |
| 2 | Trademarkable | Can be legally protected |
| 3 | Memorable | Sticks after one hearing |
| 4 | Scalable | Allows business expansion |
| 5 | Short | Few syllables, easy to type |
| 6 | Positive Affect | Creates good feelings |
| 7 | Good for SEO | Searchable, not too generic |
| 8 | Easy to Pronounce | No stumbling |
| 9 | Easy to Spell | Intuitive spelling |
| 10 | Distinctive | Unique in category |
Key Principle: Generate 1,000+ candidates before evaluating. Quantity leads to quality.
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1,000-3,000 candidates │ ← Wide generation
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 200-300 initial screen │ ← Basic criteria
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 30 for availability │ ← Domain/TM checks
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 10-15 for presentation │ ← Full vetting
├─────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 5-7 vetted options │ ← Client decision
└─────────────────────────────────────┘
"You need 1,000 to 1,500 names before you'll find gems." — David Placek (Lexicon)
"Comfort has no power in brand naming." — David Placek (Sonos was initially rejected)
"It's called branding, not blanding." — Catchword
"The hard part of naming is not coming up with a great idea. The hard part is finding an available name." — Jeremy Miller
See reference/templates.md for:
For comprehensive naming sessions, the brand-naming-specialist agent contains 800+ lines of expert methodology including detailed output formats, generation exercises, and full professional process.
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