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cut to the trace

by The Handcrafter Soap & Cosmetic Guild

How To Represent Your Brand: Naming Your Products

There are so many moving parts when it comes to launching a business, it’s difficult to know where to start! One of the considerations you will have to face is the naming of your products. Whether you choose elaborate or simple terms, naming your product line gives you great creative influence over how your customer perceives what you have to offer. Representing your product properly is imperative!

There are a few different ways that you could go about naming your products, which we will discuss in this article. Of course, it is very important to do a detailed search for your product name first to be sure that another company does not already have it trademarked, thus avoiding potential financial hardship down the road.

So, join us and dive into the creative and exciting world of product names!

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Methods of Naming Your Precious Products 

Themed Names 

Does your company have a location based name, or a creative name based on an experience? Your product names are a great way to emphasize that. For example, if your company name is the “Saratoga Soap Co.”, some interesting product names might be “Thoroughbred”, “Track Season”, or “Congress Park”. These kinds of names will help customers make and keep the connection between your company and your product. Maybe you’ve named your company “Carnival Cosmetics”; be creative with names like “Show Pony”, “Funnel Cake” or “Carousel”. These are stand out names that are fun, light hearted and make a great connection between your product and company all while bringing to mind something positive and fun.

Descriptive Names 

If you are looking for simplicity, a descriptive name is the route for you! Descriptive product names tell the buyer exactly what they have in their hand. For example; you are selling a rose-scented lotion. You might name it, “Rose Lotion” or “Rose Garden”. A simple, descriptive name is a great way to market your product; just be sure to prominently display your company name on the packaging so that your customer makes the connection between your product and your business.

Creating Words 

Creating words is a lot of fun, especially if you’re looking for a descriptive name with a pop! For example, you could create a word like “SheaRiffic” to describe a product with shea in it. Creating a standout word will make a quick product to business connection for your buyer, but beware; creating a difficult to say or spell word may backfire if a customer attempts to search for your product by name instead of by your company’s name.

Modern and Minimalist Names 

Modern and minimal; two very trendy things right now. Naming your product something like “Formula 3” or “No. 9” is simple to remember and easy to associate with a specific company, since it is a very unique way of naming a product.

Now that we’ve touched on a few ideas for naming your product, let’s go over some helpful ground rules.

Building Your Product Name

There are a few things that go into making a memorable and positive product name. Literary tools like alliteration (the repetition of the initial consonant sounds in neighboring words, like “Super Soap Scent”), rhyming, and visualization are all ways to boost the likability of your product through clever and creative branding; something your consumers will likely be judging you on.

Think about some products that you use or that you’ve seen. What stands out about the name productnamingof the product to you? What do you love about it, and what do you hate about it? Is it because they are memorable, or because they are clever (or both)? What does the name look like on the packaging; does it enhance the packaging, or does it take away from the product? If you can answer these questions, you’ll have a better idea of what to look for in your own product’s name.

Now, let’s talk a bit about how your consumer will search for your product. If you are selling at a craft fair or a farmer’s market, there’s a good chance that whoever buys your product initially will have met you and will have recognition through that experience. Let’s say that this customer then gives your product to a friend, or maybe they tell their friend about it; how will the product name affect your potential customer’s ability to search for it? Perhaps you have a soap named “Rose Garden”. It’s a beautiful name, but there is a very good chance that typing it into a search engine will yield many, many results. Consider naming it “Sally’s Rose Garden Soap” instead; this gives a more defined search term that will easily point consumers in your direction!

The Legal Side of Naming

Handcrafted soap and cosmetic businesses are popping up quite frequently now, and in this ever-growing market, it can be very difficult to find a unique product name. Although doing your legal due diligence is time consuming, it is always worthwhile; it is better to know in advance if there is a conflict, rather than having legal action taken against you down the road.

Searching for a trademark can be confusing, but the United States Patent and Trademark Office offers a valuable tool called the Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) that allows you to search for registered trademarks, both active and inactive. It is also important to do a standard search engine search once you have a few product names picked out. As frustrating as it can be, if either one of your searches yields a result, use a different product name. It is better to change your name now rather than going through an extensive and expensive rebrand in the future! We have a great article on our blog, Cut to the Trace, about the trademark process; take a look at http://www.cuttothetrace.com/2016/11/protecting-your-business-all-about-trademarks/ to check it out!

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Final Thoughts 

Naming your products should be a fun experience that showcases your creativity as well as your product’s quality and purpose. It is in a customer’s nature to judge your product’s name, quality and price; but this feedback does not always have to be considered a complaint. If you come up with a name that seems amazing, consider testing it out on a small focus group before releasing it to the public. Consult your friends, family, even current customers; there is no better feedback than real-world feedback, so if their comments seem constructive and genuine, switch things up a bit.

We want to hear about your creative product names! Leave us a comment here, or on our Facebook page on the post for this article; let’s see your creativity in action!

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