by
Kyra Dawson
The power of Sony. The oh so good indulgence of Starbucks. The
find-it-fast search capabilities of Google. These names evoke
strong emotions of dominance, warmth, satisfaction and confidence.
All are very effective names because once a consumer's emotions
are engaged, the strength of a brand is realized.
Emotional
reaction equals strong investment, and it is very hard to neglect
or forget an investment of any sort. Brands are highly aware of
the cerebral yet instinctual connection an emotional reaction
elicits. This chemical evocation is utilized to the maximum benefit
when brands plan a promotional campaign for their product. Companies
spend millions to ensure that their audience more than gets the
message they want to send by incorporating music, sounds, images,
vivid color and celebrities to trigger huge sensory responses
towards their product, company or innovation. An emotional response
towards a name is the human to brand connection that is sought
after like the Holy Grail. If customers feel drawn to something,
loyalty through preference is sure to follow.
A
strong name acts as the prompting mechanism to encourage a skeptical
generation and a savvy nation to give a product a try. If a name
can evoke the security sensation of that phrase "satisfaction
guaranteed", then you've got a winner. If that promise is vaguely
implied upon hearing a brand name, then maybe people might be
interested in studying the label of your product looking for that
feeling to inspire them to test trial. If people lose interest
before the last syllable of your brand name can be uttered, your
brand is sure to be ignored. A strong name is irresistible and
charms people with its charisma. A strong name pleases consumers
because it feels good just to say it. The brand name is verbal
short hand for the brand promise itself.
The
first and most important quality of anything is a solid name.
If you miss on the name, the link between brand and emotion will
be weak or nonexistent. This can spell the downfall of any trademark,
ensuring the brand's identity will be second best or grouped with
all the rest and easily forgotten. Worse still, it could too easily
be dismissed.