We have written a new White Paper on Celebrity Endorsements - Pros, Pitfalls, & Principles. Click to read.

What’s in a name…

Share this post

A lot, we would say.

For starters, a name is the first thing about a brand that consumers come across. It is therefore the de-facto calling card of the brand and can instigate consumer interest to know more. A well thought-through brand name can convey a lot of information, explicitly and implicitly, to the consumer.

With its name, a brand has an opportunity to bring alive its world and conjure up a certain image in the consumer’s mind, giving her an idea of what to expect. This becomes especially important in today’s cluttered marketing environment.

In this FreeFlowing article, we take a look at 5 brand names that have managed to achieve all this and more.

Our Favourite Five names that answer the question “What’s in a name?”

1. Mamaearth

A contemporary twist on ‘Mother Earth’, this name immediately cues a soft innocence and a nurturing quality that’s pure, natural and caring, and beautifully fits in with the category of personal care. This ties in well with the ‘no-nasties’ claim of the brand.

Interestingly, the name is also elastic enough to allow the brand to seamlessly foray into multiple consumer cohorts. This is exactly what Mamaearth has done- starting with babies, the brand now has a portfolio that caters to the entire family.

2. PhonePe

A delightful pun on the phonetic similarity between the English word ‘pay’ (for payments) and the Hindi word ‘Pe’ (for location), the name effortlessly conveys the message that the brand stands for making payments via phone.

The pun also links up very well with the fact that a consumer’s life is increasingly converging on her phone, thus giving the brand the leeway to launch additional categories and services, paving the way for a super-app strategy in the future.

3. The Whole Truth

One of the few ‘born Purposeful’ brands, ‘The Whole Truth’ stands for telling the whole truth to its consumers, as opposed to half and selective truths being sold by incumbents in the packaged foods industry, as per the founder.

Interestingly, the brand was originally launched under a different name: ‘And Nothing Else.’ But Shashank Mehta, the founder, wanted a name that was provocative and one that publicly reaffirmed the brand’s commitment to its mission- i.e., to tell ‘The Whole Truth’. He wanted the name to clearly connote what the brand believes in.

Although 3-word brand names aren’t so common, The Whole Truth is an exception because it brings alive the brand mission so beautifully.

4. Groww

A name that is simple, direct and unambiguous. It perfectly aligns with the category user’s motivation to grow their wealth. Like our other examples, Groww too has shown remarkable commitment to live up to its name and mission of ‘making investment accessible to everyone’.

Groww demonstrates that a simple brand name can also be extremely potent. Of course, while it has become increasingly difficult to legally protect brand names that are closer to everyday used words, on the positive side, nothing beats the intuitive category connection that such names bring.

5. Wrogn

Wrogn, a fashion brand with an attitude that Virat Kohli himself endorses couldn’t have thought of a better name than Wrogn- a clever pun on the word “Wrong”. The brand name, with an intentional misspelling, connotes a swagger and a rebellious streak that personifies its ambassador. Given the strong resonance of these traits with the target audience of the brand, Wrogn is a brand name the youth won’t mind flaunting.

In conclusion

So, what’s in a name?

As we saw in the examples above, brand names have the potential to deliver strategic advantage. Many a time, especially in the case of startups, the naming exercise itself is considered to be a ‘chore’ to be completed before zooming in to ‘more strategic’ tasks like finding a product-market fit.

However, this approach is flawed. After all, a brand name is the only asset in the marketing mix that once established becomes very difficult to change.

In the comment section, share some names that stand out for you.

Feel free to share this article with someone who recently asked you, “What’s in a name?”

We read all your comments!

Share this post

One Response

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

FreeFlowing is a weekly newsletter that makes you better brand builders.
Sign up to get the latest edition every week.

Hello there!
Thanks for dropping by.

FreeFlowing is a weekly newsletter that makes you better brand builders.

Sign up and you’ll get

– In-depth case studies of Indian brands
– Breakdown of marketing concepts
– Deep analysis of marketing trends

We never spam