BRAND NAMING | REAL ESTATE | BRAND NAME
How to Come Up With a Brand Name Without a Product!
5 steps for creating the perfect brand name.
In November 2021, Alifya was engulfed in chaos. In case you just stumbled upon my profile and are wondering what I mean by “Alifya,” let me clarify.
Alifya is the name of the brand design agency I work at as the lead copywriter. Why was it engulfed in chaos, you might ask?
Because there was a question circling around, being whispered by the walls and spreading around the office like wildfire.
“How is anyone supposed to sell something that doesn’t even exist?”
No, I haven’t gone crazy and yes, you can do it too, following the 5 simple steps I am about to tell you.
Brand Naming Step 1: Understand the Problem
Duh? Yeah, I know. But hear me out, you won’t regret it, I promise!
The first thing I did was to understand the brand. But wait, there was no brand to understand because there was no product!
So, we went to the client’s office. And by we, I mean me, the Creative Director Muhammad Usman, and the lead designer. We were hoping to interview the client to try and grasp what he had in mind for this business.
If your business doesn’t have a product yet, this is what you need to do as well.
After the meeting, we were equipped with the following list:
- The client wanted to sell land for farmhouses.
- This land was situated on a mountain.
- The client was hoping to provide people with a second home, where they could escape the hustle and bustle of life but still get that cozy, homely feeling.
- There were ten things (or should we say values?) our client wanted to give to his clients; integrity, preservation (of the young generation), offline luxury, productive silence, nature, privacy, joy, quality, peace, and a second home.
I still haven’t forgotten how deeply connected he was to this project. Here are his exact words:
Everywhere, I see the young generation with its head deep in gadgets, with no time for family. I’ve always wanted to provide people with a space where they can go back to their values and preserve them.
Brand Naming Step 2: Identify a unique selling point
I know what you’re thinking.
How do we find something unique to sell when there is no product? 🤦♀️
Without a product, your best bet is to find a unique selling point for the business itself. For example, in this case, we had the values. For you, this might be different.
For a food brand, it may be a special ambiance. For a beauty brand, it may be special, organic ingredients. If you can’t find a USP, then make one. I mean, suggest the client to do it.
Brand Naming Step 3: Gather Inspiration
Equipped with this list, we went back to the office. It was time for me to rack my brain. But before I could start thinking of a brand name, I had to gather inspiration from other brands.
I surfed the internet to see what other people were naming their brands. Then I procrastinated some.
But hey, what copywriter doesn’t procrastinate, right? 🤷♀️
I gathered inspiration and insights about other brands for two days. Yup, two whole days! And here’s what I found:
So, now it was time for me to sit down and start the actual thinking process.
Brand Naming Step 4: Apply Different Naming Methods
But a brand name doesn’t always have to be the surnames, or the initials. It doesn’t even have to be anything obvious. What a brand name does have to be is:
- Short
- Meaningful
- Memorable
There are many ways to achieve this and here are some of my favorites:
- Breaking words and mixing them with others
- Coming up with random words
- Looking up for translations in other languages
- Using the company’s verbal language
I came up with 89 names using these methods! But none of them clicked.
If this happens to you, here’s what you need to do.
Brand Naming Step 5: Visit the Scene
Three days went by, and my frustration was through the roof!
Me: You know what? This isn’t working, I need a break.
CD: Sure, take a break. We’ll work on the colors in the meanwhile.
Me: Not that break! I need to get out somewhere. Can we go to the location where the farmhouses are going to be built? I’ve heard it’s a beautiful place.
CD: Good idea, maybe we’ll be able to find some inspiration there.
And that was how we ended up on the peaceful mountains of Islamabad. Greenery stretched as far as our eyes could see. The light breeze first blew my hair and then blew my mind!
Because it suddenly hit me. The farmhouses would be on a mountain, and the client had 10 values for his business. A fusion of the location and the values. What better brand name could there be?
But wait, it gets even better!
If we replace the ‘tain’ in mountain with ‘ten’, it will still be pronounced the same. Does the “getting better” part stop here? Not on my watch! 😎
Because a brand name that has letters as well as numbers is one of the most memorable ones. The ‘ten’ can be written as ‘10.’ Eureka! I literally jumped out of the bean bag I was sitting on when I figured this out.
So, this is how I came up with a brand name for a company without a product.
Hi, I am Romi, the lead Copywriter at a brand design agency in Pakistan. I am also a blogger and ghostwriter for a Top Writer on Medium. I have worked with various clients ranging from startups to large enterprises creating enticing and persuasive copy that converts. I also create SEO-friendly, engaging articles with the help of story-telling.
If you liked what I did for this brand, and what to get the same awesomeness for yours, or if you would like to get copywriting, blogging, or ghostwriting services that blow up your sales, just shoot me a message here: romirafiq505@gmail.com or on twitter.
