We’ve been name-dropping Nina Beckhardt on this podcast since its inception. Every time naming comes up, she comes up. And she kindly agreed to make it much more official and come on to discuss all things brand naming.
We get into what brands get wrong with naming, how to do it right, why it’s a fantastic positioning tool, the placeholder trap, why dropping vowels doesn’t fool trademark law, AND why the right name should make you a little uncomfortable.
And unsurprisingly, it goes way beyond naming.
Enjoy!
Meet Nina Backhardt
Nina Beckhardt is the founder of The Naming Group, an LA-based naming agency that has named things you own, have tasted, and have touched. Think Chevy Sonic, Reebok footwear, hiring software, butt wipes, and everything in between. She specializes not just in individual names but in naming systems, naming architecture, and building naming practices inside major organizations. In short: she’s a powerhouse. And the partner we always turn to when tackling the hairy beast that is naming.
Hit the links to skip to the bits you fancy
03:39 — GIVE IT A JOB DESCRIPTION//Question #1: Does the name do its job? Not just “does it sound nice.”
06:01 — THE WHITE SPACE// How to find the open territory.
06:39 — LIKABLE ≠ MEMORABLE// Research from master namer Anthony Shore: the most likable taglines and names aren’t always the most memorable. The same is true for naming.
15:46 — THE TIGER IN THE WOODS // The most underestimated mistake in naming: showing the final name to a decision-maker who’s never been in the room.
17:38 — SYSTEM 1, SYSTEM 2 // DanielKahneman’s Thinking Fast and Slow, applied to naming.
22:58 — THE PLACEHOLDER PROBLEM // The danger of codenames. Familiarity breeds affinity. Even when it really, really shouldn’t.
27:28 — THE NAMING CRITERIA FRAMEWORK// Nina walks through the full framework on building a name that can grow and change over decades.
31:10 — VOWEL-DROPPING IS SILLY// Dropping letters is not just lazy, it might even hurt trust. And it certainly doesn’t always help with a trademark.
36:21 — AI IN NAMING// How to use AI to do naming right. If you must.
41:42 — QUICKFIRE// Poetic words and hiring people with “naming” in their title.
Thank you to Nina for coming on. Reach out to her via The Naming Group, follow her on LinkedIn, and read her very excellent Substack @NamingAtScale.
And if you’d like to sponsor the pod, please reach out to hello@weareingoodco.com.
ABOUT
Chris and Kirsten are the founders of IN GOOD CO, a consultancy that ignites challenger brands with fearless and proactive positioning.
Chris writes a weekly newsletter for +17K subscribers that shares the best-of-the-best on culture, trends, marketing, etc. What she's dropping to friends on Slack or finding useful in meetings with brands | Follow her on Substack
