The sound of a brand name can make a world of difference in how the brand is perceived. And, how successful it will be.
After taking connotations, associations, and repetition out of the equation, it is true that elements of the sound itself carry certain intrinsic reactions.
A word can sound large or small, strong or weak, even light or dark.
Here are a few linguistic tidbits that have proven to be important in the creation and selection of names for brands:
These are not hard and fast rules, by any means. A brand can transcend these theories by its implied meaning like the friendly sounding "APPLE" or by repetition.
Don't tell Bill that we're saying MicroSoft is not a good name- but that's our opinion. "Micro" equals small and "Soft" is well...soft. Sounds like a dose of Viagra might help. But, through repetition of the name we know who MicroSoft is.
Here are a few examples of "sound symbolism"1
It's interesting to note that certain sounds, whether made by a mouse or a lion; a person speaking Swahili or Spanish- have intrinsic meaning. Just in the way they sound.
In an nutshell, "e" sounds , as in "teeny", tend to be perceived as small. On the other hand, "o" as in OMEGA or " a" as in "AMERICA" sounds large. It has to do with the size of the voice box producing the vowel and how wide the mouth is open. So "i" or "e" are smaller sounding then "o" or "a".
Sapir 2 said: "these sounds have a certain feeling-significance, they have a certain meaning in themselves" There are also phonetic components of a name that convey "light" or "dark" as well as big or small.
Another interesting study proved that companies with brand names containing what we call "plosives" were historically more successful in a comparison of 200 top brands.
A "plosive" is a "P" ,"T" or a "K" sound that causes you to build up air pressure in your mouth and forcefully pronounce the sound. Think of KODAK. Or PROZAC* or COCA COLA etc. A "plosive" makes a noticeable noise. It has been proven to make a difference.
*Prozac3 is a good example (not only because we were involved in creating it) but because it's the kind of word that has a "plosive" to start then , with the "Z' -zzzz- you start to build up the force for the final "plosive" "AC! "
"Prozac" is also a unique name in that makes absolutely no reference to the pharmacological components of the drug. But for Eli Lilly and Co. it is hugely successful.
SOoooooo, when a person hears a name for the first time it is never neutral. It always carries with it some feelings or emotional/subliminal reactions.
"...when we hear a word for the first time, it is never neutral, but rather it embodies certain values and echoes already residing in the mind. " 4
Other linguistic qualities , including phonetic (sound), orthographic (spelling), morphological (structural) and semantic devices enter into the brand naming process as well.
A combination of devices can be used in the creation of names that will give the brands a head start. Obviously the fit of the name with the object, as in "Bufferin" is meaningful. "Seven-Eleven, Diet Pepsi, "Kal Kan" and Dr. Pepper are names that could be used as examples of combinations of component linguistic devices.
Look at the components of these names : "Compaq" "Burger King," "K-Mart," "Toyota", Excite", "Sprint" and " "Kraft" .
It's important-when naming a brand- to know that new words come
to our ears with meaning already attached.
"Nomen est omen"
Note that family names also carry certain feelings. Take this pair of British
brands...
Cadbury and Guinness are family names. If Mr. Cadbury had been a brewer and Mr. Guinness a confectioner, we might today be drinking Cadbury's stout and eating Guinness chocolate. Perish the thought.
This theory carries over to baby naming as well. Certain names tend to build stronger character. But that's another story altogether.
In conclusion, it's important for marketing people to know how the sound of a name is going to effect it's success in the marketplace.
For naming experts, copywriters, speech writers, and others, we may be relying, sometimes unconsciously, on these hidden layers of meaning as we work.
"The genius of naming, then, may be in capturing and shaping the
underlying meanings of sounds, as well as of larger language
elements, to create unique, ownable "sound symbols" that resonate in consumers' minds."5
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1 Hinton, Leanne, Johanna Nichols and John Ohala (1994),
Sound
Symbolism, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Ohala, John (1994), "The Frequency Code Underlies the
Sound-Symbolic Use of Voice Pitch," in Sound Symbolism, edited by
Leanne Hinton, Johanna Nichols and John Ohala, Cambridge, Engl.
Cambridge University Press.
2 Sapir, Edward (1929), "A Study in Phonetic Symbolism,"
Journal of
Experimental Psychology, 12 (June), 225-239.
3 Erlich, Julie. "Giving Drugs a Good Name," The New York
Times
Magazine, September 3, 1995, 36-37.
4 Schloss, Ira (1981), "Chickens and Pickles," Journal of
Advertising Research , 21 (December), 47-49.
5 Schorin, Gerald A. and Bruce G. Vanden Bergh (1985), "What's
in a
Brand Name?" In The Proceedings of the 1985 Conference of the
American Academy of Advertising, Nancy Stephens, ed. Tempe,
© 1996 Namebase/Brandworks