How to choose a name for a new beverage brand

With a seemingly infinite world of possibilities, how do you find a good name for a new beverage brand? How do you create a name that has the potential to resonate across popular culture... and has legs to become a household name and beverage success story?

We speak to the experts to understand the creative process behind creating a great brand name.

Where to start

Choosing a name is a process that should be carefully thought through, says Hamish Campbell, VP Creative Director, at drinks design agency Denomination.

"When choosing a name, it can be a daunting task - other companies names can seem somewhat random at times. But there is probably more meaning behind them than you realize," he said.

"A key insight is that a brand name is an empty vessel and it depends on how you fill it, will determine what it stands for or how it is perceived."

Campbell suggests starting with the brand's values. "Creating a successful brand names should come from an authentic idea," he said. "Something that is at the core brand truth. You want your name to align with your brand positioning, reflect your values and mission. 

"Take into account how your target consumer might perceive your brand name to make sure they build the right emotional connection to it. If you are creating a premium or luxury spirit, you might want something that suggests an elevated or sophisticated notion versus a more relaxed permissible beverage, which might want to reflect a fun and playful personality."

Finding it difficult to get the creative juices flowing? Miles Marmo, founder of US brand agency Agency Squid, has some suggestions.

“We always try to start with keeping it light-hearted,” he said.

“When we’re going through a naming exercise, we do our best to personify the person who would like the brand, product or service.

“Whether that’s getting our team to think about a friend, colleague, family member, or someone they’ve encountered, humanizing the approach helps us get in the mindset of the way they would speak: where does emotion play into their decision making, what are they looking for to improve themselves, etc. It actually becomes a fun exercise for us to put ourselves in the other seat.”

From there, brand owners can focus down on how the product will be named: is it going to be function focused, or more based on emotions? Will it help describe the product? How will the name be pronounced?  

A number of beverage brands have found their name by looking directly at the product.

For US gut health superstar soda OLIPOP​, choosing a name came from its ingredients and categories.

"The name OLIPOP was inspired by “oligosaccharides'', which is a type of microbiome-supporting prebiotic used in OLIPOP," explained founder Ben Goodwin. 

"OLIPOP comes from combining the terms “oligosaccharides” and “pop”, which is what a large majority of the country call soda."

It's a similar story for UK botanical non-alcoholic aperitif Botivo​.

"Botivo is simply Botanical and Aperitivo combined!" explained co-founder Sam Paget Steavenson.

"Botanicals are the key drivers of taste in our product. 

"It’s a multilayered taste experience that takes you on a journey - it starts with citrus, has a sweet tang then a herbal complexity and a bitter bite to finish.

"I have always loved aperitifs and Botivo was initially inspired by them, so it made sense to honor them in the name."

Sleep on it

The infinite range of possibilities might be overwhelming at first. But there are some limitations - and these might help narrow down your choices. 

"First and foremost, check your brand name's availability - which is getting harder and harder these days," said Campbell of Denomination.

"But you also want to watch out for being overly complex or complicated.

"Don’t be too long, or hard to pronounce: you want your brand name to be easy to remember for your consumers.

"Another watch out is to make sure it doesn’t limit you if you might want to expand your brand in the future too." 

Sparkling water YEW coined its name from the yell of celebration that surfers use when catching a wave.

That's ‘an exclamation for something epic and euphoric, reflecting the brand’s connection to positive, peak experience and a celebration of life’s most exhilaration moments’.

Meanwhile, new UK brand ROBOT Kombucha used the power of AI to help develop its debut product: ROBOT Organic Honey Cola Kombucha.

And that inspired the brand’s choice of name, with the brand's design also playing into the idea.

Premium alcohol-free sparkling wine Wild Idol​ chose its name to represent a celebration of nature and the essence of living in the present moment.

‘Wild’ plays homage to nature and the natural world, while ‘Idol’ signifies standing for something significant and revered.

Campbell says that - once you've come up with a name - try to assess it objectively.

"I’ve always been a big believer in trusting your gut, you want to make sure you are happy with it, afterall, you will have it forever! So I always suggest a sleep test, what you feel in the morning might be different. Sit with it for a few days, print it out, stick it up," he said.

"But it is also then a good idea for a final check to either run it by a few close friends or colleagues to make sure you aren’t judging the name in a vacuum. You might be surprised by what your name conveys to someone else."

Another top tip, from Marmo of Agency Squid, is to think how your brand name could evolve in the future.

"Work out how the hopeful brand name could work out across different mediums – such as potential website URLs and social handles – based on what’s available," he said.

CAPS or not caps…Or a MiX of The twO…

“We look at the use of capital letters in a few different ways,” says Marmo of Agency Squid.

“Sometimes it depends on how the letterforms themselves stack up next to one another. HEINEKEN is a good example of the strength in letterforms being all capitalized to emphasize visual impact and legibility.

"Sometimes the use of lowercase can soften a word and make it look more approachable (ex. android – it’s a little more playful and less serious).

"Even changing case sensitivity can help place further emphasis on certain parts of the word we want to communicate (ex. iPhone helps bring in the technology piece but humanize it with something familiar).

"There’s not a right or wrong case to use specific capital or non-capital letters. It depends on what is trying to be emphasized, how the letters work together, and the emotion we’re trying to convey to find the perfect balance to support brand adoption as best as possible.”

Campbell of Denomination agrees the choice of caps (or otherwise) is about thinking what your brand, as a whole, is about.

"This will all come down to the other brand elements working together to create the right feel you are trying to achieve. Remember your name is important but a name isn’t a brand. It’s just one component and all elements should be considered to be the most successful."

How important is a brand name, really?

There’s a lot of big name brands out there whose naming origin has long been forgotten – but they’re known by consumers worldwide (think Pepsi, Gatorade, Minute Maid or 7-UP… or many more). Does that signal that the name is ultimately not that important?

Marmo of Agency Squid disagrees. 

“It’s definitely possible to overthink the process!” he acknowledges. "A lot of times we get so fixated on making things perfect. But it also helps ground us to what’s important.

“What we’ve seen in our work is that design elements, visual language, and brand messaging play a larger role in getting buy-in.

“Where things fall flat is where brands, especially in the consumer goods space, launch with packaging and brands that aren't well thought out. You can skate by with a name that means nothing, but without being able to give it meaning or bring it to life is where brands fall short.”

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