Why should you care about a name's risk profile?
Risky names can work...but you have to know what the risks are.
We love a little danger in our lives, don’t we? I spend most of my free time grappling with men twice my size, lifting large metal things off the ground and putting them back down (sometimes gently, sometimes not), and hiking up icy mountains in the middle of the winter. It makes me feel alive.
SIDE NOTE: The summer schedule is now live.
The secret to doing risky things is knowing the risks, and preparing for them
When you know what the risks are, you can make decisions about how you’ll handle things as they arise, or get ahead of them in the first place.
When it comes to names, choosing a name without knowing its risk profile is too risky: everything you build on that name ties itself to an uncertain fate, and that can lead to real disaster.
That’s why I think doing some risk filtering is a critical part of every naming process. Not convinced? Here are some reasons to consider it for your clients, and for yourself.
Reasons to make risk filtering part of your naming process for your clients:
It will save them money (and potentially their business) in the long run.
Getting dragged into a trademark lawsuit can cost a business everything from money to the entire business it has built.
It protects their reputation and ability to build trust with audiences.
Insulting people—especially a brand’s target audience—isn’t a great way for a brand to introduce itself. Even if it apologizes after.
It protects their business relationships.
If a major retailer has to take down a display because a brand’s name is a major liability, it might not be very open to a conversation when it secures a new one.
It can be the cost of entry.
Certain marketplaces require some degree of IP protection before you’re allowed to register and participate.
Reasons to make risk filtering a part of your naming process for you, as a namer:
It will help you command a premium
Being able to provide good advice and offer services that span all phases of naming, not just the “fun” part, makes you a more valuable expert and partner.
Protect your reputation
You aren’t endorsing names with obvious issues and risking upsetting clients, or having a disastrous media cycle pinned to your creation.
Enhance your relationships
Being able to help clients consider risks improves your mutual trust.
Win more kinds of work
Certain clients expect some level of due diligence will come with the naming work that you do.
Learn more about this, and other ways to set your next naming project up for success, at an upcoming Naming for Everyone class!
Happy naming!
Caitlin
Want more naming resources?
Take an upcoming Naming for Everyone class
Download free booklets from the Truth in Branding series on naming and trademarks