The 2024 namer survey, part 4: What will 2025 bring?
The final chapter in this year's survey series (plus a little AI bonus...)
First: If you missed my previous posts on the 2024 namer survey, including an overview of what it is, catch up here and here and here).
Second, hello. I hope you’re all doing well out there. This year started with a lot of intensity. I’m going to share some stuff today about what namers think the year might bring. It’s funny to think that when everyone responded to this survey, it was mid December, and even though that was just about five weeks ago, the whole world feels a lot different.
I guess that’s how things feel most of the time now.
Looking to the year ahead!
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Want to become a better namer?
The full Foundations of Naming self-guided class series is finally here—take one class or the complete series, and boost your naming confidence.
“What do you feel most excited about as we enter 2025?”
It’s still so, so early in the year. We all have plenty of time to put stuff in place that, when we look back in December on our year, we’ll be glad we got started.
Most people had at least one thing they’re excited about learning/starting/growing this year.
Five themes that stood out:
Making a change in their practice
“I personally am trying to segue out of doing highly-complex corporate portfolio naming: either focusing more on architecture and positioning, or on much smaller companies with less complex (and conservative) decision-making structures.”
“Considering bringing on a partner”
Cultivating community
“Being part of a network”
“More community, more collaboration with other small studios”
Sharing expertise and thought leadership
“Putting my thoughts out into the world! Mining that area of overlap within the venn diagram comprised of "stuff I'm voraciously interested in" and "my work" and hoping that it brings in some new biz but even if it doesn't that I still enjoy creating and sharing it.”
“Continuing the work on my podcast - I love talking with linguists, and people have told me they both enjoy it and find it useful!”
Balancing work life with life life
“Finally establishing a work/life balance that actually works for me! And creating better criteria for projects that are worth taking on.”
“I'm looking forward to new challenges and personal growth, whether that means learning new skills, meeting inspiring people, or finding better work-life balance”
Maintaining 2024’s end-of-year momentum
“Opportunities! Possibilities! I feel a lot of momentum and energy heading into the new year.”
“That momentum that I established at the end of '24, and two really great new clients.”
What would you tell someone considering becoming a namer in 2025?
There were 56 pieces of thoughtful advice here. I am picking five that cover different areas:
“You should know that "Naming" is really just a trojan horse for brand, marketing, and product strategy. It can reveal opportunities or gaps in a product launch. This is especially true for in-house naming.”
“Being a namer in 2025 is an exciting and dynamic career choice, but it requires creativity, adaptability, and a deep understanding of language and culture. With the rapid evolution of technology and the increasing influence of AI, your ability to craft names that are not only memorable but also meaningful will be crucial. Stay curious and be open to new trends, but also learn to balance innovation with the importance of timeless branding”
“Poetry might pay more. (I did actually tell someone that. And I am in the know.)”
“...and beyond that I would say that all the blocking and tackling of selling a name, connecting the dots with clients visually and with your passion and strategic fundamentals, are even more important than ever, if that's possible.”
“I would advise learning by doing and taking courses with Caitlin Barrett.”
[Caitlin note: Listen, three people name-dropped me in my own survey, and I’m not above A) being moved by this type of flattery and B) using this as an excuse to plug my classes, because I do have a great foundational series for folks just getting started or looking to go deeper]
“Do you want to make a naming prediction, of any kind, for 2025?”
We’ll take a look back at these at the end of the year!
“I think we'll continue to see in-house naming positions proliferate”
“All the major tech companies will have rebranded their AI again :)”
“At least when it comes to hospitality, I think the demand for people who can do naming work for projects in the Middle East will continue to grow. More and more money is being invested in such projects in the region, and all of these projects will need names—ideally crafted by people who are not only capable namers, but are also familiar with the nuances of Arabic across these different countries and regions.”
“Weird is good.” [Caitlin note: Weird IS good!]
“Rename solutions will likely trend toward name truncations (word removal from original name) vs. outright name changes, where retained portions allows for stretch and continued recognition and also continued TM rights.”
“I think longer phrasal names (e.g., Who Gives a Crap) will have a moment!” [Caitlin note: I hope this every single year. Maybe this is our year.]
“i have this feeling that no trademarks will be enforceable anymore”
“Ai is going to undermine the law somehow haha. Maybe a trend emerges where a brand's name is fluid or ever changing. Fewer names wtht vwls”
“Trump dismantles the USPTO and it's a wild free-for-all” [Caitlin note: I find these three re: TMs very interesting! We’ll all be watching things closely…]
“AI won't wipe out namers. We are the ghost in the machine.”
“I anticipate more animals”
“More human sounding names.”
“Someone (company, consultant, etc.) will crow about creating an entire brand launch - name, design, tagline, copy, etc. - using only AI to generate all of it.”
“People will keep calling X "Twitter."”
What’s up with AI?
Most of the namers I surveyed are using AI.
How are the namers who are using it using it?
Most of the namers who said they use AI use it to generate ideas more efficiently: brainstorming and creating initial lists of concepts or related words, or just getting un-stuck.
Some use it* to to help with different kinds of research: identifying themes in a longer list, unpacking linguistic patterns, and unearthing competitive landscapes. Others are training it on their own lists and asking it to create draft lists with their own “fingerprint.”
A few use it more toward the end of the process, refining naming rationales or developing presentation materials.
No one thinks AI is delivering especially impressive final outputs, but it does seem to be helping most of us out during foundational steps.
*I didn’t ask which AI tool people were using, but the ones that were name-checked were ChatGPT and Claude.
Why are some namers abstaining?
The responses here were thoughtful, and I can’t disagree with any of them. They pointed out that:
Relying on AI prioritizes profit over creative quality—and that could lead to a decline in verbal branding standards
AI lacks creativity, depth, and the ~unpredictable human weirdness~ that’s essential to the naming process
AI outputs are kind of mediocre, uninspiring, and unhelpful to the creative process
I think AI’s role in the naming process—and its impact on how naming work is valued—will become much more concrete over the next year. It’s here to stay, but whether that’s good, bad, or (realistically) a real mix of the two will get clearer.
Happy naming!
Caitlin
Want to become a better namer?
The full Foundations of Naming self-guided class series is finally here—take one class or the complete series, and boost your naming confidence.
Download free booklets from the Truth in Branding series on naming and trademarks.
Check out an episode of Big Names in Naming, the podcast where I interview namers about…naming.
All typos are left in to humanize me 🤪