April 28, 2009
Is the Swine Flu Name Offensive?
It turns out that the name "swine flu" is considered to be offensive by Israelis. The Deputy Health minister in Israel has said publicly that the use of the name is insulting to Muslims and Jews and has suggested it be renamed "Mexican Flu," given that the outbreak started in Mexico.
The Paris-Based World Organization for Animal Health, alongside irritated pork producers, has also said that the name is inaccurate, as it contains avian and human components and no pig has yet died from the disease, nor can you get the disease by eating pork.
They suggest that it be called "North American Influenza," following the naming scheme of "Spanish Influenza," which references the location of the initial cases.
It's a tricky problem. Obviously "swine flu" sounds very frightening (and thus is wonderful for newspaper headlines), because it seems to echo bird flu or avian influenza. Calling this North American Flu just does not have the same ring, because North America really already has its own flues.
There is just something more frightening about linking a dangerous flu to an animal. And of course, nobody who sees the pig as profane would like to be in danger of dying from a disease that bears its name.
I also might add that if the name does morph into Mexican Flu that we would start seeing protests from that region of the world.
Nonetheless, the name is not new: in 1976 there was a terrible outbreak of the swine flu at Fort Dix and predictions back then were dire indeed.
There is always the chance that the media may choose to use the virus' actual name in light of this controversy, but virus naming at the scientific level is extremely complex, so unfortunately we will all likely be washing our hands a few more times a day to elude the ________ flu.
Any suggestions?
Technorati Tags: Swine Flu, Mexican Flu, Virus Naming, Flu Names, Offensive Naming
Posted by William Lozito at 8:08 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack
April 7, 2009
Totally Texty: Brand Naming Comes Clean
A new hair poduct aimed at teenagers uses texting language to pretty good effect. The shampoo is called Totally Txty and it has two formulations: 
"ddg," or "drop dead gorgeous" for girls, and "ytmn," or "you're the man now" for men.
The name appears to have naturally emerged as Totally Txty researchers came to the conclusion that text speak is now a viable brand naming option.
There is no doubt that texting has become part of everyday life, as even the Pope is texting people.
In addition, the new version of "CLUE: Secrets and Lies" also incorporates texting into game play.
At the end of last year AdAge ran an article entitled "It's Time for Brands to Embrace Text Messaging," which outlined the importance of the texting language to marketers. The article also pointed out that nine out of ten teens text, noting that some of them prefer texting to talking and half of them can actually complete text messages while blindfolded!
Brands ranging from Snickers Snacklish to Mountain Dew have already embraced the medium.
Although, as referenced in our proprietary Cell Phone Product Naming Research conducted late last year, Motorola appears to have risen and fallen by way of a texting like 4LTR naming nomenclature that started back in 2004 when it released the RAZR.
The Totally Txty brand seems to be following suit, shifting from using texting as a vehicle to spread the word about a brand, to texting being the brand. Watching to see if Totally Txty and Snickers Snacklish follow Motorola's texting ups and down, this will definitely be an interesting product naming technique to keep an eye on.
Technorati Tags: Texting, Texting Brands, Totally Txty, Motorola, Text Language, Product Name
Posted by William Lozito at 8:09 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack
February 4, 2009
I Love the Scent of Naming and Branding in the Morning
I am always fascinated by the naming and branding behind new scents, and today's Wall Street Journal has given me food for thought.
Interestingly, the scents attached to cleaning products are the "the lowest-hanging fruit as far as new-product innovation is concerned -- you don't have to change a capability or substantiate a new claim." Just cook up a new scent, add a good name to it, and viola, you have a new and improved version of the same old formula.
Of the over 3,000 new cleaning products introduced last year, a whopping 93% had a new scent, an increase of 100% over 2004. Consumers today, referred to at Procter & Gamble as "scent seekers," are going for unique scents like "Moroccan Bazaar," "Brazilian Carnaval," and "Hawaiian Aloha."
Then there is the importance of scents in retail environments, for example, after Westin hotels have cleaned up with their "White Tea" scent guests can ask for it in the gift shop.
Home scents have also moved beyond just cleaning products; check out the offerings from Fruits & Passion. There is even a chart that tells us how certain scents make us feel:
- The scent of talcum powder makes us feel safe.
- The smell of apples and cucumber makes a room feel bigger.
- And the scent of pumpkin pie and lavender are especially arousing scents for a man - though the smell of the sweat of nursing mothers is the big turn on.
Now, whether or not Wall Street actually smells like brisk citrus is almost irrelevant. The most important element to a name is its ability to interest the consumer in learning more. And really, I don't know anyone who wouldn't want to take a whiff of Wall Street in a bottle.
Technorati Tags: Naming, Naming Scents, New Scents, Product Naming, Wall Street Scent, Naming Smells, Scent Names
Posted by William Lozito at 9:07 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack
January 20, 2009
Some Brand Naming Stays Fresh Through Reinvention
There are many things to be learned from brands that have the ability to expand and reinvigorate in today's market.
One prime example comes from Chattem, which owns Gold Bond, a hundred year-old cream that has been a staple in American medicine cabinets for so long that we've almost forgotten about it. They now have a lip balm and over two dozen other Gold Bond offerings, including Icy Hot pain reliever and Selsun Blue, along with Kaopectate and Balmex which they recently picked up.
After acquiring these well-known names, Chattem simply adds a catchy tagline or slightly repositions them. One example is Selsun's "Never Wear Black Without the Blue" ads, which doubled the shampoo's sales.
The key to the company's success is in selecting small, isolated, but nonetheless well-known brand names that seem to have the durability to stand the test of time.
There are two other great examples I would like to mention that seem to be getting a new lease on life by refreshing popular brands.
The Electric Company TV show is back and set to be just as hip as its 70's counterpart. And the luxury stalwart of the 1980s, the Sharper Image, has been reborn as a more downmarket and affordable licensor (the shops are gone for good).
These brand names seem to have the ability to hang on through even the toughest of times because they are well-known, well-positioned, and fondly remembered by customers despite lackluster performances in the past.
Technorati Tags: Branding, Brand Names, Product Names, Chattem, The Electric Company, Selsun Blue, Sharper Image
Posted by William Lozito at 11:08 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack
January 13, 2009
How Do You Feel About Probiotic Product Naming?
Some naming and branding challenges are obviously more complicated than others. The naming of products containing probiotics - bacteria that supposedly acts as health boosters - seems to be a particularly difficult task.
According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, last year there were 231 new probiotic-containing products introduced to the market, up from 34 in 2005. Consumers have clearly caught on that this stuff is apparently good for you, despite inconclusive research findings.
Even with an understanding for the product benefits, selling bacteria, even good bacteria, to people has to be difficult. This is stuff that sits in your intestines. It's kind of gross when you really think about it.
The product naming does little to dissuade this disgust.
Yovation ice cream, DanActive yogurt and Evolve Kefir Probiotic Soda seem like names brought to us from other countries. Purina's Fortiflora for dogs, which helps with good "gut flora," doesn't sound much better.
There's also a GoodBelly probiotic fruit drink, which is a name that is just hard to love. It's almost as bad as Dancing Daisy probiotic milk.
Pop Culture probiotic bars, however, are intriguingly named, not least because the name plays on the word culture, as in cultured bacteria. Interestingly, one of the top probiotics out there is called Culturelle.
I'm thinking that if we are going to make probiotic products more mainstream, the product names are going to need a little more work.
Technorati Tags: Probiotic, Probiotic Naming, Probiotic Products, DanActive, Yovation, Fortiflora, GoodBelly, Pop Culture
Posted by William Lozito at 9:55 AM| Comments (2)
| TrackBack
October 23, 2008
Determining the Target Market for Sapphic Brand Naming
The launch of the Sappho Cosmetics brand appears to target a lesbian audience.
There are clearly strong and obvious connotations with the word "Sappho," which of course hearkens back to the famous poet from the isle of Lesbos and the origins of the word lesbian. An island girl on the company's web site, along with a company description that suggests that Sappho Cosmetics is "all about making up fearlessly," only strengthens this Lesbos association.
Some bloggers believe that despite these obvious references, the cosmetics are not marketed as a "lesbian make-up line." Supporting this argument may be tough when you consider that JoAnn Fowler is the founder of the company and the make-up artist for the popular TV show The L Word.
However, instead of placing emphasis on the sexual connotations associated with the name, the brand strategy seems to be focusing on how environmentally friendly the make-up is, specifically noting that it is phthalate and paraben free.
I think that it will be very interesting to see if this cosmetics line resonates with all consumers, just as The L Word show has. Sappho and all things Sapphic have always been about pure feminine beauty, and nowadays it is not much of a reach for even conservative consumers to associate homosexuality with fashion and cosmetics.
Technorati Tags: Sappho Cosmetics, Lesbos, Brand Naming, Naming, Make-up, The L Word, Target Market
Posted by William Lozito at 9:45 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack
October 15, 2008
Higher Heels Produce Elevated Product Naming
They say that hemlines go down with the stock market, but nobody has mentioned heel size, which seems to be skyrocketing. The Wall Street Journal suggests that today's best dressed women have to be prepared to brave 5, 6 or even 7 inch heels if they want to stay in fashion.
If you can manage to put aside the obvious physical difficulties that wearing these mountainous spikes represent, you can clearly see that these heels are in an entirely new category of fashion and ultimately require new names. The Wall Street Journal refers to them as "skyscraper shoes" and "megaheels" that turn the 3-4 inch "stiletto" of Marilyn Monroe's day into little more than a gradual incline.
The naming of these shoes screams both sophistication and sex (witness the Promiscuous line of high heeled boots). The Evian Girls even have their own design of high heels from the Clearly Glam collection.
And who do we blame for this new trend?
There are two culprits that come immediately to mind: Carrie Bradshaw and Manolo Blahnik, a pair that goes together like James Bond and Martini. In one episode of Sex and the City, Carrie, whose love of heels helped bring them back into fashion, implores a mugger "Please sir, you can take my Fendi baguette, you can take my ring and my watch, but don't take my Manolo Blahniks."
A quick glance over at Neiman Marcus tells me that high heel naming is both sexy and severe. Just take a look at the Ankle-Wrap d'Prsay or the Scrunched Boot. Ouch!
Well, as British Vogue Editor recently pointed out, "if God had wanted us to wear flats he wouldn't have invented Manolo Blahnik."
Technorati Tags: Fashion Naming, High Heel Naming, Neiman Marcus, Manolo Blahnik, Naming, Product Naming, Carrie Bradshaw, Skyscraper Shoes
Posted by William Lozito at 11:51 AM| Comments (0)
| TrackBack