How a Company Gets a New Name

What’s in a name? Everything, says company branding expert Elizabeth Kanna, who believes a company’s name is one of the most powerful marketing tools a company has. A good company name is so important that Kanna suggests companies without effective names change their names, even though they may have an established market and clients.

This was the situation for Software Testing Solutions (STS), whose descriptive company name is buried in the Internet search engine netherworld among countless other companies that are either called, or offer, “software testing solutions.” Even though the search engine ranking didn’t hinder STS’s penetration into the market for software that helps hospitals test their computerized processes, Kanna suggested that a new name would help the company carve out more market share.

“I felt that to take [the company] to the next level and for the company to dominate the market they had to have a really good brand name,” Kanna said. “It’s the best thing you can do in terms of having successful ongoing marketing and advertising.”

Kanna began the process of creating a new name by gathering as much relevant information about STS as she could, including a “positioning statement” that she created with STS owner Jennifer Lyle. The positioning statement explains what STS does, and it also describes the emotional appeal or image that the company should evoke. Kanna had Lyle think of mythological archetypes and words that could be associated with what STS does for its clients.

“As a ‘namer,’ my strategy is to distill the essence of the product or company and/or what the consumer or client will get from using the product or doing business with the company, in one or two words,” Kanna said.

Kanna came up with a list of new company name ideas based on the positioning statement that Lyle created. That list was when narrowed down to five after double-checking with trademark attorney Rachael Blue, who found some of the names could not be trademarked. Out of Kanna’s list, Lyle decided Ratio was the best new company name for her. A ratio is the relation between two similar magnitudes, which Kanna felt is a great market positioning statement for Lyle’s products. She also felt that Ratio conveys increased productivity: a ratio of time to results, of a reduced number of human errors per test, and of the missing element to scale results.

Lyle likes the simplicity of Ratio, the logical connotations it inspires and the powerful position statement it represents. She also sees the new name opening new avenues of opportunities for her company.

“I can see us being able to use the name and the message to more effectively sell to the C-Level executives, such as CFOs, CEOs, and CTOs, which is one of our weaker points at the moment,” Lyle said.

Although other companies are named Ratio, there are no companies named Ratio in STS’s industry or class, and none that provide testing software. This makes Ratio a name that can most likely be trademarked.

“You don't have to avoid a name that another company is using in a different market,” Kanna said, although it’s also important that “the name does not remind the consumer or client of another company in a different industry.”

With evocative company names like Ratio, having a qualifying tagline is critical, Kanna says. For Ratio, the qualifying tagline is “Unparalleled Software Testing Solutions,” which will be useful to Lyle’s clients since it ties in her previous company name.

“What was positive about that was having some congruency from the previous entity name and being able to turn it into a tagline,” Kanna said. “There are a lot of different connection points in terms of brand position and I think it will also make it easier on clients when they see part of her previous company name is contained within her name brand.”

While undergoing the trademark process for Ratio, Kanna and graphic design associate James Goodchap will help create the new visual brand identity for the company. Once she has the new Ratio logo, Lyle will prepare for the new name launch by creating new business cards, internal company literature, and new Web site and promotional materials. Then she plans to have the new name launch coincide with a marketing event, such as a trade show that Lyle and her company annually attends.

While working with Kanna to effect her brand transformation, Lyle learned it’s important to put her “entrepreneurial ego” aside by utilizing the expertise of business consultants and challenging the status quo of her business. “I think the name and brand is one of those things we take for granted,” Lyle said. “We made that decision once, moved on, and we didn’t bring it back up and we got in the habit of doing something a particular way. And when we want to go forward and grow, sometimes we need catalysts to help us grow to help us go to next level.” Using the expertise of someone outside the company to rethink the brand helps a business owner see the familiar traits in a new light – and to make improvements where they’re needed.