Naming

Member lesson

Cross language screening

Lesson 6 of 10 in Naming.

Advanced Brand Naming Tip | Fact Check Bi-lingual Translations | NameStormers Naming Agency · NameStorm 2009
Lesson

Every market a brand enters is another set of languages a name has to survive, and dictionaries are not enough because the problems are usually slang, regional, or about how a word sounds rather than what it means.

300 written80 you like20 searched6 cleared legally2 that survivethe legal screen removes more than taste does, so run it early
Hundreds of names narrowing through screening to the two that survive.
A founder holds up a blank sign-shaped board on a foreign street while four locals react, one raising an eyebrow, one hiding a laugh and two smirking.
A founder tests a new name on local people abroad, and one of them hides a laugh. The real risk is rarely a rude meaning, more often a name that sounds silly to a native ear.
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Check what stuck

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Members answer these 3 questions and keep the ticket for this lesson. Every lesson has one.

  1. Question 1, locked

    You are screening a shortlist for a new market. Who should check the name there, and what should they be asked?

    • A professional translator, asked to confirm the name carries no dictionary meaning.
    • Somebody who grew up there and has lived abroad for twenty years, asked whether the name is offensive.
    • A local trademark lawyer, asked to check the name against that country's register.
    • Two or three people living in the market now, asked what the word makes them think of before they are told what it is meant to mean.
  2. Question 2, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Checking a name for unwanted meanings in every language of every target market.”

    • Cross-language screening
    • Handle
    • Slang risk
    • Orthographic check
  3. Question 3, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Somebody who lives in the market, not somebody who studied the language.”

    • Preference test
    • Exact match domain
    • Consonant cluster
    • Native speaker check

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