The Holy Grail of Naming

It struck me today as I was reading a Fast Company blog about Washington Mutual bank's attempt to strong arm the country into calling it WaMu, that companies can be entirely too predictable and rigid about what they want in a name.

WaMu in and of itself is a terrible combination of vowel sounds that doesn't roll off the tongue and feels even more ridiculous to say. I love Ruth Sherman's account of her teen boys yelling out "WAAAAMUUUU!" as they passed a branch in the Golden State.

But... as ridiculous as the name sounds .... the name was guided by the Five Holy Grail Points of Naming:

1. It's ultra short ... the shorter the better. Why? I still don't know. Some people are just convinced a name has to be a few letters and no more.

2. It doesn't confine the company to a geographical region (a.k.a. the regional brand)...especially as the banks migrate to other parts of the country - like say - Arizona.

3. It retains the brand equity and recognition to a greater degree than starting from scratch with a brand new name.

4. It's poised to intrude into modern lexicon and therefore pop notoreity - like the brand idol of idols: Fedex.

5. It's a trademark that can be owned and defended in a court of law. Let's face it, what good is a trademarked name when it's weak as hell to defend against other wanna-be names?

Now here's the reality of the Five Holy Grail Points of Naming...

If a company is forcing a fit, the strategy can sincerely backfire on a brand. If the forced brand was a person you met at a dinner party, you'd probably walk away muttering "What a fake dork (**or insert expletive**)" and not give the person a second thought let alone the time of day. Now translate that over to how someone regards a brand...potential customer turned off. Even in the world of naming, authentic wins every time.

The Evolution of a Metapreneur

I've always felt like a bit of a nut case when people ask what I do - never quite knowing what I should reveal or even not reveal about the vast areas of interest that take up the majority of my waking hours.

Really nothing that I do can be easily understood in one phrase.

I'm not a doctor, a lawyer nor a school teacher. I'm a brand consultant...and I've named some famous companies...and I'm a published writer and author in branding...and I speak in front of people like Stanford University MBA students and luxury brand execs... and I play a very big harp as more than just a hobby... and I'm influenced by classical, jazz, world, rock, r&b and pop music....and I compose and create a new moving form of music each time...and I've played with symphonies and even at the Whisky A Go-Go...and I teach little kids at my son's montessori school strings and music theory...and I'm a mom to an 8 year old and an 8 month old...and I study indigenous shamanic teachings as well as European Christian mysticism....and I'm fascinated with the world and how I can contribute to help people improve their lives...and I'm a student of all the above...and I'm an educator of all the above...And, and, and...

And you know...I'm not the only one. I know there are others of you out there who are very gifted in very disparate ways.

And so one day it came to me when contemplating the "metaverse" -- thank you Neal Stephenson -- of course, that's what I am...a metapreneur. And a modern one at that. One part left brain balanced by the right and a healthy dose of eccentric taste.

At the very least, I finally have a label that isn't associated with the mental health industry.