Over the last few years, quite a few entries on my daily blog have been dedicated to brand names.

It’s a topic that is very close to my heart and something that my eyes and ears are always on the lookout for.

I’ve worked on at least 2–3 dozen brand naming exercises for clients, but interestingly, the #1 brand naming error continues to remain the same!

Recently, I worked with a client who talked about starting a new brand and I immediately witnessed a repeat of the most common brand naming error. 

The client had decided to white label a service and instantly asked others who were on the call, “What should we name it?”

Before anyone could even reply, he threw out a few suggestions.

He then heard a few suggestions from others and quickly tried to finalize a name, all in 5 minutes.

Remember, it was just decided 5 minutes ago to white label this new service. 

The service itself would take a few months to roll out. 

No prospective customer was going to even hear about the brand for the next 100 days.

Yet, the client wanted to finalize a name in 5 minutes. 

The #1 brand naming error is that we name it too soon – right away, or then and there. 

There are many approaches to branding – from free online brand name generator tools that throw out a name in a few seconds, to working with professional agencies that charge a bomb and can take between 3 to 6 months to build out the brand.

Importantly, there is not just a middle ground, but also really good solutions available a few steps ahead of the starting point. 

But, not taking even a week to name your brand could undermine the brand’s visibility in the long term. 

If you won’t name your son John Doe, don’t do the same to your brand either.

Branding is like fine wine. The longer you let it sit, the lovelier the outcome.