60-Minute Brand Strategist: The Essential Brand Book for Marketing Professionals

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Glossary

Arbitrary Name

Names that do not bear a relationship to the products, services, or companies they identify. Apple (a fruit, not a computer), Pontiac (an Indian chief, not a car), Kodak (a coined name), and Baby Ruth (a person, not a candy bar) are all examples of arbitrary names.

Brand Architecture

The strategic analysis and development of optimal relationship structures among multiple levels of company, brand, product, and feature names.

Brand Name

A name or symbol used to identify a seller’s goods or services, and to differentiate them from those of competitors. Because a brand identifies a product’s or service’s source, thus protecting against competitors who may attempt to market similar goods or services, companies have an incentive to invest in the quality, consistency, and imagery of their brand. Branding dates back to ancient times, when names or marks appeared on such goods as bricks, pots, ointments, and metals. In medieval Europe, trade guilds used brands to provide quality assurance for customers and legal protection for manufacturers.

Coined/Fanciful Name

These include made-up names such as Accenture or Kodak. Also known as neologisms. These names, if truly unique, can offer the strongest possible trademarks and are favored by trademark attorneys.

Consonant Cluster

A series of consonants pronounced together, e.g., /str/ in “string.”

Customer Experience

It is the sum of all experiences a customer has with a supplier of goods or services over the duration ...