what's in the name BING, microsodft's new search engine - a must read on branding & naming

Microsoft’s Search for a Name Ends With a Bing
By MIGUEL HELFT

Published: May 28, 2009

“Why don’t you Bing it?”

A year from now, if you hear someone say that — and actually understand what it means — Bill Gates will be a happy billionaire.


That is because it will be a sign that Microsoft is finally making progress in its quest to challenge Google in the Internet search business.

Bing, the name Microsoft gave to the new search service it unveiled Thursday, is its answer to Google — a noun that once meant little but has become part of the language as a verb that is a synonym for executing a Web search. After months of, uh, searching, Microsoft settled on Bing to replace the all-too-forgettable Live Search, which itself replaced MSN Search.

Microsoft invested billions of dollars in those services and failed to slow Google’s rise, so a new name certainly can’t hurt.

Microsoft’s marketing gurus hope that Bing will evoke neither a type of cherry nor a strip club on “The Sopranos” but rather a sound — the ringing of a bell that signals the “aha” moment when a search leads to an answer.

The name is meant to conjure “the sound of found” as Bing helps people with complex tasks like shopping for a camera, said Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president of Microsoft’s online audience business group.

And if Bing turns into a verb like, say, Xerox, TiVo or, well, Google, that would be nice too. Steven A. Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, said Thursday that he liked Bing’s potential to “verb up.” Plus, he said, “it works globally, and doesn’t have negative, unusual connotations.”

Some branding experts said choosing the name Bing was a good start, but also the easiest part of the challenge facing the company, since most people turn to Google without even thinking about it.

Michael Cronan, whose consulting firm helped come up with brands like TiVo and Amazon’s Kindle, said Bing’s sound, brevity and “ing” ending were all positives.

“It has a promise that you are going to find what you are looking for, and that’s great,” Mr. Cronan said. “But its success is entirely wrapped up in the quality of the experience that Microsoft can deliver.”

Peter Sealey, a former chief marketing officer at the Coca-Cola Company, said Microsoft should have picked a name that more directly connotes search.

“Bing has no equity; it signals nothing,” Mr. Sealey said. “It is going to be an enormous expense to create an image for this thing called Bing.”

Google’s name is a play on the word googol, which is a 1 followed by 100 zeroes. The company has said the name speaks to its ambitious mission to organize all the world’s information.

Asked about Microsoft’s choice of name at a press conference on Wednesday, Sergey Brin, a Google co-founder, said he did not know enough about the new service to comment on it. Then he deadpanned: “We’ve been pretty happy with the name Google.”

Meanwhile, some tech people were already noting that Bing is also an unfortunate acronym: “But It’s Not Google.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/29/technology/internet/29bing.html?em

microsoft turns porn friendly? a lesson in communications

this is an interesting study on communication, specifically branding or naming. that's on the marketing side. if this was our personal lives, we can probably call it any of these : "tsimis" (rumor), "paninira" (destroying reputation), dirty minded or good intentions maligned. choose one or a few.

microsoft announced a new privacy tool to be incorporated in the next internet explorer re-transformation - IE will automatically delete passwords, cookies and browsing histories on close down.

microsoft calls it "inPrivate", a privacy tool, but others chose to call it "porn mode". so what is your take on it : tsimis, paninira, dirty minded or good intentions maligned?




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Microsoft adds privacy tools to IE8
So-called 'porn mode' tools to debut in IE8 Beta 2 this month


August 25, 2008 (Computerworld) Microsoft Corp. today spelled out new privacy tools in Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) that some have dubbed "porn mode" in a nod to the most-obvious use of a browser privacy mode.

A privacy advocate applauded the move, calling it a "great step forward," while rival browser builder Mozilla Corp. said it is working to add similar features to a future Firefox.

Slated to appear in IE8 Beta 2, which Microsoft's former chairman, Bill Gates, promised will release this month, the three new tools share the "InPrivate" name, which Microsoft filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office several weeks ago.

The most intriguing tool, and the one that has prompted the "porn mode" label, was dubbed "InPrivate Browsing" by Microsoft. When enabled, IE8 will not save browsing and searching history, cookies, form data and passwords; it also will automatically clear the browser cache at the end of the session.




article parsed, read full article here : http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=knowledge_center&articleId=9113419&taxonomyId=1&intsrc=kc_top

SCRAMBELICIOUS is the nestle give-me-a-name winner

yup, that's what the nestle website says. SCRAMBELICIOUS is a name submitted by a Ms. Analyn Bojos. congratulations to miss bojos!

nestle chose the simple, no frills route in announcing the winner. just posted the winning name and the name of the author. no apologies. not defensive. and finally they learned, no drum-beating true or the false kind ("hundreds of thousands of entries", remember that? hahaha). this is a good move on the part nestle! finally, they learned?

scrambelicious as the winning name confirms that contrary to the impression the website gave, number of votes did not determine the winner. urflower's "taste of summer" didn't win and so it could mean a college girl from an exclusive girls school might decide to sell her body for money. the author of the name "tropical burst" now has to dispose the 100+ email addresses he got for the contest. or maybe look for another contest to join?

is scrambelicious a good name for an ice cream?

it's a play between two words "scramble" and "delicious". scramble most likely refers to the three flavors, a scramble or a mix of three flavors. it's filipinized english. also, there's an ice desert that's sold by street vendors called "scramble". so maybe its playing up on that idea. but the question is - will consumers "scramble" the ice cream when they eat it, as in scoop the three flavors and put it in their mouths all at the same time?

it's too playful and unserious a name for an ice cream. but that's not surprising considering that nestle already has an ice cream brand called "trio". it's a name that you know will not be a classic brand.

we will have to see the advertising support nestle will give this brand.

part 15. what nestle could have done instead - how not to name a brand

there are many things nestle could have done instead of the give-me-a-name internet effort in naming their new product.

the marketing idea behind the internet effort must have been to generate buzz, excitement and anticipation for the new product. but as has been discussed, that has largely failed - very few actually participated in the internet website and there were so many components of the effort that was not thought through that rather than generating goodwill, the effort generated badwill instead.

with this failed effort, what could have nestle done instead?

well, first, they could have just hired a professional naming company to name their brand rather than ask consumers to name their new product. they would have spent much less in fees, probably less than 1/5 of what they spent now and could have made their lives much easier and with much better results.

if you think about it, it's really hard to generate buzz and interest on a brand that doesn't have a name yet. not having a name does not allow the consumer to form an image in their minds. name, logo, font type and colors are the essential components of a brand name that help in forming an image in our minds and start building a relationship.


to be continued......

what's in a brand name change?

been hearing this radio commercial announcing the change of a brand name from "aspilet" to "kiddielet". what a shame. aspilet is one of the old brands in the country with heritage transfered from one generation to the next over several generations of filipinos.

i am guessing the change in brand name is being forced on it because of a change in active ingredient. it's no longer an aspirin, so the need to change to kidielet from aspilet. is that a regulatory issue? i think kiddielet is such a lame brand name.

part 9. a quicksand, the untamed internet : how not to name a brand

the internet is truly a whole new different world than what we know. it exists on its own and has its own rules, primary of which is - it has no rules. at the same time that there are no rules, it's open wide for anyone and everyone to be in.

the nestle promo is prime example of how that affected them. nestle did not think through the whole thing and allowed too many doors open for anyone to enter. while it is written, there are really no restrictions on who can submit entries to the effort. based on the rules nestle posted (which by the way has two typo errors), nestle was supposed to apply a selection criteria to the "finalists". they were supposed to select 30 entries but based on how it went, they did not actually follow that rule. and more importantly, based on the quality and wide diversity of the kinds of entries, they didn't seem to apply the criteria they set or if they did, it was loosely applied or done by an irresponsible and lazy manager.

otherwise, how can "3 Season", grammatically incorrect, missing the plural "s" be a finalist? or how can the word "summer" be allowed in the brand name when that is directly opposite and contradictory to an ice cream where summer is about heat and an ice cream is about cold? one can argue that a cold ice cream can soothe the effect of a hot summer, but no attempt in the entries were made to communicate that thought. besides, putting the word summer in the brand name seem to say the ice cream product will be available only during the summer months. the other is the entry "tropical burst" when it seem most appropriate to be a name for a juice drink. and true enough, two juice brands have been identified as having that name- "Gatorade Tropical Burst" and "Kool Aid Burst Tropical".

using the internet as the medium for submission automatically carries with it the potential of millions of people submitting millions of entries. anyone and everyone who has internet access can submit entries and that can number in the hundreds of millions. that characteristic of the internet by itself is not the only part that weakens this effort, its the part when criteria they set are not applied to the letter and their poor judgement bore holes into the whole thing.

another example is the effort done by "frenzy" condoms in the same bulletin board, pinoy exchange. frenzy is a frequent advertiser in pinoy exchange and we can assume that a smart brand manager or account manager thought of opening threads in the pinoy exchange to talk about condoms and the brand itself. i am sure the thinking there was having a lively discussion on the brand alongside the internet ads make for good synergy.


but here's the problem - the internet is a free for all medium where anyone and everyone can say anything. advertising agencies and clients have no control whatsoever, and frenzy's nightmare began when one person posted a product negative about frenzy! this post talked about how fragile frenzy condoms are and how it has failed him that because of that product inferiority, he has stopped using frenzy! the ads in pinoy exchange alongside with the thread was meant to promote, extol and propagate how great a product frenzy is, BUT here was a testimony from an actual user talking about product failure! disaster!

one of the first things brand managers learn in their work either through experience or as taught to them by their bosses is - the brand manager must exercise complete control on his marketing effort. do not leave anything to chance. apply all the mechanics and safeguards you can think of to make sure the effort follows only one path - that of success.

nestle, just like frenzy forgot this very important part in using the internet as a marketing tool.

before we end this section, one more example, a very important one, on the dangers of using the internet in your marketing effort at naming a brand is this : http://the-wawam-file.blogspot.com/.

anyone and everyone, in this particular example, wawam, can create a marketing critique blog and feature nestle's effort prominently in the blog. nestle used the internet, a place where anyone can see and say something about it, specially the errors in the effort, the failure of the brand manager and the foolishness of the account amanager, just like this blog.

touche!


to be continued......

part 8. the risk of not thinking things through in the internet : how not to name a brand

assuming your target market frequents the internet, its a great medium by which you can get in touch with them. it's convenient, quick and highly accessible to a specific target market (the AB upper C market).

that's one of the good sides about the internet. however, that same good side is an open door to the bad and that essentially is what the nestle effort forgot to think about.

the idea behind the internet website is to get its readers to help nestle in choosing a brand name and as discussed earlier the brand name is actually a most important first step in every new product launch as the brand name is the only element of the brand that stays with it forever. making the process of choosing it public, asking the public to participate and in the internet allows its target easy access and quick participation but at the same time, it is open to the bad, if you don't take the necessary precautions and keep the door open to everyone.

in that posting in the another website, pinoy exchange, it allowed a prostitute wanna-be, someone willing to sell sex for money to join the contest and launch an internet effort to help her win the contest. if that entry won, will nestle be happy in publicising the author of the brand name who wants to be a prostitute? does that sound like a viable add on to the brand image of this new brand?

this shows how the use of the internet and its openness, having its doors wide open for anyone and everyone to participate as inviting risk to join this most important first step in marketing a new product.

based on succeeding posts, we can conclude that she was really not serious about contemplating on selling sex for money. it is obvious that this person used the sex-for-money angle just to draw attention to herself, get the sympathy of her readers and move them to vote for her entry so that she can win and in the process "save her from doing something wrong".

while some might find selling sex for money as more objectionable, the whole thing just the same reeks of an internet scam. if that entry wins on the basis of most number of votes (it did get the most number of votes on the promo deadline that was set), then it means it was achieved on false pretense.


to be continued.....

nestle website: http://www.givemeaname.ph/

part 7. the good side and bad of the internet : how not to name a brand

the internet is a new world technology that has managed to make very profound changes in our lives and the world. the interesting part about the internet is that not only has it made very profound changes in our lives and the world we live in right now, the best and the most is yet to come. and that includes business. business and those who wish to make a mark is all over each other to use the internet not only meet our goals but to be ahead of competition. we think of schemes and ways to make use of the internet and set us apart and ahead of our competition. ans that is most likely what was in the minds of the nestle marketing team who developed the name the brand promo (i shudder every time i use that term!).

but as many good things and many good people populate the internet, there are at least an equal number if not more bad things and bad people who sit right beside the good. that is the lesson, actually the warning we get all the time on the internet. when a new thing or a new rage comes up in the internet, the good parts are delivered first but it always ends with an admonition to take precautions, to be alert to be defensive of the bad that may happen. and again just as the marketing team who authored the nestle effort (avoided using the word "promo") decided to use the internet for the good things, they seem to have forgotten that part about applying caution and immunizing their effort from the bad.

on the first post, i had made the comment that this effort was not thought through very well. this is one of those observations.

go to this link : http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=330077


a girl who claims to study in an all-girls college with the username "urflower" (excellent name!) opened a thread with the title: "Is sex for money bad?"

1st post:

"Hi. I am a struggling student in an all-girl's college and as we know times are not that good when you are on a tight allowance. Some of my schoolmates approached me and said they know someone who would help get me "dates" with men with money. The problem I think is I can't choose the men. That is where the difficulty lies. Am I being a prude?On the side I have been joining some promos for cash prizes. You never know diba? But still what are the chances?This one is sure money but is it worth it?"

people responded to this first post - giving advise and their opinion. it became a very long thread but the following early posts complete the story:


2nd post:

"I was wondering as well. Would it be better if I got a rich old man? I do have a "suitor" who is older and more well off. Should I give in to him and stomach it? He isn't the man I like. Nor is he good-looking. Pero mabait cya.Thankfully my mom taught us English well. She is an English teacher. But we have fallen into hard times and we must do what we can? It is life after all.Should I take on the older, wealthier man and just have the man I like on the side? Will it matter?Only 1.5-2k for my virtue? Wow."

3rd post:

"Will it be possible that one of my rich clients will actually consider me for a long-term
relationship? Possibly marriage?Should I just hang around rich circles? But how can I do that with no money?"

it became a hot topic in the section with many giving their opinion and advise. eventually, urflower posted another thread with the title: "Help me from resorting to something that may harm me."

"Thank you all for your words of advice. It is obvious that I really need help.I am hoping I have a solution. It may be short-term and may be a long shot but it is worth a try. The power of the internet may help make it happen.There is a site called www.givemeaname.ph I have joined and luckily they chose my entry Taste of Summer.However it is low on the list. I am asking everyone to help me out and vote for my entry. Also pass on to your friends to have them vote as well.This should hopefully allow me to start off a small business which I can slowly grow over time.Please help me set-up an internet brigade to help me out of my mess."

read it here : http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?p=23378304#post23378304


this is what happened here: urflower sent an an entry to the nestle name a brand promo, "taste of summer". to get people to vote for her entry, she opened a thread in Pinoy Exchange, in the Intimacy & Passion section first asking if it's wrong to sell sex for money. she said she is being tempted to go into prostitution because her family has fallen into bad times. people responded to that thread very well. but eventually, she asked people to vote for her entry, "taste of summer" for it to win so that the she can set a business and stop herself from selling her body for money.

urflower opened other threads in other sections of PEX, one in the "dilemmas" section where there her question was "Should I answer the boy with money? or the one i really like?". the idea is the same thing, she opened a topic asking for advise on a "dilemma" where the issue was the need for money. she allowed the thread to get a lot of responses giving her advise and suggestions, then eventually asking the readers of the thread to save her from her dilemma by voting for her entry in the nestle promo.

read it here: http://www.pinoyexchange.com/forums/showthread.php?t=330073

there was another thread opened in another section but this was a straight out request to vote for her entry in the nestle promo.





to be continued....

part 6. how not to name a brand : planning and execution failure

this is from the pdf file in the website that details the mechanics of winning in the promo:

2. The winning entry shall be evaluated through the following steps:

Elimination Stages:
a. Every week from November 4, 2007 to January 31, 2008, 100 entries shall be randomly selected from the entries submitted. Entries that are not selected during the weekly random selection shall still be eligible from random selection in the following weeks.

b. The 100 entries randomly selected each week shall be initially evaluated based on the fit of the name to the product, after which 30 entries shall be chosen from said 100 entries.

c. All 30 weekly entries shall be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:

i. Originality
ii. Suitability for use as a brand name
iii. Absence of prior registration at the Philippine Intellectual Property Office
iv. Non-use by any company or person
v. Conformity with branding regulations of the BFAD or any other responsible agency.

d. Entries that do not meet the criteria mentioned above shall be disqualified and those that were not chosen during the random selection. They are not qualified to win any prize, even if they turn out to have submitted the same as the entry/ies that eventually win/s the prize/s.

the above mechanics are confusing and unclear as to exactly what is the process they will follow in selecting the 'finalists". the mechanics is saying there will be 30 finalists, but at the moment the website has 62 "finalists" listed there now. and i don't recall the website ever identifying any 30 entries.

the 30 entries is quite important as based on their mechanics, these are the ones that have been evaluated based on the criteria identified above (letter C). the criteria they have identified there are legal and regulatory considerations (iii. to v.). you can't just use any name as a brand name, you need to register them and it should follow laws and regulations from the government.

since the 62 names are declared as "finalists", do we take that to mean that all these have been legally cleared and therefor ready for use as a brand name?

the use of a website in the internet to help them decide on a brand name is a very impractical thing to do, not to mention full of risks and dangers.

among other things, it means nestle would need to check each and every brand name submission to see it they pass the regulatory considerations and what they call as "fitness to be used as a brand name" criteria. they have to do that before they post it in the website.

they have 62 names as finalists, did nestle register each name already to own each one? they have to, as any 1 of the 62 can end up to be the winner. if they did not register or own all 62 names, an enterprising person can actually register if for himself/herself ahead of nestle. anyone can register it for himself the day it appears in the website and nestle is pre-empted.

brand names are trademarks, they should be treated as trade secrets until they are launched in the market. you worry about competition getting to know about it. in fact, you take pains in keeping everything about a new product launch secret. you don't want to be pre-empted.

since nestle put it out in a website, that means anyone can read it, including nestle's competition. that is the reason why nestle should have registered all 62 names in the list of finalists. if they didn't, there is no way it can stop its competition or an enterprising individual to register it for themselves.


to be continued....

part 5. how not to name a brand : strategic issue - what is an ice cream product?

“smart” was used as a name for a cell phone service provider positioned as giving “best value for money”. at the time of launch of smart, there were three players - globe (GSM), piltel (analogue) and extelcom (GSM). smart intended to use analogue as its less expensive operational cost allowed them to under cut competition’s prices and quickly gain market share.

the choice of “smart” as the brand name was strategic, to uphold its “best value for money” brand positioning and to communicate that users who chose the brand were being smart about it. smart has in fact upheld their positioning even when they moved to GSM but not necessarily through undercutting competition through lower pricing but through industry leading value added services that resulted to the same best value brand image.

that is to show how a brand’s positioning is carried through to naming a brand. strategic thinking was applied through all components of the marketing mix, including the naming of the product.

a look at names of international ice cream brands tell you that they tend to be flavor oriented. that makes a lot of sense as in truth an ice cream is an ice cream is an ice cream. all of them are cold, most are sweet and creamy but the main differentiator is the flavor. there can be variances in texture through additional things like nuts and raisins but even in products like these, they still anchor the differentiator in the flavor.

nestle’s new ice cream product’s core reason for being is the three fruit flavors of melon, watermelon and orange. this is shown in what appears to be a tv comercial when you go to the website, but it is not mentioned in the product description, we can assume the flavors will not be mixed together (sure a bad tasting product id done!) but separated in the tub. we can also assume the product will have three colors (not mentioned in the porduct description but shown in the tv commercial) to signal the three fruit flavors. the three flavors then is the core strategic consideration for the product (not a “promo”!). this differentiates the product from others. the name should deliver.

it is this reason that the name submission “triple delight” (and others that use the idea of “three”) works very well. it highlights the core essence of the product and talks about appetite appeal (”delight”) without being too laborious and boring about it. its a complex product design, with the three flavors, and putting these in the name is just too cumbersome and impractical, if we were to follow what the international ice cream brands did. the tv commercial shown in the website mentions "tres marias" as a copy line, a suggestion for the name. "scramble" and "karambola ni lolo" were the other "suggested names, talking about the three unique flavors. the suggested names mentioned in the commercial clearly implies "three" or "triple" flavors is the core reason for being for the product.

when “triple delight” got a lot of votes, other copycat names were submitted using the concept of “three” or “triple”. but the authors submitted those only because they were riding on the popularity of the idea behind “three”, not necessarily because of an appreciation of strategic thinking.

now, we have basically two sets of names in the list of finalists - one along the concept of “summer” and the other on “triple”. that is the nature of a popularity contest like this thats posted in the internet where there are no cut-off dates for submission.
will this product have a name that will uphold the brand’s positioning the same way as “smart” did?

to be continued….

nestle : http://www.givemeaname.ph/

names of international ice cream brands

there are a few lessons to be learned from looking at the names of international ice cream brands. you can easily draw common denominators, the odd ones and even extract strategies and directions from them. ice cream brand names have certain qualities in them.


everyone is welcome to draw their own lessons learned and post them here.


Ben & Jerry’s Top 10 Flavors:

• Cherry Garcia® Ice Cream


• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream


• Chocolate Fudge Brownie™ Ice Cream


• Chunky Monkey® Ice Cream


• Half Baked™ Ice Cream


• Phish Food® Ice Cream


• New York Super Fudge Chunk® Ice Cream


• Coffee Heath Bar Crunch® Ice Cream


• Cherry Garcia® Low Fat Frozen Yogurt


• Peanut Butter Cup™ Ice Cream

ben & jerrys : http://www.benjerry.com/our_products/top_ten/
dreyers : http://www.dreyers.com/brand/grand/flavorlisting.asp?b=133
haagen dazs : http://www.haagendazs.com/products/default.aspx
nestle : http://www.givemeaname.ph/

to be continued……

part 3. how not to name a brand - nestle abdicated strategic thinking, 1st major failure

all marketing books, all marketing gurus and all marketing successes tell you that good strategic thinking is most key for any success in marketing. and the opposite, failed strategic thinking is the major cause of many marketing failures.


but strategic thinking applied to naming is what nestle abdicated when it decided to ask its advertising and internet audiences to name this product.


this lack of strategic thinking reeks in the names submitted by contestants and chosen as finalists. the names range from the ridiculous to the playful to nonsense to totally off-strategy. that’s not the fault of those who submitted the names. they thought of those names with the sole intent of winning the contest. and the ”best approach” to win a contest like this is to think of names that are attention getting and not necessarily strategic.

nestle’s product description :

"Imagine having the top three favorite fruity flavors (Melon, Watermelon and Orange) rolled into a convenient 750mL tub that sells for only P80 then making this Frozen Dessert the entire promo in itself. Introducing Nestle Give-Me-A-Name Frozen Dessert. It’s a refreshing new promo for a refreshing new desert the entire family will love! Try it and see for yourself.”

first, i don’t understand what they mean by “making this Frozen Dessert the entire promo in itself” and what that has to do with naming the brand. it goes on to say “It’s a refreshing new promo for a refreshing new dessert the entire family will love!” so now, it’s the promo?

is this about the ice cream product or the promo? is this for naming a promo or naming an ice cream product?

that portion was supposed to be a product description that the audience is supposed to use as input in naming the brand. the person (brand manager? account manager?) who wrote this probably thought it was very smart and cute to include that in the product description. it’s cute in that person’s mind, but it does not do nor contribute anything to the task of explaining a product description.

consumers don’t eat promos, they eat ice cream. the whole idea is supposed to name an ice cream product, not a promo. the person who did this is very confused as to what the whole point of the effort is. and in the process, those reading it, the ones who will give suggestions for the brand name may have been confused as well.

instead of putting in pa-cute things like “this Frozen Dessert is the entire promo in itself”, they should have instead put descriptions of the three flavors. while this was mentioned in the tc commercial at the intro to the website, there were no descriptions on the kind of melon taste, the kind of watermelon taste and the kind of orange taste. things like what it will feel in the palette and how it will feel inside the mouth. the tv commercial mentions "yummy melon", "cool orange" and "refreshing watermelon".

aside from the physical or palette signals, state the emotions that the product will deliver to the eater. there must have been a reason why they chose these specific flavors. they chose these flavors because they wanted to create a unique and specific product experience. what are these product experiences?

and the most important part - why did they choose three flavors in one product? they must have found something unique and compelling in that. including that in the product description would have served them more rather than the pa-cute line on “making the frozen desert the entire promo itself” that is totally meaningless, confusing and does not contribute to the project.

there’s a lot of difficulty in trying to understand why that reference to the promo is included in a section with a title that said ”product description”. though shown in the tv commercial played when you open the website, they failed to mention texture, color and how the three flavors will be placed inside the tub (three equal triangle shapes? circles? all mixed up?).


to be continued….


nestle’s website: http://givemeaname.ph/

part 2. how not to name a brand : nestle failed on the most important 1st marketing step

there is only one single element in a brand that is forever - the brand name of a product! being forever, it makes sense that work done on this be seen as a first important marketing decision. and yet nestle abdicated this most important first marketing step. rather than thinking about it themselves or hiring professional naming companies, they have asked the audience - the advertising target audience and internet citizens to do their job.


did they expect their audience to be able to appreciate product or formula design and how these should be used in naming a brand? and do they expect their audience to appreciate the importance of differentiation and uniqueness? not to mention memorability?

names of humans differentiate an individual from the rest. when we have more than one child, we make it a point to have unique names so that we don’t confuse one from the other. sometimes, we even look for meanings of names we give our children. at times, we invent names, combine syllables to create unique ones. but the point is we use names not only to differentiate but also to have meanings.

that is also true for brand names. only, the need for such things - uniqueness and meaning are of much more primal importance and cost money. companies launch new brands at great expense and know their importance to their business. new brands add new revenue streams and help ensure a company’s future growth. often, you launch new brands because they see a market opportunity either something that their current portfolio lack or something that is a white space in the market that can be exploited. the point is new product launches are very serious marketing undertakings.


but nestle with their name a brand “promo” is not behaving that way.

we can only assume the nestle brand management team who handle this brand has developed a marketing plan. we can also assume that a lot of thinking and analysis were put on developing the brand strategies. and these strategies come from doing a market analysis, segmentation analysis and extraction of consumer needs and insights. how did the nestle brand management team get their marketing plan approved when they did not have a brand name?

the nestle brand management team developed a product strategy, we have a glimpse of it in their website. and usually this product strategy, plus market analysis, plus consumer needs and insights come into play in thinking of the brand name. did nestle think their advertising and internet audiences have these abilities?

not being able to apply strategic thinking on the most important first step in marketing is the first major failure of nestle on the new product launch of this nameless brand.


to be continued….



nestle’s website: http://givemeaname.ph/

part 1. how not to name a brand : nestle's give-me-a-name online wawam!

here’s how not to name a new brand. there are so many things wrong about this effort. aside from this will show its really a dumb idea to name a brand the way nestle did it, it’s also a good study on how to do badly at planning things.

go to this link to get an understanding of what its all about : http://www.givemeaname.ph/

naming a brand is probably the first most important step one takes in launching a new brand. a lot of time and effort should be spent on it. consumer research should be done first. and there is now a whole industry of professionals whose job is just to name a brand. it escapes me why nestle has decided to ask people (internet and advertising audience) and to do it through the internet to do this very important first step.


lets not forget that the Brand Name in truth is the one component that stays forever with a brand. you can change graphics design over time, change formula (flavor, color and ingredients), change packaging/container and change advertising campaigns, but the brand name stays, no matter what.


so what is the advantage of naming a brand by asking consumers and internet citizens to give a name to a brand? what is the intended gain? i am sure nestle thought it will gain something by doing it this way. but is the gain worth the danger and risks? and how could the brand management group and the advertising agency be so bad in planning the whole thing? it appears to me, nobody thought it through.

to be continued......