At River + Wolf, we’re often asked whether focus groups are useful for determining the strength of company or product names. Our stance, aligned with many in our industry, is that while focus groups have long been a market research staple, and remain popular among corporate clients, they have significant limitations when judging the quality of brand names. Below are a few reasons why.
Context is Crucial
A name comes to life through design, messaging, and its association with the product or company it represents. Without this broader context, it can be difficult for ordinary participants to gauge a name’s potential. Logo mock-ups or mood boards can help, but it remains challenging for non-experts to see the potential of a name when it’s divorced from real-world context.
Safety First
Humans are evolutionarily programmed to prefer safety and familiarity, traits that historically protected us from the unknown dangers of wild animals and plants. Venturing too close to an unfamiliar animal, or consuming an unknown plant, could lead to illness or death. This instinct often influences focus group participants to favour conservative options, pushing aside more innovative or daring ideas that could set a brand apart.
Consider Richard Branson’s choice of ‘Virgin’ for his airline company. Typical focus groups would likely reject such a provocative moniker. They might worry it could imply an “inexperienced pilot,” or potentially offend those who revere the Virgin Mary. Yet, today, as passengers board Virgin Atlantic, it is far more likely they’ll be wondering about bin space for carry-on rather than possible negatives of the airline’s name.
Potential Versus Problematic
Focus groups tend to criticise rather than embrace creative, unusual names. They would have likely dismissed now iconic names like Apple or Google, asking why you would name a sophisticated computer after a common fruit, or a groundbreaking search engine with a fanciful word that sounds like toddler talk.
Similarly, Nvidia, a name derived from the Latin, “invidia”, meaning envy, and Palantir, a magical, all-seeing stone featured in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, might be deemed too abstract or obscure.
The Perfect Name Trap
Beyond the tendency to see a name’s flaws rather than its strengths, focus groups – and often clients – are on the hunt for the “perfect” name. This is hardly surprising, given the prevalence of naming literature with titles like Creating the Perfect Name, Choosing the Perfect Brand Name, How to Create the Perfect Name for Your Startup, and A Comprehensive Guide on Selecting the Perfect Brand Name. These publications often provide valuable insights, but when I encounter the word “perfect” in conjunction with names, logos, or other branding assets, I sigh.
Instead, it would be wise for those evaluating names to embrace the original meaning of the word. Derived from the Latin, “perficere” – perfect – historically meant “to complete” or “to finish,” a definition that suggests wholeness rather than flawlessness. In the context of names, perfection happens when a name becomes part of an ecosystem composed of messaging, visual imagery, and usage.
The Pitfall of Personal Bias
No matter how meticulously designed, the evaluation processes in focus groups can’t fully eliminate personal biases. Participants bring their cultural predispositions, linguistic preferences, or even emotional associations with certain words or sounds to the table. These orientations can color their judgment, causing them to miss the mark when assessing a name’s strengths and weaknesses.
Conclusion
Given these reasons, focus groups composed solely of members of the target market may yield less accurate results. A better choice would be to include impartial naming and branding experts. These professionals are equipped to imagine names within a broader context. Moreover, they understand more daring names might set the brand apart. Most crucially, they’re able to get beyond personal biases.
So if you are considering using a focus group for name evaluation, consider this approach. A focus group composed of both target market participants and branding professional will yield more useful insights – insights that can help lead you to the best possible name selection.
