Names are slippery. Awkward. Dastardly. Terrible little things.
Netflix didn’t arrive in a flash of brilliance. It surfaced from a sprawl of emailed lists, half-jokes and functional ideas. It wasn’t poetic. It was pragmatic. It described the thing clearly enough to get out of the way – and only later did it grow into something bigger.
Slack’s story is even messier. The name emerged after months of frustration and thousands of dead ends. Many people on the team actively disliked it. It survived not because it inspired love, but because it cleared hurdles other names couldn’t. Slack was short. Available. Easy to say. Easy to legally own. The meaning was layered on later.
Naming in public
This messiness is exactly why most creative agencies are worried about letting clients get too close during the process.
Naming means bad ideas, awkward silences, disagreement and uncertainty. It’s basically the opposite of what professional life trains you to be – confident, decisive, polished.
We actually did the opposite with one of our clients, letting them into the engine room. Not to watch us ‘be creative’, but to let them in and feel part of the process. And it’s something we’d do again.
But it got me thinking about the practical takeaways of naming. If you’re a founder out to name the next Netflix, what are some things to bear in mind?
1) Start with constraints, not cleverness
Good names aren’t born from inspiration. They’re filtered through reality. Before generating anything, agree on what the name has to do.
Do this: Fill in a naming brief, complete with things like:
- What do our customers want from us?
- How do we want them to feel?
- What personality do we want the name to have?
- Are there any words or ideas we should avoid?
- Are there any restrictions we should consider?
2) Generate more than feels comfortable
People stop once they’ve found something ‘quite good’. That’s dangerous. You need volume to avoid false confidence.
Do this: Time-box idea sprints. Say everything out loud. Expect rubbish. If no one cringes, you haven’t gone far enough.
3) Use territories to avoid random wandering
Without structure, naming becomes a grab bag of unrelated words – and debates turn subjective pretty fast. Grouping ideas into clear territories – words like ‘energy’, ’clarity’, ‘protection’, ‘momentum’, and so on – gives you something to compare within before you compare between.
Do this: Define three to four territories first, then generate names inside each one.
4) Let meaning follow function
Names earn their meaning over time. Netflix didn’t start poetic. Slack didn’t start beloved. They started ‘workable’.
Do this: Shortlist based on usability too – pronunciation, memorability, distinctiveness, availability. People will attach the meaning afterwards.
5) Consider the process, not just the output
Naming works best when someone is actively managing the room: pacing the conversation, balancing loud and quiet voices, stopping early attachment, and making it safe to discard ideas without ego.
Do this: Design the process. Set expectations. Explain what “good progress” actually looks like at each stage.
Naming names
This final point is the real value a creative agency can bring. Yes, amazing ideas. But more than that: a process you and others buy into.
Because naming – most of the time – isn’t about having the answer. It’s about illuminating the way forward – carefully, collaboratively and with fewer regrets.
Don’t wait for a lightning bolt. Build the filters, run the process, and let the right name survive.
