In today’s time, when mercantile stores are increasing, and fashion sense is changing with the change in the taste of the consumers, a brand name plays a vital role. People are becoming brand conscious; in that case, it is equally essential to commercialize your brand. Brand names should be attractive and easy to spell and pronounce. If you are planning to launch your clothing brand, then you must keep in mind the following details-
Importance should be given to the targeted audience.
If we are launching a clothing brand, we should keep the audience we are targeting in mind. If we launch products that are not suitable for the targeted audience, then it would make no sense to the consumers. The brand name should appeal to the audience and reflect your brand’s key traits. The brand should research location, age, gender, income level, family status, and other backgrounds to know more about its consumers.
The name of the brand
The name of the brand should be simple and short, and along with the name, the tagline (if any) should be appealing and catchy to the audience. The name holds a lot of value as it tells us about the brand. The brand name should be easy to spell and pronounce for the audience. E.g., brand names like- ZARA, etc., are short and easy for consumers.
The logo of the brand
Brand naming is part of the process, and the other is making the logo. The logo of the brand should be such that it is easy to recall the logo. The color palette and the design of the logo should be such that it becomes memorable.
Stakeholders should be a part of the process.
Once the list of varieties of brand names has come up to you and has been listed down, make sure that it is circulated among those people who have also been a part of it. The various stakeholders, like the suppliers, investors, employees, designers, etc., should also get a chance to give their opinions about the branding name but make sure your decision is the final one.
The brand should speak to the personality.
The designs of the brand should speak about the personality of the designer. It is more likely if it shows the designer’s personality, as most tend to name the brands by their own name.
The brand should not stick to specific products.
It should be such that the brand should try to extend its entrepreneurship by making different kinds of products and making them available to consumers. It can keep products that go well with the clothing and suit the taste of the audience of the location.
The taste or the choice of the audience or consumers should be taken into consideration.
When launching a brand for clothing, it is important to keep in mind the choice of the consumers. It has to be such that the products available there should appeal to all kinds of audiences in that location. The clothing brand should keep products of all sizes to satisfy all its consumers. The products should not be too tacky, loud, or simple and sober. Rather it should mix and match all styles and fashions suitable to the location’s audience.
The brand should look into the quality of the products.
One thing that consumers notice a lot when it comes to clothes and food is their quality. The brand should not compromise the quality of its products and should try to provide the best to its consumers. The quality of the cloth, color and stitch should be proper. The product should be comfortable and durable to be worth the price the consumer is paying. If this happens, the consumer will spread the word about the brand, and more consumers will come to the scene. Specific consumers become regular just because of the quality that the brand provides.
Trademarking or Registration
Once the brand becomes quite popular, it is renowned nationally. Entrepreneur starts looking for some kind of mark that will mark the originality of their brand so that they are protected legally. As getting the registration done ‘globally’ is difficult, one can register under International Right (IR) or a Community Trade Mark (CTM) depending on the jurisdictions or laws applicable overseas.
Some important specifics of a trademark are discussed below:
- The trademarked name emphasizes the individuality of a firm.
- It creates a sense of belief and acceptance in the mind of the customers.
- It serves as an asset for the company by protecting it legally.
Tests to determine the success of the brand name
There are two tests advocated by the CIO of Eat my Words, Alexandra Watkins. She advocated these two tests to determine the success of the brand name. She calls them the SMILE and SCRATCH tests. To check the qualities of the brand name SMILE test is important. Essentially these words mean-
- It should be Simple and easy to understand.
- It must be Meaningful, something the customers and consumers relate to.
- It has to have good Imagery to create strong visualization.
- There should be Legs so that it has the ability to stay prominent for quite a time.
- It should have an Emotional connection and build a bond that entertains and evokes a strong sense of feeling.
The other test, the SCRATCH test, is the one that determines those qualities that a brand name should not have. It means –
- The Spelling of the brand name should not be difficult to remember or write.
- The name should be unique, not a Copycat; it should not sound familiar to a similar brand or remind the customer of one.
- The name of the brand should not be Random; it should be associated with the product.
- The brand name should be appealing and annoying, which evokes negativity.
- It has to be Tame, something which is feebly connected.
- The name should be understood by all. It should not be a Curse of Knowledge, as it should not be something that is only understood by insiders.
- The name should be easy and not Hard to Pronounce. If they can’t pronounce it, they can’t remember it too.
A good brand should be able to pass each of these tests.
These are a few steps that will help one to launch one’s own clothing brand.