Word Stretch: Innovative ways to say Innovate
I had a dream: I was naming an unsafe, ineffective, un-fresh, me-too product. It was wonderful.
But then I woke up, and was confronted with the reality of my job in the naming industry. My challenge: creating new and distinctive brand names around product attributes that are anything but new and distinctive. My solution: word stretching. . . .
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Word Stretch #1: Innovative ways to say “Innovative”
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Employee Feature: Becky Leonard
brand salsa is pleased to feature some of our finest … each week we’ll randomly select an inVentiv employee to showcase on the blog. Wanna get your mug online? Just shoot me an email and I’ll tell you how much … I mean, how.
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Name: Becky Leonard
Job Title and Company:Try and make each person I come in contact with feel like they matter on this planet! {Receptionist at Addison Whitney}
1. "On a road trip, my staple convenience store purchase is": BBQ Corn Nuts
2. "What's playing in my iPod right now": Howard Stern
3. "Big Mac or Whopper?": No to both, Now a plain double cheese burger would be the ticket! (Hate mayo onions, etc.)
Lending a Helping Hand
The other day our creative department was brainstorming ideas and activities to help keep our creativity fresh and our momentum going. We were suggesting all kinds of activities from visiting the local library to spending the day at an amusement park, when someone mentioned volunteering. What a great idea! Volunteering not only provides an outside activity for us to engage in, but it is a great team building exercise and, of course, it benefits the community.
I later came across an article on the CNN website titled, “Volunteer Work Can Be Good for Career.” The article talks about new ways in which companies are offering incentives for their employees to volunteer in the community. It also mentions an organization called VolunteerMatch which matches non-profit organizations with volunteers.
VolunteerMatch has a website on which individuals or groups can search for local volunteer opportunities. What I found particularly interesting are the Corporate Solutions that VolunteerMatch offers. Companies can join VolunteerMatch to promote volunteering in the workplace and gain access to VolunteerMatch’s resources. Several companies such as Target, Johnson & Johnson, and General Mills have already jumped on board. Companies that promote volunteer work and take an interest in the community are not only fostering a better work environment, but they are building their brand’s reputation as well.
I started thinking about ways in which our employees are involved in the community and serve as volunteers. Maghan Cook, an Addison Whitney employee spends a lot of her time volunteering for Planned Parenthood and United Family Services. Every year in December, Addison Whitney participates in the “Giving Tree,” a project sponsored by the local Department of Social Services. Employees can donate money or toys to help children in foster care or group homes have a happy holiday. inVentiv Communications employees contribute to GRACE, a charitable initiative to assist senior citizens in need access life-sustaining prescription drugs and other healthcare services.
What is the most interesting or rewarding volunteer opportunity you have participated in?
By: Jessica McGrail
Spinning your wheels for the right name
It was the mid 1950s and the Ford Motor Company had a new mid-level car to name. They spared no expense, hiring an ad agency to produce over 6 thousand name possibilities, and engaging poet Marianne Moore to create several more.
But the developers of the car simply could not agree, and after all outside names were rejected, the family name Edsel was finally chosen.
The car went on to become one of the most remarkable commercial failures of its time. Of course, the name (which, according to market research, evoked words such as “weasel” and “dead cell”) wasn’t the soul reason for the brand’s downfall. Still, sometimes it pays to play it safe.
The $99 Brand Name
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In an effort to reduce the intimidation factor at the beginning of a new project, we often tell our clients that while they may not realize it, every one of them has naming experience. We’ve all named something in our lives, be it a pet, a child, or a nickname for our car or a friend. What I didn’t know is there is, in fact, a structured way for all of us to be professional namers. Clicking through a recent email that breached my spam filter, I came across a new competitor for Addison Whitney: NameThis.com.
This site offers “three world-validated names for your thingamajig in 48 hours”…all for the bargain price of $99. Eighty percent of this fee is distributed back to participating site members, meaning those who helped create or influence the winning names actually get paid for their ideas. Of course, there is no guarantee that the customer submitting the naming request is going to like the winning candidates or that they’ll be legally viable. If you were starting a new business, would you be willing to spend $99 to give a group of average citizens a shot at naming your company, product, service or website?
Contributed by: Ashley Hollingsworth
Employee Feature: Bill Purdy
brand salsa is pleased to feature some of our finest … each week we’ll randomly select an inVentiv employee to showcase on the blog.......................................................................................................................................................................
Name: WC Purdy
Job Title and Company:New Business Development - Healthcare at Addison Whitney
1. "On a road trip, my staple convenience store purchase is": Yoo-hoo & Gum
2. "If I could have a super power, it would be": Invisibility & the power to heal
3. "What's playing in your iPod right now?": Beatles—Rubber Soul
Domain Rush
The practice of buying and selling domain names has become a lucrative business for many web hosting sites. A new trend is emerging called domain front running - i.e., temporarily registering searched domains for the purpose of re-selling them or earning revenue via ads placed on the domains landing page. By registering the domains, the registrar locks out other potential registrars from selling the domain to a customer.
Another trend is the buying of generic domain names and selling them for outrageous amounts of money. Take for example, www.americanplumbing.com. The domain is owned by a web hosting company who is selling it for $29,600.00.
URL availability, or unavailability, for that matter, can seriously limit the brand name development process. What kind of URL conflicts have you experienced?
By: Jessica McGrail
Big-Hearted Brands: Sweet Feet
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If you are like me, you probably have at least twenty pairs of shoes in your closet. You probably even want to kick yourself, with that new pair of shoes you just bought, for straining your finances in the name of fashion.
However, there is a new shoe brand on the market that will not only go easy on your wallet, but make you feel good as well (and not just because these shoes are super comfortable)!
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The Knight and The Hare
My recent wedding presents me with a personal re-branding opportunity and a potential new revenue generating stream for Addison Whitney. I face a question that thousands of others do after marriage- Do I take my husband’s name, hyphenate or keep my current name? Could Addison Whitney solve this dilemma for me and thousands of other retired Bridezillas?
Below my current brand name and potential new brand name are run through an abbreviated review process.
Zipzor
Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Receives Approvable Letter From the U.S. FDA for ZIPSOR(TM) Capsules.
Contributed by Laine Beyerl