Trends in 2016: Branding and Domain Name Importance

http://www.domainnews.com/trends-in-2016-branding-and-domain-name-importance/

It’s no surprise how important branding is and will be in 2016. According to Forbes, in 2016 alone, we expect to see branding gone mobile. Not only that, but the hottest content will be user generated. Social becomes the new Internet. Great ever green content, as well as in-depth articles, tutorials and how-to’s are expected to answer real questions and solve real problems. People perform now, more than ever semantic web search queries, so any content (be it text, audio, video, images) should be optimized based on user behaviour. Transparency will be the foundation of any CRM system, therefore brands need to invest more in all the above.
Which brings us to the hot topic of branding and domain name and the reasons why they play a key role in the growth of a company.

3 Trends for Branding in 2016

The following are the most important highlights for 2016’s industry trends.

#1. Brands Owning Readership

Yes, that’s right: your brand has to own its readership in order to make it in the new world. This means paying extra attention and extra care to what your customers and potential customers need. The good old saying of “underpromise and overdeliver” is as much applicable today as it was 5 or 10 years ago. Happy customers means business growth, since the customers will embrace the brand’s vision and spread the message if they feel align to it.

#2. Brands Shifting to a More Diverse Audience

With all the Gen Y fuss and Millennials, some brands have already lost traction. The “brand of tomorrow” needs to shift its focus to a more diverse audience: young and old, we are 7billion people on the Planet. If you want to step up, broaden your audience perspective.

#3. Brands Focusing on Product Development, Not Just Services

According to FM Digital Group, the business model based on service providing will never disappear, however product development definitely gets more exposure in 2016. Developing a product can help answer more needs than just providing a service. However, combined, these two become a real unstoppable force in the business world.

Branding and Domain Name

While there is an endless debate to whether the corporate website is dead or not, the domain name surely isn’t. A website is all about design, usability, content and users. Make it mobile-only or mobile friendly and you are already one step ahead of the game. The domain name however is part of the branding. We saw how the first shift in domain names affected the web: from keyword domain names to branded domain names. That isn’t going to die soon. People still look for information on brands and most of the times, end up on their websites.
The website is still that “go-to” place to gather more info, while social media is the “go-to” for CRM purposes. When asked about more information, community managers will point out to documents, FAQs, articles found on the brand’s website. Which brings us to one conclusion: branding and domain names go hand in hand in building a name online. The next step should be building a community around it.

Image via TheMarketingBit

Onomastics in business

Business onomastics

Today I'd like just to enumerate how onomastics can be applied to the business and within a business project. It can be useful for those who are not so lucky at the university career.

If you are an onomastician with a bachelor, master or doctoral degree in name studies, then you may work as:

1. semanticist;
2. name developer;
3. name analyst;
4. name researcher;
5. name manager;
6. name consultant;
7. genealogist;
8. one-name investigator;
9. naming strategist;
10. name marketing expert;
11. name specialist.

Most of them concern the branches of strategic name development, name-giving process, brand naming company, product naming, company naming, brand name research, naming resources, etc. They do provide the opportunity to work on major international brand, products' names and on the name-giving process.

Product naming 
(based on http://www.namedevelopment.com/product-service-naming.html)
The naming process begins with a thorough review and understanding of the target market and competitive landscape. You should understand your consumer and the competition.
Next comes a deep dive into the brand strategy to isolate the relevant, enduring and emotive points of difference for creating a memorable brand name. As naming consultants, what you know about building brand strategy for product names, you learned from the companies who perfected it.
Building on the brand strategy, seasoned linguistic, creative and marketing professionals bring their expertise and passion to the table.
It's an iterative naming process that incorporates team's feedback and ideas all along the way. This often includes an exercise in qualitative target market and employee feedback that utilizes proprietary methodologies.
Throughout naming process you also employ a rigorous trademark pre-screening of name candidates using sophisticated trademark screening techniques.
And for product names that cross borders, Global Linguistic Analysis protects you from the embarrassment of a cultural or linguistic "faux pas".
Completing the product naming process, proprietary validation marketing research technique uses normative data to help determine which of several product name finalists resonates best with the target market.


Some examples of this activity may be found under:
http://www.namedevelopment.com/product-service-naming.html

Company naming
(based on http://www.namedevelopment.com/company-naming.html)

Every day more than 6,000 new company names enter the global marketplace. When it comes to company naming, each entity is competing for a piece of the pie, a slice of attention, a sliver of immortality.
Some of these company names are good. Some are just okay. But very few company names can claim the mantle of greatness.
Here's why:

• Great company naming tells a story that engages and compels
• Great company naming glides off the tongue and lands gracefully on the page
• Great company naming stakes a claim that is distinctive and trademarkable
• And great company naming must do all of this in just a few short syllables

Whether the new company name is for a start-up, spin-off, merger, acquisition or a strategic re-branding, the right name matters. That's because the difference between a good enough name and a great name is often the difference between organizational success and failure.

Check out the 9 Company Naming Principles videos to learn more (from here: http://www.namedevelopment.com/company-name-change-principles.html )

and

A company's name makes a first impression that lasts for the long-term. When company naming makes the wrong impression, it's time for a change.
Every year, more than 1,900 companies change their names in response to a change in their business environment. Just as consumers adapt to new technology and a changing economy, companies must transform themselves to capitalize on new growth opportunities and markets.
Some of these changes are the result of introducing innovative products or services, while others completely alter the direction of the company. These new company identities require names that speak to the target market and linguistically reflect their new image.
It's critical for a company that is transforming itself to make sure its B2C or B2B customers and investors get a better idea of who they are and where they are going.

Maybe later I will introduce some of the above mentioned professions.