Branding expert Nancy Friedman has been seeing a lot of X's and O's lately, "in the breezy, cozy, kissy-huggy names of companies and products." And she says that "Valentine's Day seems the perfect occasion to cuddle up with them."  Continue reading...

Everyone's been a name developer at least once. But I'm guessing you haven't named many things with which you had no personal connection. Year after year. For money.  Continue reading...

Which brand was most emblematic of the year that's now ending? Facebook, which had a much-ballyhooed initial stock offering in May? Apple, which said in December it would start making some products in the United States instead of in China? Neiman Marcus and Target, which formed an unlikely high-low partnership to sell holiday gifts to two very different audiences?  Continue reading...

In the third and final presidential debate, Mitt Romney and Barack Obama ended up agreeing on many foreign policy points. Despite all the heated rhetoric of the campaign, both candidates are making a play for undecided voters in the middle of the political spectrum. But for those who are disillusioned with the two-party system, Obama and Romney seem interchangeable: you might as well call them Robama and Obamney.  Continue reading...

Where do successful company and product names come from? Some are created in a flash of insight, others after months of painstaking research. And some are the result of human error. Here are the stories behind eight brands — some of them well known, some a little obscure, each interesting in its own way.  Continue reading...

Imagine you're naming a new brand — an alcoholic beverage, say. You know the standard marketing dogma: a brand name should promise romance, adventure, well-being, financial success, sex appeal. What are the odds that you'd ignore that advice and instead choose a name that says … death?  Continue reading...