Brand Naming Books Worth Reading

Why Read About Naming?

Most founders spend minutes on what should be a weeks-long decision. A good book on naming gives you frameworks, vocabulary, and case studies that transform you from guessing to deciding with confidence.

The Naming-Specific Books

"Hello, My Name Is Awesome" by Alexandra Watkins

Best for: Practical, step-by-step naming guidance.

Watkins is a professional namer who created the SMILE and SCRATCH frameworks for evaluating names. SMILE names are Suggestive, Meaningful, Imagery-rich, have Legs, and are Emotional. SCRATCH names have problems: Spelling-challenged, Copycat, Random, Annoying, Tame, Curse of knowledge, Hard to pronounce.

Key takeaway: A great name should make you smile. If you have to explain why it's clever, it isn't.

"The Naming Book" by Brad Flowers

Best for: A structured naming process from a working brand strategist.

Flowers walks through the entire naming journey: strategy, brainstorming, evaluation, and finalization. The book includes practical exercises and real-world examples from his agency experience.

Key takeaway: Naming is a process, not a moment of inspiration. Following a systematic approach produces better results than waiting for a "eureka" moment.

"Wordcraft: The Art of Turning Little Words into Big Business" by Alex Frankel

Best for: Understanding how the biggest brands got their names.

Frankel goes inside the naming agencies and creative processes behind brands like BlackBerry, Accenture, and Jetblue. It's part journalism, part creative guide.

Key takeaway: Professional naming involves hundreds of candidates narrowed through rigorous screening. The "obvious" name rarely wins.

The Brand Strategy Books

"Building a StoryBrand" by Donald Miller

Best for: Understanding how naming fits into brand storytelling.

While not specifically about naming, Miller's framework positions the customer as the hero and your brand as the guide. This mindset produces better names — names that serve the customer's story, not your ego.

Key takeaway: Your brand name should help customers understand how you help them win.

"Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind" by Al Ries and Jack Trout

Best for: Understanding why positioning determines naming success.

The foundational text on brand positioning. Ries and Trout argue that the most powerful brand names own a word in the customer's mind. Volvo owns "safety." FedEx owns "overnight."

Key takeaway: Before naming, decide what word you want to own in your customer's mind. The name should reinforce that word.

"Zag: The Number One Strategy of High-Performance Brands" by Marty Neumeier

Best for: Understanding differentiation as a naming strategy.

Neumeier argues that when everyone zigs, you should zag. Applied to naming, this means deliberately choosing names that contrast with industry conventions.

Key takeaway: The safest name is often the most dangerous. Differentiation drives brand success.

"The Brand Gap" by Marty Neumeier

Best for: A quick, visual overview of what makes brands work.

A short, highly visual book that bridges the gap between strategy and creativity. Neumeier covers naming as one component of a holistic brand system.

Key takeaway: A brand is not a logo, name, or product — it's a person's gut feeling about you. Every element, including the name, must align.

The Psychology and Language Books

"Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman

Best for: Understanding how people actually process brand names.

Kahneman's research on cognitive biases explains why some names stick and others don't. Concepts like cognitive fluency (easy-to-process things feel more trustworthy) directly apply to naming.

Key takeaway: Names that are easy to process are perceived as more trustworthy, more familiar, and more likable.

"Made to Stick" by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

Best for: Understanding what makes ideas (and names) memorable.

The Heath brothers identify six principles of sticky ideas: Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, Stories (SUCCESS). Every principle applies to brand naming.

Key takeaway: Concrete, unexpected names stick. Abstract, predictable names don't.

"The Psychology of Language" by Trevor Harley

Best for: Deep understanding of how words affect cognition.

An academic text that explains how people process, remember, and respond to words. Dense but invaluable for anyone who wants to understand naming at the deepest level.

Key takeaway: The sounds, structure, and associations of a word are processed before its meaning. Phonetics matter as much as semantics.

Start Reading, Then Start Naming

Books give you frameworks. Tools give you execution. The best approach is to absorb the strategic thinking from a few of these books, then apply it using practical tools.

When you're ready to put your naming knowledge into action, use BrandScout to find and validate your brand name across domains, social handles, and trademarks.