Brand Name Game

Business Week considers "What's in a brand name?" An excerpt:

When the results came in, one consensus was certain: The best new brand names are clear and simple. Easy-to-associate names like aloft, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide's (HOT) new hotel brand, stole the spotlight from more abstract monikers like Andaz, the new luxury hotel chain from Global Hyatt. "This year there was a tendency for marketers to play it safe," says Martyn Tipping, president of TippingSprung. Gone are the days of the dot-com boom when, he says, "the more unusual, the more distinctive, and crazier the name the better."

Simplicity is now king, confirms Anthony Shore, creative director of the naming and writing division at branding agency Landor Associates. "People like real words. People [prefer] names that derive from real-world associations," he says.