Naming things is hard.
When you’re an expert, your knowledge of a topic is so subtle and nuanced that jamming all of that understanding into a four-word title is frustrating as hell. Even deciding on your core message is a nightmare of decision-making. What to take out? What to leave in? I have so many great ideas to share! ARGH.
This is where I can help. Together we can put together a name for your wonderful new darling!
The much, much better way to name your product, website, tagline, etc
1. You click on the big button below and pay $197.
2. You receive an email with some questions to think about and a link to my calendar.
Curious? Here are the questions:
- Who do you want to attract? Don’t give me demographics! Tell me about their personalities: what sense of humour they have, what they value, what they aspire to.
- Who do you want to dissuade? Who would tire you out to work with?
- What’s the thing that needs a name?
- What’s the biggest benefit of your thing?
3. You book a 60-minute session. There will almost always be a time in the next day that suits you. (Which is awesome, because I know you’re ready to get cracking!)
4. We chat over Skype or phone, talking about your answers and your needs, and pinpoint the headline of the unnamed thing. I always choose clarity over cleverness, but the name often ends up clever AND clear. (I love playing around with words!)
This is an intensive and invigorating process. (Like a vigorous Swedish rub for your ideas.) We’ll be illuminating the best parts of your thing and how to powerfully and succinctly communicate them.
I’ll give you at least 5 potential ideas for names during our talk. Probably many, many more. (Many.)
5. I email you the list of names and the recording of our call, if you want it. You play around with them, ensure you can say them aloud without making a face, and see how they fit.
6. If we’re not… quite… there yet (Which happens rarely, but does happen. This is an intensely personal process, and what sounds good now might feel wrong tomorrow) then we talk again and refine until you’re bursting with excitement.
And then, you’re done!
Not only do you have a list of fantastic names for your thing, but you also find it a squillion times easier to tell people about it now you know the core.
Want to know about some of the nifty people I’ve already helped?
Sure! I love naming things and working with awesome people.
Sparky Firepants
Fresh, on-target illustration for fun people – that was a tagline for the ever-delightful Sparky Firepants as he took his website in a new direction.
He then proclaimed on Twitter: “You are whip-smart, insightful, and fantastic. 45 minutes on the phone saved me weeks of noodling about.” Why thank you!
Sinclair from Self Activator
Ooh, and after a kick-ass chat with Sinclair from Self Activator, she emailed me a testimonial. (I didn’t even ask. She’s so sweet.)
Catherine is all kinds of genius, and has the gift of simplifying difficult concepts to create great results.
This tagline service of hers is no exception. I’ve been to tagline school (not kidding – it was expensive). I know all the rules, and Catherine’s taglines meet those criteria and excel past them.
Generating taglines is a mysterious business, but not with the divine Ms. Caine. No hoopla, no mystery, just BAM. Tagline you love. She gets it because she listens well, and she keeps it simple. Thank God for her.
Now my only challenge is updating the visual aspects of my site so they’re worthy of implementing my new tagline!
(Isn’t she wonderful?)
Iain from Ten More Clients
Iain and I chat very regularly about our businesses and mutual love of Baldur’s Gate, and I worked with him to name two things:
Why is my networking NOT working? – his (awesome) free course about how to do networking well.
Attract your ideal clients through marketing and self-development – the tagline for the Ten More Clients website. I really loved this one, because until we went through the tagline process Iain hadn’t brought the element of self-development into the website at all, even though it was very important to him personally and in the work he does with his clients. The lightbulb was audible when I suggested we incorporate that into his tagline.
LaVonne from The Complete Flake
The Stuckbuster Sessions – LaVonne’s energising productivity sessions for readers of The Complete Flake. She was 90% of the way toward having the answer herself – her first suggestion was BlockBusters, which didn’t quite work because of the association with the video rental chain – she just needed help in finding an alternative that worked. The alliteration was a pleasant bonus.
Mary from Prison of Should
During a consulting call, Mary and I were talking about a new website she wanted to start. The purpose was to help people break out of conformity and be their bestest selves, and I suggested PrisonofShould.com as a name. Mary laughed for five straight minutes, and the ideas starting bursting out of her. Finding that metaphor gave her website a new structure and focus and power.
It’s time to sing it out loud!
Are you ready to have an energising conversation about your thing and come out with clarity and a name?
Booyah! Click the button and let’s do this!
