Naming & Brand Identity

A brand book documents the visual and verbal identity. A full brand system goes further, defining how the brand behaves across all touchpoints, channels and audiences, including naming principles, tone of voice guidelines, templates and governance rules. Larger or more complex organisations typically need a brand system. For AG Insurance, we built a comprehensive identity system following the separation from Fortis. For CLdN, the brand system needed to work across multiple divisions, geographies and communication formats.

That depends on your brand architecture. A product name distinct from the company name makes sense when the product targets a different audience, carries a different promise, or needs to stand independently in the market. For Aqualex, we structured a product portfolio with clear naming roles, ensuring each brand and sub-brand served a distinct purpose. For Lotus Bakeries, we supported naming development across the product portfolio while maintaining the strength of the parent brand.

Consistency requires clear guidelines covering logo use, colour palette, typography and visual tone. These guidelines must be practical enough for internal teams and external partners to apply without supervision. For CLdN, we developed a unified brand identity and guided its rollout across all touchpoints, from containers and harbours to digital communications. For Arvesta, we created practical brand templates and guidelines that enable consistent application across a large organisation with multiple sub-brands.

A legally defensible name is distinctive rather than descriptive, not confusingly similar to existing registered trademarks in the relevant categories and regions, and capable of being registered in all target markets. The more distinctive the name, the stronger the legal protection. Generic or descriptive terms are difficult to protect. Coined or invented names offer the strongest legal protection. For Liantis and bnode, we developed names with high distinctiveness that could be registered and defended across multiple jurisdictions.

A visual update refreshes how your brand looks without changing what it's called. A new brand name is needed when the existing name creates legal risk, no longer reflects the strategy, limits growth, or carries associations that cannot be overcome through design alone. After the merger of three organisations, Liantis needed a name that represented a new identity, not a refreshed version of an existing one. For Belfius, the transition from Dexia required an entirely new name to signal a new chapter and rebuild trust.

A name that works internationally must pass three tests: strategic fit, linguistic usability and legal availability. Linguistic research examines how a name sounds, reads and translates across target languages. Cultural perception tests ensure no negative associations exist in target markets. Legal screening confirms the name is available to register. For Nalu, we developed a name that works phonetically and culturally across European and global markets. For Equitone, we combined strategic naming with cross-linguistic research to ensure the name worked in all target markets.

The biggest risk is investing in a name that cannot be protected or defended. A name may sound distinctive but be too descriptive, already registered in your target markets, or confusingly similar to an existing trademark. Discovering this after launch leads to costly rebranding and potential legal disputes. At Remarkable, legal validation runs parallel with creative development, not after it. For Liantis, we screened multiple name candidates for legal availability in all relevant markets before any creative investment was finalised. For bnode, we conducted availability searches across the EU and beyond before the name was announced.