Naming for
your big ideas

Achieve your goals with names that meet the mark

I partner with brands and agencies to develop names that are strategically sound and creatively driven, resulting in naming projects that:

  • Deliver on the brief

  • Gain alignment and adoption

  • Pass legal clearance.

Declare your impact
in as few characters as possible.

An estimated 11.6 million trademark applications were filed worldwide in 2023.

[source]

This doesn’t have to be a problem depending on the type of company you run, product you offer or geographic footprint you want to maintain.

If you’re a homegrown restaurant, say, you might not care about any of those things.

But it might be a hurdle for organizations looking to enter international markets, or operating in competitive industries with a lot of IP activity, like tech or financial services.

It might be a hurdle if you want to stand out in a crowded market.

Naming needs consensus between:

  • Leadership

  • Product

  • Marketing

  • Legal

Naming requires a common understanding of all stakeholders’ criteria, and to consider names that proactively explore it.

It wastes time + resources to only consider the approval landscape after the creative presentation. Yet lots of companies and agencies do it that way, and it leads to round upon round of name exploration. If you’ve made it to this point, this is probably a familiar situation.

You need naming support where creative exploration moves in tandem with your strategic evaluation.

My naming clients have included

My name’s Amanda, and
I’ve named it all.

Whether working directly with clients or in partnership with agencies, I help clients find the right name for their companies, products + initiatives.

I’ve named hundreds of companies and products across B2B and B2C industries, in domestic and international markets, including tech, financial services, healthcare, professional services, and consumer goods.

I love helping clients find names that are worthy of becoming synonymous with the wildest ambitions of their leadership.

more about me

My work includes names like

  • Litmus logo

    Simplify your insurance complexity with tools that help you understand, track, and optimize your coverage with independent expert advisors and AI-powered insights.

  • Bold name Lumino over the word health

    This digital platform from Sun Life Financial enlightens Canadians making informed decisions about their healthcare.

  • Stacked stylistic letters reading Deli

    Production company or creative agency? Try both. The Deli is a production-led agency makes how the sausage gets made into the main course, to elevate business, brand, and creative goals.

  • A mandala circle next to the name Sagen with an angled N

    As Canada’s largest private mortgage insurer, Sagen makes first-time homeownership more accessible for Canadians. Formerly known as Genworth Canada, their new name captures how they build trust through expertise and wisdom.

  • Two colourful plant leaves are in a box over the name Inner Room

    This virtual therapy practice helps clients and practitioners take the space they need to build their skills and connect more deeply with their boldest selves.

  • Stacked boxy letters reading FIGR

    Blending homegrown wisdom with scientific rigour, Figr Cannabis suggests the relaxed language of farmers and the formal abbreviations found in textbooks.

  • The Twinagers are identical twin sisters on a mission to redefine society’s narratives on aging. They are building a community full of honesty, inspiration and information where everyone has a voice to share their wisdom, life lessons and experiences.

  • A magenta circle with a gradient that says Joule in white type, with a small offside connection reading "A CMA Company / Société de l'AMC"

    Joule is an evidence-based education platform from the Canadian Medical Association. This simple, peppy name’s got the energy to transfer knowledge fast.

  • Bold logo reading Dagger Stories with a slash through the middle

    This growing independent production team needed a name that reflects their pointed take on the topics shaping our lives through non-fiction storytelling and sharp wit.

  • Myseum in an infinite circle

    This arts non-profit wanted to highlight the personal, particular stories of Torontonians across the GTA. In all my years of naming, this is the only client to gasp mid-presentation, turn to me, and ask if I’d bought the URL yet.

    Learn more about my work with Myseum >

  • The words Thinking Capital in violet and grey overlapping a violet box outline

    As this fintech leader in small business financing expanded their portfolio, they needed a new name to reflect their insightful and growth-oriented outlook.

Take the guesswork out of the creative leap

Go wide and source names that fit both your business and brand strategy, backed by strategic thinking and rigorous research at every step. 

Most naming projects include:

  • Kickoff session to understand your goals, your first hunches and what success will look like

  • Competitive & market insights to understand the naming landscape

  • Brand positioning statement to define how your name positions you for intentional success

  • Creative name exploration, grounded in creative process and strategic rationale

  • Due diligence review* to make sure you’re considering name candidates that are viable options

  • Strategic support oriented towards decision-making, including socialization with different teams within your business.

This might be a good fit for you if:

  • You’ve already done some name exploration internally or with an agency and haven’t found the right name yet

  • You have a hard time getting internal stakeholders to agree on what the right name might look like, including folks from marketing, product, leadership and legal

  • You are adding a second product to your offerings, and now you’re not sure what to call products in your portfolio and/or your company

  • You work in an industry that’s ultra-competitive for trademark registration, like tech or financial services

  • You’re expanding into a new market or audience base, such as a Canadian company expanding into the US.

The name’s only part of the story

I’ve helped craft verbal identity for clients of all sizes, including heavy-hitters like:
Google | CVS Health | Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan | Sun Life Financial | Borden Ladner Gervais (BLG) | Fairmont Hotels & Resorts | UL | Medtronic

Tell me more about verbal identity

What the heck should I call this thing?

Tell me more about your idea and we’ll take it from there.

reach out

 FAQs

  • I’m not a lawyer or a trademark agent, so I am not equipped to do a legal deep dive and tell you whether or not you can file a registration for the name.

    However, I’ve been around the block a few times, and I’ve seen the way trademark law works when it comes to naming, and how risk may be assessed. This is an important step for vetting creative so you can make sure you’re not investing time, energy and socialization in a name that is unavailable. The ultimate decision on the final name will rest on your leadership’s risk tolerance and the advice of your legal counsel.

    For the due diligence review, I use publicly available data to search country trademark databases, search engine findings against your market + your competitors, and top-level domain and social media handle availability. I am not responsible for registering any assets on behalf of your company.

  • I spent five+ years in verbal identity at Interbrand, the world’s largest brand consultancy (which, fun fact, was first founded as a naming company!) Developing names, brand strategy + verbal identity for Fortune 500s was what I did, day in day out.

    Before that, I was a copywriter at a few ad agencies and honestly, I saw firsthand what a mess naming can be without process. Creatives know how to take the leap and see the potential in a name, but don’t always know how to bring their clients and their clients’ leaders along for the ride, especially in more technical disciplines and risk-averse industries like finance or law.

    I’ve been self-employed for more than seven years now, and naming has become the largest part of my practice. I have worked with companies and clients of all sizes, from enterprise organizations to founders just starting out. Agencies hire me to deliver on the naming projects they sold in. I see how naming is done across the board.

    I love that people bring me their nearly-formed ideas and say, “I don’t know how to talk about my big beautiful baby!” Feeling into that unknown space, finding its edges and giving it more definition, that’s where the magic lies for me.

  • Yes! I partner with agencies of all shapes and sizes to lead their naming projects, or support their process with creative name generation.

    My agency partners include Prophet, DesignBridge, Interbrand, Huge, VML and lg2, among others. Drop me a line if you’re interested in partnering.

  • Something tells me if you’d made it this far into the FAQs, you’ve already tried that and it didn’t work.

    Naming is much more than simply coming up with one or a couple words. A big part of the legwork lies in defining what the right name needs to do and when we’ll know it when we see it.

    As a naming expert who has led 100+ naming projects over the last decade, and developed thousands of name options for others, I’ve learned how to stickhandle around a few pitfalls and shortcut a few processes. I can help you see around corners you didn’t even know were there and find your ideal name, faster.

    I am also not particularly fussy about your name having come from my brain. My goal is to help you land a name you feel confident about, period. If you, your mom or your accountant ends up suggesting the name that becomes The One, and you feel positive that it’s The One, I consider that a job well done.

  • I got you, friend, I’m a small business owner and I love working with people who are just launching their first idea. I offer brainstorm sessions that might be a great fit for your needs! Tell me about what you’re planning and we’ll see how I might be able to help.

Got a question I haven’t answered? You should probably reach out!

Contact me