The name game

I don't know how often most copywriters get naming projects, but in my experience, it's usually rather rare. It's probably for the best because, though lots of fun, naming projects can take a lot out of you if done right. Naming is usually like one of two things- wading through a sea of crap until you find a tiny gold nugget or finding a golden snitch (nerddom unite). The biggest difference is whether you're writing down all your ideas while you brainstorm. Personally, I usually write down at least 60-100 names before starting to narrow down the list. Naturally that includes the crap names you have to get out of your system to let the good ones push their way through, but it can be taxing work. I liken that to sifting through a sea of crap until you get your golden nugget. However, if you're not writing them down, then it's much more like finding the snitch. You can circle around the quidditch pitch for hours looking for its elusive gleam, and once you catch it out of the corner of your eye, there's no guarantee you'll catch it. I don't recommend this practice though because aside from not looking busy and having nothing physical to show for your hours of work, if you're writing them all down and you don't have a lightbulb moment, at least you have a something to choose from. Sure, we'd all love to come up with the perfect name every time, but sometimes the constraints of the real world make this impossible. Happily, that's not the case in my latest naming project. Anyway, it's back to wading...