folder Filed in Interviews, Podcast
Mastering Naming: A Conversation with Siegel+Gale's Naming Expert Aaron Hall
By SmartBranding Team access_time 3 min read

Intro

Our guest for this episode is Aaron Hall, group director and naming expert at Siegel+Gale, a global brand experience firm owning, defending and living by simplicity.

Meet our guest

Name: Aaron Hall

What they do: Aaron is a group director, naming at Siegel+Gale, a global brand experience firm.

Interesting fact: Aaron’s naming journey started 22 years ago when he found a job ad on Craigslist for a naming position in the marketing field. He didn’t know exactly what the job entailed, but it sounded exciting and fun to “play with words.” Aaron always had a passion for writing and languages, so he decided to give it a try. This choice paved the way for him to become a successful naming expert, a journey he still passionately pursues.

Where to reach them:

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Aaron Hall, Siegel+Gale, a global brand experience firm , Naming Expert

Siegel+Gale takes a fact-based approach to branding, using research to inspire and validate creative ideas, resulting in a nice mix of strategy and creativity.

Aaron Hall

Naming is an art form, a journey into creativity where we at Siegel+Gale explore countless possibilities until we find the perfect name that resonates with the essence of your brand.

Aaron Hall

Short overview

In this episode, we explore Aaron’s career journey to becoming a naming expert at Siegel+Gale. We discuss his unique approach to naming, combining research with creative exploration to ensure brands align with client objectives and resonate with their target audience. This method involves using research to inspire creative naming and validating these ideas through further research, resulting in a comprehensive and impactful brand strategy. We address the importance of aligning a company’s name with its founder’s vision and audience expectations. Aaron emphasises adaptability and strategic thinking, particularly for startups, advising against premature naming and suggesting using a codename until the company’s identity and offerings are fully defined. This approach allows businesses to refrain from restricting themselves to a name that might not suit their evolving scope.

Aaron cites Amazon as a prime example of a name that allowed expansive growth beyond its initial focus as a bookseller. We also touch on the significance of domain names and branding strategies. Aaron highlights the importance of securing an exact brand match .com domain for e-commerce businesses while noting the emerging trend of new top-level domains (TLDs) tailored to specific industries. Aaron shares insights into several naming trends, such as the growing relevance of naming in the AI sector and the evolving preferences of younger generations for edgier names.

Key moments

  • Aaron Hall’s career path and industry insights. (0:03)
  • Naming companies as a creative process and client involvement.  (2:21)
  • Naming companies and products with a focus on industry-specific do’s and don’ts. (12:35)
  • Naming a product or service with a focus on branding and trademarks. (18:04)
  • Domain names and branding strategies. (24:57)
  • Domain names and naming processes. (27:03)
  • AI naming, branding, and generational differences in marketing. (33:11)
  • Branding and naming for Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences. (37:25)
  • Brand naming strategies and creative process. (43:06)

We host engaging conversations about naming, branding, and entrepreneurship, exploring everything from initial triumphs to the hurdles along the way. If you’ve got insights on innovative branding strategies, lessons learned from entrepreneurial ventures, or thoughts on the significance of a solid domain name strategy, and you’re keen to chat about them, we’d love to hear from you!


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Other resources

Aaron Hall branding branding agency business creative domain domain name domain names domains gen z naming Naming Expert research Siegel+Gale