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Brand equity: a river in reverse

Understanding the flow of brand equity within an ecosystem We have a saying at A Hundred Monkeys that “brand equity flows upstream.” It’s something we remind ourselves whenever we work on naming ecosystem projects. Essentially it means that any sub-brand or branded element (feature, service, tool, etc.) that doesn’t get a name sends the brand…

Is “Lifestyle” A Four Letter Word?

As the saying goes, there are two types of people in the world: those who think lifestyle is a four-letter word and those who don’t. I find myself squarely in the second camp but have never really asked myself why? Perhaps it’s because when I first heard the term lifestyle in the early 2000s, brands…

E-volution: Vehicle naming in the all-electric age

As the hottest summer ever recorded comes to an end, it’s logical to focus our attention more intently on the climate crisis. For many people in wealthier nations that means redressing everything from recreational habits (air travel and gas consumption) to purchasing decisions on appliances, consumer goods, and vehicles. In response to the growing global…

Percentage-wise: Meditating on the 10% Happier Brand

Dan Harris would like a minute of your time. In fact, he would like any amount of time you would be willing to dedicate to the age-old contemplative practice of mindfulness meditation. If you’re using his 10% Happier app, even better. The ABC news anchor turned meditation evangelist has been on a crusade to convince…

Brand chameleons: how ever-changing brands might operate

Hear me out—I have an oddball question: why don’t some brands make a point to change their name, and their brand, regularly? As in, their name (and visual identity) change often to the point of transformation being core to who they are. Newness is the consistency.  I recognize this concept won’t work for most brands…

New word, who dis?

What happens when we see words that are unfamiliar to us — in naming and beyond Ingredients, technologies, viral strains, street names, animal breeds. We see new words constantly—so much so that we don’t always notice when it’s happening. Our brains become accustomed to new words quickly after a bit of language processing, which of…

Brand architecture is a delusional fantasy

As I, a branding professional, understand it, Brand Architecture is the relationship between all of the branded elements within an organization. This could be subsidiaries, sub-brands, products, features, services—really anything branded within an organization. So if we take Nike as an example, they have owned subsidiaries like Hurley and Converse. They have sub-brands like Nike…

running brand naming

Ingredients to run with

Taking a closer look at running shoe ingredient branding There is a vast world of running shoe ingredient brands. What started with Nike Air and Asics Gel has exploded into a supernova of running technologies™️. While these running companies are busy churning out new innovations, what are they actually communicating to their customers? Do runners…

We’ve Got Your Number: Brand Names that Use Numbers

At A Hundred Monkeys we know that names are made up of interesting stuff. Sometimes there are rich stories, curious histories, or interesting etymologies baked in. Other times brands include unexpected “characters” like letters from ancient alphabets, mathematical symbols, or numbers. I was curious to explore the latter of these three types of names and…

Brewing Good Humor: An Interview with Alex Zobel of Armistice Brewing Company

At A Hundred Monkeys we believe that employing humor in company and product naming is a good way into people’s hearts and minds. A jocular name can stand out in a crowded competitive landscape and communicate an intriguing story with levity or a wink. With nearly 9,000 craft breweries in the US, it’s an industry…

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