I interview my dad, A Hundred Monkeys founder Danny Altman, on the early days of the company and the evolution of naming. We try not to dwell on the the past too much around here but every once in a while it’s nice to take a look around and ask, “how did we get here?”
A Hundred Monkeys can get you a name in about a month. Sometimes shorter. Sometimes longer. Project length depends on the client’s calendar, not ours. Recently I’ve been on a few projects that have extended beyond our normal timeline and want to reflect—since I have a little extra time at home—on the pros and cons
A lot. The third edition of my book Don’t Call It That is scheduled to arrive at the end of April. By the time v3 arrives, the second edition will have been sold out for about a year. What’s so new and special about the third edition? Is there any reason to pick it up if you already have
Carl Formaker, Assistant Winemaker at Three Sticks Wines, was raised a stone’s throw from Sonoma County’s Russian River. Many winters heavy rains cause the river to crest over its banks and flood parts of the Russian River Valley, leaving behind silt and fertile topsoil. That cycle helps create perfect conditions for growing wine grapes and
Sometimes knowing your brand means knowing when to get creative help. It’s hard to talk about yourself. How much time is spent crafting dating profiles or resumes, or finding the best anecdote to tell on Jeopardy? We all want to make a good impression and usually end up overthinking every word. But how many of us
First installment of the A Hundred Monkey’s guide to virtual assistant naming AI is real. It’s happening. It also has a name, a voice, and a personality like Siri, Alexa, and Cortana. As professional namers we’ve named virtual assistants and have thought a lot about the ins and outs of naming a digital being. In
Every creative process has its limitations, you just need to find them. In Run Studio Run I talk a lot about process, and for good reason. Process is the best way to get support from your team, grow their responsibilities, and operate an efficient studio. While anyone who works with me will tell you that I’m a
I was raised in Sonoma County. In wine-growing terms, my family’s home was on the edge of the Bennett Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA). My father would drive me and my three brothers past Russian River Valley vineyards on the way to school everyday. I remember looking out the window at rows and rows of
Satisficing versus maximizing “So what about the .com?” is one of the more common questions we get asked when discussing a project. Often times, what’s baked inside that question is the desire to have theirname.com at the end of the naming process. Floating in the collective aether is this idea that when you’re starting something
Blank & Blank names are everywhere these days. I’m not talking about law firms like Latham & Watkins or names that play off of known phrases like Day & Age. I’m talking about names that take two words with no clear relationship, typically nouns, and arrange them on either side of an ampersand: Salt & Straw, Alice & Olivia,
