Create a character to build your brand

  There are several methods for finding a good brand name. We have already listed some of them in our article "Find a good brand" : words of the common language taken out of their universe, neologisms, acronyms... The choice of a brand is most often dictated by external considerations: the brand must be both original and simple to understand, it must be easily memorable, and it must reflect the company's values. Some companies have chosen to create characters, which incorporate their brand. This is the case of Mamie Nova, Jeff de Bruges or Bruce Fields. This marketing practice was widely used in the 1980s, and has since fallen into disuse.  

Invent a character to reassure the consumer

When you hear "Mamie Nova" or "Bonne Maman", it is easy to imagine the peaceful grandmother, in her kitchen, preparing her jam or another dessert according to a family recipe, unchanged for years. This is the image that Andros wants to convey...the owner of both brands. Products with a "homemade" look, cooked with love by an old lady with white hair. This communication strategy still works today, even abroad. After all, grandmothers can be found everywhere. In another genre, there is "Justin Bridou". Founded in 1978, the brand, which depicts a moustachioed shepherd, perfectly embodies the image of the traditional dry sausage maker. But in reality, the name "Bridou" is inspired by "brider", a technique that consists of wrapping the sausage with a string to allow it to dry. In addition, despite its name, which is reminiscent of French terroir, the brand is now owned by by a Chinese pork group....  

Choosing a name more catchy than your own surname

Selling chocolates are the name "Philippe Jambon", it's not easy. If some are lucky enough to have a selling name, this is not the case for all entrepreneurs. Philippe Jambon has therefore decided to find a name that is more catchy than his own. If you have to choose, you might as well choose a name that evokes the world of chocolate (Switzerland or Belgium). In 1985, Jeff from Bruges was born. The choice of name was also dictated by commercial considerations: "Jeff" is necessarily a person who is accessible, with whom to share moments of complicity. In the same spirit, we find Barbara Gould created in the 1930s. In order to sell cosmetics, it was fashionable for the brand to evoke femininity. But at the time, all the managers of Bourjois & Cie were men. Should the name "Bernard Martin Douglas" be adapted by feminizing it? No, the easiest thing to do was to create a new name: "the Barbara Gould woman" was born.  

Do you necessarily have to find a character to embody your brand?

Creating a character to support a brand is a marketing method like any other. It can happen that this character does not age well, that it becomes outdated. But the main idea is above all to make the brand human: by opting for a patronymic, whether real or invented, we allow consumers to meet a person, to get to know someone. As for choosing a name, one can obviously resort to naming experts. But you can also apply the technique of certain wine houses, which have found their range name, by opting for anagrams. Thus, the "Baron de Lestac", born from a mixture of the letters of Castel, the parent company, and "Pierre Chanau", marketed at Auchan, are also completely imaginary characters. However, beware of do not use the name of an existing personThe company may oppose the registration of the trademark, particularly if it is detrimental to its image.