Discover how the sounds in brand names shape perception, why associations can differ across languages, and what global brands should consider.
Picture two new products with identical features. One is called Milex. The other is called Molux. Which one sounds bigger?
If Molux seems larger, your impression may have something to do with how it sounds. Research into sound symbolism suggests that certain speech sounds can influence the qualities we associate with unfamiliar words, including size, weight, and softness.
But brands rarely stay in one market. What happens when a name reaches people who speak another language? Does it still create the impression its creators intended?
A Name Can Communicate Before It Means Anything
Sound symbolism is the idea that certain sounds can suggest particular qualities, even in words with no meaning of their own. How a name sounds can shape what people imagine about it.
One of the most studied examples concerns perceived size. Front vowels, such as /i/ in mint, tend to be associated with smaller or lighter objects. Back vowels, such as /u/ in rule, are more frequently linked to larger or heavier ones.
In a 2004 study, Eric Yorkston and Geeta Menon gave participants descriptions of a fictitious ice cream. The product was identical in each case, but its name was different: Frosh or Frish. Participants who saw Frosh, with its back vowel, expected the ice cream to be smoother, creamier, and richer.
The name alone had changed what people expected from the product.
That doesn’t mean every consumer will respond in the same way. Other factors influence perception too. Still, the study shows why choosing a name involves more than finding a word with the right meaning. Its sound matters as well.
More Than Just Size: What Else Can a Name Suggest?
Size isn’t the only quality people associate with sounds. Researchers have also investigated their influence on expectations about taste, texture, strength, and other product features.
Luxury is one example. In a 2017 study, Abhishek Pathak and colleagues looked at how the sounds in invented names affected perceptions of luxury. They found that names containing certain sounds acquired later in childhood, such as “sh,” were more likely to be associated with luxury than names made up of sounds acquired earlier.
The difference is subtle, but relevant to naming. Two invented words can be equally unfamiliar and still give people different ideas about the personality behind the brand.
So far, though, we’ve been looking at what sounds can suggest. For an international brand, there’s another question: Will those associations hold when the name reaches a different language?
What Happens When the Same Name Enters Another Language?
A company can use exactly the same name in two countries, but the people hearing it may have very different experiences with its sounds. Researchers have tried to establish which associations carry across languages and which don’t.
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Some sound associations travel across languages
In 2012, L. J. Shrum and colleagues tested invented brand names with French-, Spanish-, and Chinese-speaking participants who also spoke English. They wanted to know whether the relationship between a name’s sounds and a product’s characteristics would influence preferences across these language groups.
Across three experiments, participants tended to prefer names whose sounds matched the qualities of the products. And the pattern held in all three language groups.
For brands entering new markets, that’s promising. Some of the impressions created by a name’s sounds may carry over from one language to another.
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But shared associations don’t guarantee identical preferences
There’s a catch: recognizing a quality in a name isn’t the same as liking that name.
Christina Kuehnl and Alexandra Mantau explored this distinction in a 2013 study involving English, French, German, and Spanish speakers. They asked participants to evaluate invented names for different categories of vehicles.
People across the language groups sometimes linked the same sounds to the same product qualities. Their preferences, however, didn’t always match.
A name could suggest power to speakers of two languages without being equally appealing to both groups. An unchanged name doesn’t guarantee an unchanged impression.
Global Naming Needs More Than a Translation Check
When companies prepare to enter new markets, one question often comes first: Does our brand name mean anything unfortunate in another language?
It’s a sensible place to start. But avoiding an unfortunate meaning doesn’t necessarily imply the name will sound right to local consumers.
There are four questions worth asking before settling on a name for an international market:
- How will people pronounce it? Languages have different sound systems, spelling conventions and stress patterns. Even when the spelling stays the same, the pronunciation may change
- What does it sound like to them? Once you know how people pronounce it, consider the impression it creates. Does it sound light or substantial? Gentle or powerful? Familiar or distinctive?
- Does that impression support the positioning? A name that suggests speed and lightness might work well for a digital service. A manufacturer whose main selling point is durability may be looking for something quite different.
- Have we tested it with local audiences? A linguistic review can identify pronunciation difficulties and unintended meanings. Testing with local consumers can help establish whether the name actually creates the impression the company wants.
Conclusion
Think back to Milex and Molux. Two invented names with no established meaning, yet their sounds may have suggested different characteristics before you knew anything about the products.
A global brand name has to travel through more than dictionaries. It has to travel through other people’s ears.
Taking your brand name into new markets? Montero’s linguists can review how it’s pronounced, what it suggests, and what it might resemble, before launch. Get in touch to discuss your international naming needs.
