I am a Chinese brand, how should I choose my English name?

This article focuses on the management of English names for Chinese brands, and guides readers to think about how to create a good first impression with a brand's English name from two perspectives. It is recommended for those who want to give their Chinese brands an English name.

The left brain of Chinese people, which is used for language functions, is developed based on the Chinese language. Even Chinese people who are good at English will naturally pay attention to and remember the Chinese name when they see a brand name.

Therefore, the English name is always in a subordinate position. It cooperates with the Chinese name and plays a supporting role. Of course, some brands, for various reasons, adopt the approach of not having a Chinese name or a dominant English name, such as the mobile phone brands OPPO and VIVO, and the Western restaurant WAGAS. We will talk about this special case later.

This article discusses the vast majority of cases, that is, when the English name is in a subordinate position, where do we start? First of all, it is very important that we recognize the subordinate position of the English name and do not demand it in the same way as the Chinese name, because it does not carry the function of conveying meaning or remembering. So how does it work? It's very simple, because people don't pay too much attention to it, so we just need to manage its first impression.

It sounds simple, but it is not easy. The most difficult part of naming is the trade-offs after weighing the pros and cons. We need to know clearly what kind of first impression my English name should convey, and then express it with letters. How should we deal with it so that the subordinate English name can convey an effective first impression in an international way?

Here are a few angles for you to think about:

1. Use at least one English symbol that ordinary Chinese people can effectively associate with. You can deform it or combine it, but this symbol must exist within the overall name. Otherwise, your English name will be a cold wall.
2. This English symbol that can generate effective associations can be a letter, a word, or a syllable. It conveys the impression you want to convey, such as intimacy, care, or a category word. For example: Judydoll / HeyTea / BabyCare / Mobike
3. If you can’t do that, you can play some tricks with visual impressions. English is a phonetic symbol, and the letters themselves are meaningless. Therefore, you can play with it a little bit, make it unique and interesting, and consumers will like it. For example: LUUP (two letters U look very playful) / % Arabica (use symbols) / KUMOKUMO (repetition brings playfulness) / ME + EM (mirror the word, although I don’t know why)
4. Don't underestimate consumers' ability to accept. They are not afraid of novelty, but they are afraid that you are not novel. This is especially true for cutting-edge industries such as fashion, culture, technology, and industries that need to tell stories, such as catering. If your Chinese name is not so out-of-the-box, an interesting English name can complement the brand's innovative temperament. For example: the boring company / undefined / OMG
5. Use pinyin boldly, or pinyin plus English. Driven by brands such as Xiaomi, Huawei, and Li Ning, pinyin has become a kind of personality, representing national confidence and national style. For example: The Chuan / ONCHA / JNBY / RedMi

On the contrary, when it comes to English names, we should be careful to avoid several situations:

1. Forcibly transliterating the Chinese name to create an incongruous English name, consumers actually don’t pay much attention to the relationship between the Chinese and English names, and forcibly binding them without any effective association is actually a waste. Negative example: FOTILE (no matter how you look at it, it’s incomprehensible)
2. Pretending to be from abroad is actually very common, and this practice is unsustainable for both increasingly smart consumers and growing brands. Negative example: Genki Forest (too Japanese, but the brand later played the national card)
3. Using some very basic big words seems too sloppy and a bit Chinglish. Bad example: EverGrande (generally speaking, people don’t like to brag about their brands in this way in their names)
4. Avoid negative associations in global culture. In the small sense, foreigners in China will laugh at you. In the big sense, you will have to consider renaming your brand when you go overseas, which will be a very troublesome thing. This shows the importance of language testing. Negative example: Roewe (homonymous with WrongWay) / Besturn (urn means urn)

Finally, let’s make a technical summary of English names: most English names are in a subordinate position. We have to admit that the importance of Chinese names is greater than that of English names, and English names are used to assist Chinese names and supplement the delivery of a more international temperament.

A few reference points:

1. Use at least one valid associative word/letter/syllable;
2. Play some visual tricks;
3. It can be a little more novel to complement the brand’s innovative temperament;
4. Feel free to use pinyin, or pinyin plus English.

Several minefields:

1. Avoid forced transliteration, as consumers are less concerned about the relationship between Chinese and English names;
2. Pretending to be from abroad is not conducive to the long-term development of the brand;
3. Use some very basic big words to sound chinglish; 4. Avoid negative associations in global culture.

Author: Judy