How to find the perfect name
How to find the perfect name  
Podcast: Lenny's Reads
Published On: Tue Sep 02 2025
Description: In this episode, naming expert David Placek shares his foundational principles that helped him create some of the world’s most iconic brands: BlackBerry, Azure, Sonos, and Impossible Foods, to name a few.Whether you’re launching a new company or naming a product, this episode will sharpen how you think about brand strategy and help you avoid costly mistakes.If you’re a premium subscriberAdd the private feed to your podcast app at add.lennysreads.com: https://add.lennysreads.com/Listen now: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lennysreadsApple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lennys-reads/id1810314693Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IIunA06qMtrcQLfypToojIn this episode, you’ll learn:• Why naming is the single highest-leverage brand decision you’ll make• The 3 pillars of effective names• How invented names outperform descriptive ones (and cost less to build)• Why brainstorming rarely works - and what to do instead• The story behind Intel’s Pentium and how one name changed the industry• Why “Swiffer” made mopping fun• How Vercel went from “Zeit” to a name built for momentum• The 6 challenges every name must overcome in today’s AI-driven world• What not to do: common naming traps that lead to forgettable brandsReferences:• AMD: https://www.amd.com/• Azure: https://azure.microsoft.com/• BlackBerry: https://www.blackberry.com/• Codeium: https://codeium.com/• Dell: https://www.dell.com/• HP: https://www.hp.com/• Impossible Foods: https://impossiblefoods.com/• Intel: https://www.intel.com/• Lexicon Branding: https://www.lexiconbranding.com/• Microsoft: https://www.microsoft.com/• Navan: https://navan.com/• Procter & Gamble: https://us.pg.com/• Sonos: https://www.sonos.com/• Subaru: https://www.subaru.com/• Vercel: https://vercel.com/ To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com