Brand name ideas

Business Idea: Deliver preventative counseling to overseas workers in Central Asian cities.

Business Description: To improve the quality of life and lengthen the staying power of committed workers in Central Asian cities, this business will offer three preventative health packages: 1) online, 2) retreat 3) on-site. The online package will be client-focused online coaching on stress management and communication skills. The retreat package will be a resort with freedom to relax, opportunities to collaborate with others, and unintrusive assessments of health and wellbeing. The on-site package will be as-needed assistance in the development of a healthy, reduced stress home and effective team meetings.

Proposed Country & City: Singapore, Singapore.

Multicultural Dimensions: The online component will favor cultural and gender diversity to allow clients the opportunity to connect with people most likely to understand them. The retreat will be staffed by the local population, but may also include immigrants to Singapore. The on-site will be employed by a sub-set of the online coaches and counselors.

Proposed Customers: The direct customer is the overseas worker with a desire to remain in-country for over two years. Although some customers may utilize all three offerings, I anticipate the online package will be most valuable to single men and women on their first assignment overseas, the retreat package for singles and families with over two years in-country who exhibit negative stress-related symptoms or have endured a traumatic event, and the on-site package for singles and families with under six months in-country who face extraordinary adjustment-related obstacles, whether to daily living or team life.

##Brand Name 1

The Construction Site - “building a future for you and yours” _http://onsite.com/_

The Construction Site conjures images that meld well with preventative counseling. Hard hats and gloves are preventative measures on a construction site and can be leveraged in the business to convey the value of these options to our customers without the stigma of words like “counseling” and “therapy.” It’s not overly restrictive which allows the business to enter related areas like physical health or life skills coaching under the same mantle. Words that fit the construction business and the work of counseling are plentiful; “excavation,” “demolition,” “pouring the foundation,” and others can describe the purpose of certain options in a vivid and disarming way that may attract customers who would be put off by “inner healing” and “trauma recovery”. Construction is an almost universal concept that would lend itself well to other cultures and has the flexibility to absorb differences without breaking the core picture. For example, “The Break Room” could be a good name for the retreat center, but if the majority of customers had a different association with rest we could re-brand it to fit their cultural expectations (like “On Holiday” for the English). This works well for marketing the business too; in America, a diamond-shaped yellow sign connects the imagery to our business, but if in India they use round red signs we can access the same effect for our business.

##Brand Name 2

Galactic Counseling - “from lift-off to arrival… and beyond” -or- “going where no one has gone before” _http://galacticcounseling.com/_

Galactic Counseling isn’t my favorite name, but the space exploration concept fits well with counseling. Words like “exploration,” “launch pad,” and “orbit” evokes descriptive imagery and can apply to many branches of the business. It’s off-the-wall enough that customers may check it out, but since it contains the word “counseling” the purpose of the business is more clear. If a better title could be identified, descriptions of the services offered in space language fit well. A marital counseling course could be called “Encountering Aliens” for example.

##Customer Channel 3 Behind the Veil _http://gobehindtheveil.com/_

This is the conservative option of the three and has dual-use imagery. For people who work in Muslim countries, it conjures images of faces and the people behind their masks. This could also be taken in the Judeo-Christian temple veil direction which elicits pictures of breakthrough and also of intimacy with God. This brand name is most closely connected with gentle healing of the three and could be the most attractive to trauma victims.

##Honorable Mentions Beyond the Reef _http://beyondthereef.com/_

Monet’s Canvas _http://monetscanvas.com/_

Nautical terms and imagery could be a powerful brand. An artistic theme could be useful too.

##Reflections This was a fun exercise that shows me how much energy can be generated from a clear and engaging brand name. I can see how the name makes an impact on the direction of the business over time; if a business is called Smooth Waters Counseling it lacks the energy to encourage entry into challenging circumstances in the way The Construction Site does. This assignment was also made much easier by bouncing ideas off my wife Amie. It helps to hear another person’s reaction to one’s ideas and to consider theirs.