Should my brand name be a made-up word, or should it actually describe what I sell?
The short answer
Made-up or arbitrary names (Kodak, Apple-for-computers) are the strongest legally and scale best across categories later, but they need real marketing spend to gain meaning - a descriptive name like "Delicious Pizza" is instantly understood but nearly impossible to trademark or defend. For a bootstrapped Indian D2C founder, a middle path usually wins: a short, ownable, easy-to-pronounce word (Mamaearth, Sugar, boAt) that hints at a feeling rather than spelling out the product literally. Test it out loud in Hindi and English both, and say it to five strangers - if they mishear or misspell it, that's a tax you'll pay on every ad forever.
A quick summary to orient you. The real value is below: the resources worth your time, from people who've actually done it, not us.
Here are the resources
Hand-picked from around the web, each with a note on why it earns your time. India-specific ones carry a badge.
Why we picked it
A professional namer walking through how naming agencies actually approach the process, useful for a founder who wants to think like an expert rather than just crowdsource opinions from friends.
Why we picked it
Explains the fanciful-vs-descriptive naming spectrum and why arbitrary/made-up names are the strongest and most defensible trademark category - the theory behind why 'Kodak' beats 'Delicious Pizza' as a brand name.
Why we picked it
A clean, ecommerce-specific step-by-step for the actual naming process, from brainstorming through domain and handle checks - useful as the practical checklist to run your shortlist through.
