Transforming Practical Wisdom into Iconic Brands with David Placek

Branding is a condensed form of storytelling.

That’s my opinion, but it’s also shared by David Placek, founder and president of Lexicon Branding. Here are a few of the companies and products they’ve named since 1982:

• Subaru Outback, Subaru Forester
• BlackBerry
• Pentium
• PowerBook
• Nissan Rogue
• Lucid
• Azure
• Sonos
• Swiffer
• NVIDIA Shield
• Febreze

In May 2024, I interviewed him at his headquarters in Sausalito, California about brand architecture and positioning, the merits of being bold and authentic, and the methodology his company uses to transform innovative ideas into distinctive names that resonate. 

Our conversation focused on aligning brand with market behavior, the art (and science) behind selecting a name, tools and exercises for brand identity creation, and techniques for validating a brand name before you commit to it.

He also offered suggestions for early-stage teams on tight budgets and shared some insights from a study on branding for AI startups: “Don't overpromise, don't overhype, don't participate in all this hype.”

(2:56) ”We have a process that takes that new idea and, and along the way, the goal is to give it a voice, a distinctive voice.”

(4:02) How Lexicon Branding develops “coined” brand names.

(7:18) Over time, David realized the company needed a creative layer and an engineering layer.

(8:31) “Right now, in-house, we have at least three programs that are AI-based.”

(10:22) “We are first and foremost a creative consulting firm, so everything has to be customized.”

(12:09) David ballparks cost, timelines, and explains how Lexicon Branding works with clients.

(15:07) “We create a vessel that will carry the story into the marketplace.”

(17:36) How to validate your branding idea before fully committing to it.

(21:53) Using generative AI in client work “is not only saving us time, but it's getting more information.”

(25:07) Situations where David recommends changing your company’s name.

(27:39) Head of Research Dmitri Seredenko offers an overview of an AI startup branding survey.

(29:12) The challenge of injecting genuine emotion into your brand.

(33:02) “I don't think any brands have really taken a stake on what they really want to be known for.”

(35:56) “Don't overpromise, don't overhype.”

(38:53) Why adding “AI” to your brand is a bad idea.

(41:36) After you’ve made a decision, “stop trying to be comfortable about the new name.”

(42:45) David describes the emotional experience of encountering his brands in daily life.

• Lexicon Branding
• David Placek
• Dmitri Seredenko
• 6 Things You Need to Know if You’re Building an AI brand

📥 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

📓Substack: https://fundbuildscale.substack.com

Thanks for listening!

-- Walter.