I've been following Nick Kolenda ever since I discovered his PDF on pricing psychology, which helped me out greatly as a marketer working with eCommerce businesses. His work and the level of detail is just mind-bending. I haven't seen anything this thoroughly researched on the topic of branding. Nick, I wish you success in your endeavours - you deserve it man!
Kolenda Group would have been my choice because you have built up followers that recognize your name and would want to be part of it. Keep up the good work. This was a very interesting video.
I don't really like "Behavur", because I find it mentally strenuous to pronounce "correctly", even in my head. It's very close to "Behavior", so I keep making an effort to make the distinction noticeable enough, and it's just not a pleasant experience. It feels like a test I can fail any time.
This is really top notch production quality, and the info is very well researched. I feel like I just learned the better part of linguistics and marketing 101. Thanks for the post, I can't believe this hasn't blown up yet.
Great video Nick! Fascinating to see how you approach naming. I agree with Gleb Volkov that the name creates "mental friction" when trying to interpret it. The radio test furthers this problem as you'll want people recommending it via word of mouth - and that awkwardness will then be in every WOM transaction. I agree the umlout makes it look better, but should we be trying to fix something that's not perfect at the start? Further on the umlout; if it implies you're a German brand, is that truly authentic to who you are? As you said you want to feel excited to get up and work every day - and that inauthenticity might wear at you over time. I don't know if I'm target but hope that offers some food for thought regardless 👍🏻
A very interesting process. Cognium resonates best for me. It avoids the 'radio test', and it has an inherent momentum to it: an energy (which you always bring to your videos). 'Cog' evokes the thought processes (and hinting at your core expertise of understanding how the mind perceives) along with 'cog' also having a highly reliable, key component engineering aspect, so you're getting the job done mentally and physically. The word as a whole feels like it belongs in the Table of Elements. Plus the letter 'g' is one of the best to play with from a design perspective. It is, of course, also very much in the implementation - logos, colour, font choice, etc, can kill the best of names.
Dude! I miss our monthly zoom meetings. Looks you are doing good. I just got some camera gear in and hope to start my channel this summer. I'll reach out when I've got something. Looking forward to hearing about all that you learned :-)
Amazingly jam packed video. What a treat! The accent over the letter may put some customers off if they think your agency is overseas. While we live in a remote digital world, many people still prefer to work with people in the same time zone. Many still like to visit a physical offices too. Just my two cents... : )
Very good video, with clear explanations and clarifying methods. The umlaut or not, I wouldn't do it. Without is clear enough, and the way you pronounce it will play a part. Perhaps it's better to pronounce it as -fur. I'll be watching the rest of your videos soon. Can't wait! 🤩
Hi Nick! Been following you (on your email list) for years and years. In fact, I shared your Psychology of Pricing with a marketer friend of mine, who was so blown away, that he shared it out to all of his marketing buddies as well. Great work! Regarding your question in the video, I *LOVE* the name "behavur". Fun, reliable, and chic all at once. Because you are looking for feedback, the only thing it seems is that without any real context, it might be difficult for people to know what it's about. I've been following you for years, and I still have to "put the puzzle together" to make the connection between "behavur" and what it is you actually do. So ... It seems like adding another word like "marketing" or something of the like would really help to make it clear within the first hearing - i.e. "behavur marketing" - and then referred to as "behavur" in short-hand once the person knows what you do. Just a thought. With that said, the biggest companies on the planet - Google, Amazon, Apple, etc. - have seemed to do alright for themselves despite their names not indicating at all what they do. 🤣 So what do I know. Anyway, thank you for all the great content man! Super, super helpful! (Also, I like the "two dots" above the "u". It's association with German does give it more of the "logical/scientific" feel. At the same time, it also may seem like it's a German company. I think you'll be fine either way - dots or not dots. Hope all that helps!)
Wow. I absutely love everything you're doing. Behavur with the umlaut, no doubt! Thank you so very much for your level of professionalism, thoroughness(?) and dedication. Your generosity with info is priceless! THANK YOU!
Great video as always Nick. I think your name is 7/10 and you can do better. I've been following you for years and read all your books. I'd summarize your work as extremely Thorough , Intelligent & Unique. The average business or phycology book doesn't cover anywhere near as much about subconscious behaviour as you do. Perhaps incorporate those traits into your behaviour brand name? Just a thought.
Nick, fantastic info, research, and ideas. I was introduced to you from the psychology of pricing also, but this is my first time watching your videos. Keep up the great work. Graphically I like the Umlauten, but potential phonetic and disturbance in the internet of things may come with this choice. You are so great at this, just BE havur!
Great video, Nick. Thanks so much. I'll share it with some people who are going through this naming process right now. I actually liked Cognivo and Cerebro. The previous name of my company was MetaMorphosis. It seemed like a good idea in 1998! But very few people can spell it - or even say it - yet it seemed applicable for transformational training. 😂 You will probably have the same problem with Behavur.
I don't like Behavur with or without the umlaut. Part of the reason is what gleb volkov said. The other reason I can't explain. There is something about it that just doesn't fit, for me. The word itself sounds like a problem but the agency is there to fix problems. I know what the word is for but I don't know what it means. I can't seem to attach the word to anything. It doesn't sound smart or progressive. It sounds slow which is not the impression that this type of service would want to project. Great content in this vid. I love naming. Thanks!
If you didn't spell out behavur, I wouldn't know how to pronounce it, personally. Sometimes people use "ur" as a substitute for "your", but in some words it makes an "ə" sound like in "curd". So my brain is trying to reconcile these two interpretations and it feels like it's stumbling on the "ur" part.
Nick, great stuff. I've downloaded a lot of your pdfs and have consumed them all. I recently purchased your book on Audible but have yet to start it. I'm finishing an Alex Epstein's book, your book is next in the cue. I really liked this video but I would not take the name Behavur, my choice would be Behave (maybe the Latin version of the word - Conversari). Customers behave in predictable ways when given specific ques while behavior (behavur) implies a more observational approach. The intent of the agency is to get customers to behave - engage and move through the funnel.
Thanks for the video. I like the systematic behavioral science approach to naming and how it sparks creativity while at the same time demistifying it. Will gladly share with branding experts. P.S. designwise, the ü looks interesting. But as a German speaker, it also irritates, because of the way it's actually pronounced in German. But am I your target audience? ;)
Why don't you create a business name generator software or domain registration tool with these principles implemented? It would be really helpful. Charge us for a membership Or, you can keep it free and earn affiliate income via hosting companies. Please do this.
This and the PDF are a great consolidation of relevant psychology but practical aspects of branding seem to be missing in the examples. Behavur and whichever one he settled on for the calculator left me knowing he could have done better. So if you're enamored with the content at first read, then feel incredibly lost as you try to follow it, that's understandable. This content gives great ways to validate names or steer a brainstorming process.But it's not clear if this is a proven, hardened methodology or a collection of approximate steps. Maybe he has cases where it has generated excellent results in the past. I'm also surprised to see him going with a descriptive name in the end (Kolenda Group). Granted, his name has an awesome ring to it and might even qualify as more of a blank slate neologistic approach. Overall, I appreciate this and the article. But don't feel bad if you get a bit stuck.
Personal preference, but I really don't like names like Behavur that are spelled wrong for precisely the reason you cite: it takes longer to explain it to someone. So if you go that route, I'd absolutely have the "real" version include the umlaut, because then people like me can just assume it's spelled that way because it's a foreign language.
Behavur is also what I liked best from the beginning. In German all words / brands with Umlauten are perceived as second best / cheap / less desireable. Because e.g. the "U" is the "real U" and a "Ü" is just a fake U / second best / imposter U. Same for Ö, A... Horrible for domain names too - because many domainservers / registrars will get into problems trying to resolve a ÖÄÜ domain. Even if english speakers won't perceive Umlaute as cheaper, the domain problem will remain. To me behavur sounds solid, but I see no solution for the audio-speak problem.
I love your work, longtime fan! BUT, I think you've got the "science" nailed, not the "art". I don't think Behavur communicates what you're hoping for. Personally, I think you've got a strong personal brand and your modesty might be blinding you to the fact that people will come to your agency because of YOU, not because of a catchy name. No catchy name will communicate that your agency is run by a crazy smart behavioral researcher, author of multiple (and very dense) books, better than the name KOLENDA. The Kolenda Agency is a name that I would trust!
behavur remind me something “erotic”, dunno why. 😁 The ‘ü’ feels like an ironic smile to me. Without the ‘u’ - behavr - “feels” better to me. - p.s.: I’m Italian.
so deep diving insights of our brains! great fan, always watching with the Awe and Wow, except, pls give the domain name research a higher priority, a lot companies do this late, too late, and then pay the price for, either buying an expensive better domain or paying for more ads than calculated. If, then BEHAVUR. You dont wanna search for the ü on english keyboards, despite the non umlaut in german would be "UE" not just "U". Many Thanks and keep doin such vids!
