Via your classmate Rei:
Research from the University of Notre Dame (“Lyft” vs. “Lift”: Consumers are less likely to support brands with unconventional spellings) has shown that consumers are less likely to support unfamiliar brands with unconventional spellings. Consumers perceive unconventionally spelled names as a persuasion tactic or a marketing scam, thereby making them view the brand as less sincere. The researchers who study psychological responses to marketing messages suggest that choosing unconventional spellings may backfire. However, the study finds that there is no backlash effect when a company’s motive and purpose for selecting the uniquely spelled name is perceived as sincere. An example of this would be when a brand name is being crowdsourced by consumers rather than chosen by the company. In some cases unconventionally spelled brand names may even be more suitable when consumers want a memorable experience such as a restaurant made entirely out of ice at a vacation destination.
The findings of this study might seem unlikely. Most consumers would think that the factors that would attract a customer would be the value proposition, the packaging, the cost or the promotion strategy. But, this study clearly shows that spelling, albeit a small consideration, is a major part of brand awareness and building trust at first glance. Another interesting facet of this news article is the idea that brands really need to prioritize the brand name when creating new brands or even new products and preferably conducting some market research on the brand name ideas. This idea also emphasizes the customer centricity model which posits that the closer the brand is to the customer the better it can understand their needs and create products accordingly.
There are two main considerations for effective brand management. The first consideration is that choosing a brand name for a new product or service is one of the most important brand elements to consider. Brand names create an identity for the company and help it stand out from the competition but also the brand name infiltrates itself in other areas such as brand awareness, trustworthiness and value. The second consideration comes right out of the findings of the study: companies should clearly communicate a sincere origin story during their introductory marketing campaigns when choosing unconventional spelling for new brands.
https://phys.org/news/2023-03-lyft-consumers-brands-unconventional.html
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