Lightning-fast growth, coupled with a decentralized marketing organization, created a challenge for Google when it came to naming products and services. With no single group responsible for name development, no process for creating names, and little strategy to guide what, how, and when a product should be named, Google’s nomenclature landscape was quickly becoming cluttered and confusing.

At the request of the Vice President of Search Products and User Experience, StealThunder conducted interviews with Google executives and directors, participated in product naming reviews with Google’s founders, and conducted a verbal branding audit. We then developed the rationale for a “master brand” naming strategy, decision trees for acquisition naming, a worldwide naming process, and criteria for trademark names and localization options. We also created a series of naming tools and a comprehensive naming playbook. As a foundation for this work, we recommended a framework for organizing products that would increase clarity and assist in moving the Google brand beyond its “search” roots.

This project was StealThunder’s second for Google; previously we developed a marketing strategy, and extensive marketing communications, for Froogle, Google’s shopping search services.