A name that helps Scientific Advertising

There is great advantage in a name that tells a story. The name is usually prominently displayed. To justify the space it occupies, it should aid the advertising. Some such names are almost complete advertisements in themselves. May Breath is such a name. Cream of Wheat is another. That name alone has been worth a fortune. Other examples are Dutch Cleanser, Cuticura, Dynashine, Minute Tapioca, 3-in-one Oil, Holeproof, Alcorub, etc.  Such names may be protected, yet the name itself describes the product, so it makes a valuable display.

Other coined names are
meaningless. Some examples are Kodak, Karo, Sapolio, Vaseline, Kotex,
Lux, Postum, etc. They can be protected, and long-continued advertising
may give them a meaning. When this is accomplished they become very 
valuable. 

But the great majority of them never attain status. 

Such
names do not aid the advertising. It is very doubtful that they justify
display. The service of the product, not the name, is the important
thing in advertising. A vast amount of space is wasted in displaying
names and pictures which tell no selling story. The tendency of modern
advertising is to eliminate waste. 

Other
coined names signify ingredients which anyone may use. Examples are
Syrup of Figs, Coconut Oil Shampoo, Tar Soap, Palmolive Soap, etc. 

Such
products may dominate a market if the price is reasonable, but they
must to a degree meet competition. They invite substitution. They are
naturally classified with other products which have like ingredients,
so the price must remain in that class.  {mospagebreak}

Toasted
Corn Flakes and Malted Milk are examples of unfortunate names. In each
of those cases one advertiser created a new demand. When the demand was
created, others shared it because they could use the name. The
originators depended only on a brand. It is interesting to speculate on
how much more profitable a coined name might have been. 

On
a patented product it must be remembered that the right to a name
expires with that patent. Names like Castoria, Aspirin, Shredded Wheat
Biscuit, etc., have become common property. 

This is a very serious point to consider. It often makes a patent an undesirable protection. 

Another
serious fault in coined names is frivolity. In seeking uniqueness one
gets something trivial. And that is a fatal handicap in a serious
product. It almost prohibits respect. 

When a
product must be called by a common name, the best auxiliary name is a
mans name. It is much better than a coined name, for it shows that some
man is proud of his creation. 

Thus the
question of a name is of serious importance in laying the foundations
of a new undertaking. Some names have become the chief factors in
success. Some have lost for their originators four-fifths of the trade
they developed.