Clients sometimes ask us if there’s any difference in our approach when naming products versus services. There’s a preconception that the process must somehow be different. The truth is, from a creative standpoint, the principles remain the same. And all the characteristics or specific attributes of a good name still hold true: For example, it’s important that a name:

• Supports what the brand promises.
• Serves as the best “first word” in the story you want to tell.
• Creates new chemistry or signals something new.
• Is elegantly simple, yet unexpectedly fresh.
• Is linguistically sound.
• Is ownable or usable.

So where does the preconception come from then? For one thing, there are inherent differences between products and services.

Products are tangible. A customer can see, touch, smell, taste, test or try on a product. The experience of a product is immediate, personal and often emotional. Products are onstage, a constant presence that helps define the customer’s identities and experiences. In the words of John Kay, front man of Steppenwolf, “I am irresistible, I say, as I put on my designer fragrance. I am a merchant banker, I say, as I climb out of my BMW. I am handsome, I say, as I put on my Levi’s jeans.”

Services, on the other hand, are more ethereal.They come with a higher degree of potential customer uncertainty. Unlike a product, the quality of a service typically cannot be judged at face value or as immediately. Services must be experienced, or recommended through testimonials in order to be judged or accepted.

Given the differences between products and services, it’s easy to see how one could think the approach to naming would be different. What is helping to dispel this myth is the fact that the gap between products and services is narrowing, especially given that these days both can be purchased online on the basis of a virtual impression. And more products and services are offered side-by-side, such as on flash sales sites like Groupon and LivingSocial, which offer anything from spa services to Styrofoam snowmen.

Also, you can virtually take any product name and apply it to a service, or vice versa. There’s a high degree of interchangeability. For example, look at Roomba, a robot vacuum cleaner. The name could also work for an online travel service. Or GM’s OnStar service could work just as well for a GPS device. Or Napster, which I could see being the name of a child’s naptime buddy. You get the gist.

While it’s true there might be more leeway when naming products because they’re tangible and “up close and personal,” in the end the best names support a brand’s story and engage customers. Whether you’re talking about naming a product or a service, the approach is the same. Preconceptions begone!

Liz Castleman is a senior naming strategist for the Siegel+Gale Los Angeles office.