Case: What’s in names?
According to sociologists and name researchers parents are spending more time and money to find perfect names for their new born babies (Alter par. 1). They use different methods such as pulling ideas from book and websites, hiring professional baby-name consultant, and even check Social Security data (Alter par. 1). Maryanna Korwitt is a nameologist who spent years of studying ancient culture and past traditions as well as research with present-day people (About Maryanna). She started her own name business that helps people to choose right names not only for children but also for new companies and websites (Ferrell 235). She identified her target market as middle and upper class people. She writes books, makes television appearances, and provide consultations (Ferrell 235). Today, many books about baby naming are being published, and hundreds of websites are providing similar services, which all of these make her business more competitive (Alter par.3).
Maryanna Korwitt took advantage of a recent trend to give babies unusual names (Ferrell 235). She studies names and how they could affect people’s lives. She believes that a child’s personality is determined by the name it is given, and therefore making the right choice is very important. While there has been an increased demand for help in choosing a child’s name, largely driven by the Hollywood penchant to choose odd names, in Korwitt’s case her business was not customer driven. She started her business after noticing the behavioral similarities between children with the same name. For example, Julies are more likely to lose things, and Davids are studious (Ferrell 235). She helps parents to choose right names for their new born babies or have consultations about naming through her website thebabynamingexperience.com and identify how the name is related to his or her health, future