Every industry has its own way of thinking and its own strategies and techniques while selecting brands for their specific goods and services, and the pharmaceutical industry is no exception. Pharmaceutical companies tend to stay close to the International Nonproprietary Name (INN) of the active ingredient assuming that INN-like names will support regulatory acceptance and prescriber familiarity, which ultimately contribute to market success. However, a recent study in Türkiye titled “The Effect of Brand Naming Criteria on Market Performance Using Regression Analysis”[1] challenges this belief and provides insight into how brands that evoke the active ingredient show little correlation with the market performance, whereas other linguistic features appear to have a more decisive influence.
The study included the analysis of twelve drug names and evaluated the names according to these seven criteria (Özkan et al., 2025, p. 84):
- “Evoking the active ingredient”
- “Authenticity (uniqueness)”
- “Shortness (low number of letters)”
- “Ease of pronunciation”
- “Recall ability (catchy and memorable)”
- “Use of strong letters (X, Z, C, D)”
- “Reliable and effective (‘creating a sense of trust in the consumer’)”
The criteria above were weighed by five brand experts experienced in the pharmaceutical industry. 187 survey participants including healthcare professionals, patients, and general consumers were involved in the evaluation. Although the study did not restrict its evaluation to prescribers alone, who are generally considered the core relevant consumer, it may be claimed that many of the criteria tested are relevant to the prescribing environment where doctors make prescriptions, medical sales representatives offer alternatives, and patients ask questions.
The results showed that the drug names which are memorable, easy to pronounce and create a sense of trust in the consumer tend to achieve stronger performance in the market. On the other hand, the drug names evoking the active ingredient had little influence. It seems a common principle applies in pharmaceuticals as well: perception sells. What stays in our minds, seems natural to say, and feels familiar, creates a greater practical impact than what suggests the chemistry behind it. Perhaps this simply reminds us that the first impression matters, and regardless of how scientific and technical the field is, the human mind seeks comfort first.
As the therapeutic areas become more crowded in the pharmaceutical market, the ability of a brand to differentiate itself from others is becoming more important strategically. Staying close to the INN alone does not appear to be of advantage in this environment, which presents a wide range of alternatives for prescribers and patients. Beyond the INN-centered branding practices, focusing on the linguistic and psychological aspects of branding can offer an opportunity to turn the drug name into a true competitive asset.
[1] Özkan, B., Çetin, M. B., Özdemir, Y., Yıldırım, M. (2025). The Effect of Brand Naming Criteria on Market Performance Using Regression Analysis. Turkish Journal of Marketing Research, 4(1), 77-97.