The Onomatopoeia Effect
You know what's a fun word to say—and an under-utilized brand-building strategy?
Onomatopoeia.
Or more broadly: naming the sensory moments your product actually creates.
What makes this powerful is the level of product insight it requires.
You can't name an ownable sound, texture, or moment unless you deeply understand how your product is actually experienced—opened, poured, bitten, snapped, pressed.
Pringles didn't pick "pop" out of thin air. That sound comes from specific package architecture and pressure release. The insight was noticing it—and deciding it mattered.
Intel engineered and branded reassurance through a sound cue.
Snapple didn't invent the snap—they elevated it as proof of freshness.
Here's the challenger brand move: You don't invent these. You notice them.
It might be:
The crinkle of your packaging
The glug when it pours
The click when it locks
The crack on first use
The fizz when it activates
Think about the brands whose product formulation, packaging choices, or ingredient quality already create these moments—but aren't owning them yet:
→ Olipop: The psssht + thicker pour happens because of the prebiotic fiber content—it's materially different from soda. That's formulation creating an ownable sensory cue. Are they naming it?
→ Blueland: The tablet drop → fizz only exists because they chose concentrated tablets over liquid. The format created the moment. Have they branded it as the "proof point"?
→ Dropps: The plop into the drum is a direct result of pod packaging vs liquid detergent. The product choice created the ritual—but is it part of their brand language?
→ Magic Spoon: That dense, loud crunch comes from high-protein extrusion—it's a byproduct of reformulation, not a marketing idea. Could "the crunch that means protein" be ownable?
These are product truths waiting to become defensible brand assets.
If you're a new brand, stop asking "What should our brand sound like?" Start asking: "What already happens when someone uses our product—because of how we formulated it, packaged it, or sourced it—that competitors can't fake?"
Don't skip the work of naming what's actually distinctive about your product experience.
Challenger brands don't win by being louder. They win by noticing what's already true—and having the discipline to build around it.
