I love a clever name as much as the next guy. Actually, let’s face it, I think about clever names more than most people. They fill me with joy! But I had an experience the other day that forcibly reminded me how being clever for its own sake is just stupid AF.
TOO CLEVER BY HALF
The husband and I were in an airport on Sunday and wanted to get something healthy to eat. We found a salad and wraps place and I saw something called a “Sam I Am” that sounded good. And the name was cute. I always notice that!
When I reviewed the ingredients I thought, “oh, that’s a Thai salad. Yum!” That’s when I realized that the name of the item was actually “Siam I am.”
That’s a no-go, people! For starters, it’s really easy to misread. The Dr. Seuss pun is so out of left field in that context. And the item’s description made no mention of the Thai flavor profile, so the pun probably doesn’t even get paid off, most of the time. You had to read the ingredients to figure it out. Besides, how many people know that the old name of Thailand is Siam? Get a grip!
It was just a big reminder that cleverness has to be about making things more clear and more appealing. Use your intelligence to promote sales, not to lose them while you pat yourself on the back for your witty puns!
Do you guys have any other examples of this sort of stupid cleverness? I’d love to hear them!
