045. Your (Personal) Name Isn’t Your Brand, with Katie Pannell

The Freak Show would 100% NOT exist if it weren’t for a couple of people. And one of them is Katie Pannell.

Besides being a naming expert (and literally the person behind EVERY SINGLE NAME of my brand world & theme), she’s the reason Flying Colours Creative® isn’t called Eva Couto Design anymore, a name I definitely panic-picked at 2am, and that had zero personality.

So today we’re talking precisely about that:

Should you keep using my personal name… OOOR is it time for something bigger than me?

Not just because you’re seeing everyone online shift towards a brand name, but because the internet has changed. When personal branding first exploded, “behind the scenes” felt intimate & cool.

Now? We’re overstimulated, trying to dramatically reduce our screen time, and “building in public” isn’t new anymore. Plus personal names (whether intentionally or not) trained audiences to expect access as part of the value exchange.

If your name IS the brand, the brand starts becoming you, which is a lot of unwanted pressure most of the time.

There’s a lot of nuance, which is why this episode is on the longer side:

✦ There are strategic reasons to use your name.

✦ There are strategic reasons to outgrow it.

✦ There are emotional triggers, identity shifts, SEO, trademark considerations, boundary conversations…

And we’re breaking it all down for you!

SPOTLIGHT MOMENTS

✦ How personal names train your audience to expect personal access

✦ What Brand Theming actually does for memorability

✦ What your brand name is NOT responsible for

✦ Naming “kill switches” you need before you commit to one

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Mentioned in this episode:

✦ “Company Of One: Why Staying Small Is the Next Big Thing for Business”, by Paul Jarvis

✦ Case Study: Brand Naming Flying Colours Creative

✦ Read Katie’s “Deciding on your Naming Criteria” blog post

✦ Read Katie’s “Chill the f*ck out - your name doesn't have to do everything” blog post

✦ THE EXTRAVAGANZA: A 12-week, all-inclusive brand transformation that gives you all the visuals, website and marketing assets it takes to succeed with Flying Colours

✦ THE COLOUR CIRCLE: Bring the Canva design you’ve been (over)fiddling with for hours

Follow & Connect with Katie:

✦ Follow her on Instagram

✦ Check out her Website

Follow & Connect with Eva:

✦ Say hey on Instagram

✦ Check out my Website

✦ Get my Uncaged emails

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Welcome to The Freak Show

02:58 Katie’s Freak Show Audition

13:54 2026: The Year We Retire Personal Names

30:02 What Makes A Strong Brand Theme

44:38 Why You Should Never Poll Your Audience On Your Name

47:15 Naming Criteria Checklist

53:54 What Your Brand Name Is Not Responsible For

01:04:01 Katie’s Final Bow