Back in the last century, in my package goods days, I worked on the Taster's Choice brand, where I had the pleasure of trying to convince people that instant coffee was...coffee. Now, let's talk a little bit about Taster's Choice. If ever there was an instant worth drinking, it was Taster's Choice Meragor Bold. Nestle dispatched bean buyers into the high plantations of South America, with some very specific standards-high altitude, shade grown, specific soil acidity, specific time in season...blah, blah, blah. These guys were serious (like nuts) about beans. They had mobile cupping stations, where they would roast a…

We've been talking a lot lately about brand names. The question is, what difference does a name make in the future of a brand? Not an easy question to answer, but a good question to consider. At one end of the spectrum, there are genius names, names that are unique in sound and meaning. Lean Cuisine springs to mind. A brand name that trips off the tongue, while telegraphing what the product is about. It's good tasting food (cuisine-somehow everything tastes better, when said in French), and it's low calorie (lean). Plus, it rhymes. This is a rock star of…