For some reason, as a quasi professional pr/marketing gal I often get asked for my advice on naming. Whether it be new businesses, website taglines or more commonly dog and child names, I am put on the spot more than I care to be. Usually it is during a dinner out or yoga, even sometimes late at the bar, so I am not always on the top of my game. However, recently I had a friend write me a very professional email asking for my help naming his new boat.
Boat naming, as I understand is a very serious matter. Going back a hundreds of years, the names of boats signify national pride, innovative achievement and exploratory conquests. However, in this case, thank goodness, the boat is not a famous oceanliner but in fact just a small cruiser so the pressure was more manageable.
Here’s how it went down. First I asked a few questions-what color is the boat, what type of boat, and a few personal questions about him to make sure this name would suit the vessel and its owner equally. A cohesive message is always important.
First we went tried to work in his profession as a broker: Satellite office, Buy Low Sell High, My Cubicle. Then we went on to the humor category: Waterwings, Student Driver, Short Bus, Bad Idea Jeans, Skymall Purchase, and the Honey Badger, etc. 
My friend is recently divorced so keeping with that theme I threw out Recently Seangle, The Albatross, Second Times the Charm, Love is a Battlefield, and the Wounded Fawn, all of which received a laugh but still not a success. No good battle was ever won quickly, so I kept trying. Then we hit the jackpot. Using the recipe for any good ad campaign or tagline, we took a little honesty, added a little play on words, and then threw in a dash of some self deprecation for good measure, and we found our name. Divorsea.
Mission accomplished, happy client, project completed. If you are ever in East Hampton and see the Divorsea cruising along with a broker-looking fellow at the helm, give him a honk and a wave, and if you ever purchase a new boat, give us a ring-we don’t advertise our skills in this arena, but they are available if needed.
This is interesting. I’ve always wondered where people come up with the names for their boats. Up in Canada, where my husband and I spend time at our fishing cabin, I hear them on the radio calling each other. I can hear it now, “Divorsea, Divorsea, Divorsea, this is Carpe Seaem.”