After seeing a product placement for GE’s Monogram appliances, it occurred to me that several different companies have adoped the “Monogram” label for their premium line. Aside from GE, there’s Banana Republic, and probably a few others. But what does the term “Monogram” actually mean to customers?

To me, “Monogram” indicates something that’s personalized to the buyer, like a monogrammed set of initials on a piece of clothing. However, I don’t think there’s any personalization or customization aspect to the products from GE and Banana Republic. So maybe it refers to the products bearing the time-tested brands of those companies. But doesn’t every product they sell carry the same logo and pedigree? Or, if it means that the product line is especially worthy of these venerable brands, where does that leave the rest of the non-premium products?

In all, labeling a premium line as “Monogram” seems rather misguided, since the term lacks concrete meaning for customers. If the goal is to differentiate these products from the lower-priced ones, terms like “Premium” or “Professional” might be better choices, although those terms are probably a bit overused too. When it comes down to it, customers should be able to tell why a certain product line commands a higher price, either by examining the product itself or reading about its attributes. If the naming convention doesn’t help further that goal, there’s really no point in slapping those additional labels on the product.