I saw a store flyer the other day that featured a few products from a brand called “Freshlike”. Apparently, it’s a brand of frozen vegetables that are supposed to taste just like fresh ones. However, that’s definitely not what I associated with the product name when I first noticed it. Instead, I thought of things like:

– Sort of fresh
– Not quite fresh
– Seems fresh, but really isn’t

The problem here is including the word “like” in the name. To most people, “like” sends the message that two things are similar but not identical. When trying to say that food is fresh, you don’t want to leave any doubt in the customer’s mind about it. If you invite people to consider how fresh something is, and then use words that convey that it’s not really fresh, you’re going to scare a lot of potential buyers away.

What’s the solution here? Pick your comparisons and phrasings wisely, and be careful of statements that may have negative connotations from the customer’s point of view.