A Google-Wrinkle in the Name Game

Here’s a new twist to our ongoing discussion of child-naming: The Wall Street Journal reports that new parents may be choosing more “unique” names for their children in the interest of making them more prominent in Google searches. While a name like “Jason Smith” is easily swallowed up in the search-engine depths, a first name like “Kohler” or “Stella” is more likely to land your kid on the front search page.

It’s true that “Google-ability” can be valuable in everything from dating to job hunting to marketing your brand or product. But, just as women with “distinctively black” names wound up just as well off as women with more traditional names, will a “Kohler” really have much of an advantage (beyond working in a kitchen-and-bath store, of course) over a “Jason”? If so, then we’re going to see a revolution in the power of Google to influence a life. Either way, it should be interesting to see what names tech-savvy parents come up with over the next decade or so.