Wrong product naming convention can make you hate IT systems, here is why!

In the day-to-day operations of small businesses, one problem that quietly eats away time and causes confusion is poor product naming. It may seem like a small issue, but when inventory starts growing and variations like colour, size, style, or type are added, the mess begins.

Imagine a shop assistant trying to find an item in the system during a sale. If products are named inconsistently or without a clear format, it becomes a time-consuming process filled with guesswork. This slows down service, leads to errors during stock updates, and causes unnecessary frustration, especially in fast-paced environments like beauty salons, retail stores, pharmacies, bars, or building material shops.

Let’s take a closer look.

Why Proper Naming Matters

Faster Search & Sales: Clean naming helps staff easily find items while attending to customers.
Accurate Stock Updates: When restocking or auditing, it’s easier to match the right products.
Consistent Reporting: Reports show clearer trends when names follow a pattern.
Training Becomes Easier: New staff can catch on quickly with standard formats.

Common Mistakes in Naming

Here are a few examples across different sectors that show the kind of problems we often encounter.

1. Hair and Beauty Products

Bad Examples:

12" BSTRAIGHT col 1B
Curly Wig Black 14inches
CLOSURE / Natural / 16”

These are difficult to scan, search or compare. Some use slashes, others use abbreviations, and sizes or colors are in different positions.

Good Examples:

Bone Straight - 12in - Color 1B
Curly Wig - 14in - Natural Black
Closure - 16in - Natural

2. Beverage and Retail Shops

Bad Examples:

Coke1.5
33cl ORANGE soda
CastleB/50cl

Good Examples:

Coca Cola - 1.5L - PET Bottle
Orange Soda - 33cl - Can
Castel Beer - 50cl - Bottle

3. Building Material Stores

Bad Examples:

IronRod8
50kg cement Dangote
Tiles(White)

Good Examples:

Iron Rod - 8mm - 12m
Cement - Dangote - 50kg
Floor Tile - White - 60x60cm

How to Fix the Naming Chaos

Start by creating a simple naming formula that applies to all your products. A good structure usually follows this pattern:

Product Type - Specification - Variation

Examples:

Shampoo - 500ml - For Dry Hair
Speaker - Bluetooth - Black
Cement - Dangote - 50kg

You can use Excel to list your items, clean up the names, and then import them directly into your POS system.

Let TCPoS Do the Heavy Lifting

With TCPoS, we help you build a clean and searchable inventory from Day 1. Our system allows you to:

Import bulk products from Excel with clean names
Quickly search and filter items during sales
Avoid duplicates and confusion in reporting
Get smart suggestions on naming and product performance

Whether you’re running a barbershop, a beauty store, a restaurant, or a hardware store, proper product naming makes your life easier.

And if you're unsure where to begin, our team at TCPoS offers free support to help you organize and format your inventory properly. Because a good system starts with a clear structure.

Let’s help you build smarter from the ground up.