According to Nameberry’s website, the expert service is beneficial if you’re starting from scratch and don’t know where to begin, you need a name that meets complex criteria, or you and your partner are having difficulty agreeing on a name or moving through the baby name process. But you must be prepared to pay for it.

Nameberry’s packages include 10 names for $250 or tiebreaker analysis for $100. They also refer to their most expensive package – at $10,000 – as a concierge service. But for individualised consultations with an independent namer, the price often becomes more accessible.

Lilia Corrigan, a 25-year-old qualified children’s occupational therapist and owner of Heartbabynames, says that she offers several packages with different price points and varying levels of help. “It’s really important to me that although I charge for my time, I can offer packages at a range of prices so that they are more accessible to my clients,” she explains.

But some name consultants, like Brooke, 19, of Brilliant Baby Names, even provide their services for free. “I am very much aware of the cost of living crisis and I just want to help make one of the hardest decisions a bit easier by suggesting some options,” she tells Stylist. “I usually start with a short questionnaire before composing a list of either 30 combinations (first and middle names) or 15 single names fitting with the criteria.” It’s this level of research that consultants say defines the entire process.

“When I first meet prospective parents, we start by digging into their name ‘style’, factors that are desirable in names vs factors that are non-negotiable,” says Corrigan. “Many of my clients are having trouble finding names which honour particular origins or heritage, while others cannot agree with their partners as they have different naming styles – and we have to find a common middle ground together.” Depending on the package chosen, Corrigan and her clients then go through the top recommended names, pull more specific options based on new top contenders, and pair up their favourite first name options with middle names.

Paid to pick names: inside the life of a professional baby name consultant