IT was once top secret, but expectant mums are increasingly revealing the name they have chosen for their child to deter friends from choosing the same.

Social researcher Mark McCrindle said women were becoming more protective when it came to baby names, including it on invitations and checking for Twitter accounts in that name.

"Your name now is your entire brand," he said. "Parents are putting more effort into ensuring their baby's uniqueness."

Parenting author Maggie Dent described it as a step away from tradition. "Women often didn't name their child for a few days after birth to get a feel for who the child actually was," she said.

Burnside War Memorial Hospital clinical manager of maternity services Liuda Stalba-Smith said the unveiling of a name was often "the only surprise left at the end".

Swinburne University of Technology senior sociology lecturer Dr Deb Dempsey said while many still kept the secret, she had heard of parents "doing Facebook polls to get people to vote for a name".

Amy and Paul Ryan plan to christen their daughter, due in August, Ella, and announced it on baby shower invitations.

"A lot of our friends are also pregnant and we knew we wanted to go with Ella," Mrs Ryan said.

Originally published as Mums guard baby-name 'brand'