We've all seen tanks with names and images painted on them. What is the process to getting this done? Does the tank crew have to get permission from someone first? Was it pretty unregulated? I've hit google and gotten nothing at all on this topic.
For Soviet tanks, sometimes the order to name your tank can come from the top. For example, tanks of the1st Order of the Red Banner Tank Brigade had names that were set by their commander.
Another way tanks could get names is if someone else paid for them. The most famous example is Mariya Oktyabrskaya's Boeyvaya Podruga ("Fighting Girlfriend"), but there were many others, where entire tank columns would get named after the organization that donated money to have them built.
Then there were tanks which did not come with a name. I've never seen any regulations regarding naming them, but some interviews on iremember (here's an example) casually mention writing inscriptions on the tank without any kind of indication of rules surrounding it.
Armor.Kiev.UA also mentions, citing the army manual, that special markings applied for parades must be painted over afterwards, but often there is not enough time, and the markings remain.