Can you outgrow your brand name?
Should you stick or twist?
Your business has evolved. Your brand name hasn’t. Should it?
Unsurprisingly, the answer is, it depends.
The ‘does-what-it-says-on-the-tin’ approach to naming has some benefits for start-ups but you will need to accept that when you’re successful, or if you pivot, your name will invariably need to evolve.
Carphone Warehouse, valued at £1.9bn eleven years after it was illegal to use a phone whilst driving and even longer since carphones were actually a ‘thing’ is probably the exception (though time did catch up with the brand eventually).
Worked well for Apple in 2007 when they ditched the prescriptive ‘Computer’ from their company name.
Steve Jobs, inspired by his fruitarian diet, thought ‘Apple’ sounded fun, spirited, not intimidating (and distinctive from competitors).
Qualities that were as relevant in 2007 as they were when the company was established in 1976.
Name changes don’t have to be revolutionary – think Kentucky Fried Chicken evolving to KFC to dial down associations with unhealthy fried food.
Global retailer Zara was originally called Zorba (after Zorba the Greek) but changed its name to avoid confusion with a bar of the same name two streets down.
Why Zara? Pragmatism. They repurposed the shop’s signage letters (and a spare letter ‘a’).
Demonstrating both the need for science (do your research) and the often unscientific nature of naming.
As Mark Zuckerberg said when he announced the renaming of Facebook to Meta “Right now our brand is so tightly linked to one product that it can’t possibly represent everything we’re doing today, let alone in the future. Over time, I hope we are seen as a metaverse company, and I want to anchor our work and our identity on what we’re building towards.”
The jury is still out on the metaverse but no one doubts Meta’s ambition.
Has your business outgrown your name? If in doubt, ask yourself whether your name is working for or against you? And never forget, if your business is struggling, simply* changing its name won’t solve that. Rebranding can be a powerful change agent but only if it is done right.
*There is nothing simple about changing your name but we can help you make sure it’s worth the effort.
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