(Below: The pioneering Flickr and just some of its sycophantic hellspawn)
Those of you creating a Web 2.0 startup: avoid the urge to name your firm after the successful players in the space. A trendy copycat company name and market presence may directly work against your own success.
For the last 18 months, there has been a huge increase in me-too branding efforts in the tech space. The success of well-known sites such as Google, Yahoo!, Flickr, Digg and Del.icio.us has inspired many startups to copy the branding elements of the big boys, particularly their names. This lemming effect sometimes drives them to copy even the design elements and exact colors of the more successful sites.
Before I begin my marketer’s diatribe, let me first acknowledge that almost all the good brand names have been thought of and are taken. Finding a unique company name, let alone an available URL, is extremely challenging these days. So creating a name that mimics Flickr, for example, “Stiflr”, can help you solve both these problems.
I also suspect that many of you are also hoping to capture a little Web 2.0 VC love…can’t say I blame you for that. But here’s the thing: by creating a copycat name of a popular Web 2.0 site, not only does your company name become “trendy” (and therefore, easily dated), you end up giving away all your market differentiation. You actually reduce customer interest and appeal by sounding like everyone else: in this case, Slickr, Zooomr, Frappr, Mappr, Blogr, Grazr, ad nauseum.
The right way
My job as a marketer is to help companies identify their unique value proposition (“UVP”): the special sauce that will compel people to sign up, subscribe or enter a credit card number. The thing that makes them stand apart from the competition. When I lead naming engagements, our team starts these assignments by identifying our clients’ value proposition, unique traits, their market’s interests and preferences, and the messages that will lead to market success. Once you know these things, then you begin work on a name and identity: one that’s memorable, easy to pronounce, rolls off the tongue, and is meaningful to customers.
The thing is, your name is only one part of your brand. And the most effective brands use the entire branding ecosystem of company name, logo, tagline, and marketing messages at every customer touchpoint to talk about your uniqueness, your value proposition and your customer benefits. When a component as valuable as your name is a copycat, it kills the impact of the rest of your efforts…and dilutes the impact and effectiveness of your marketing spending. Far better to establish a name and identity that works with your marketing instead of against it.
From my perspective, the tech startups that are copying their more successful brethren show a lack of imagination, which is surprising given the tremendous amount of imagination it takes to craft a brand new kind of functionality or mashup using C++ and AJAX. And when some even steal signature graphic design elements from others – at times, even exact colors – they simply should be caned. At that point, they deserve to be just one more me-too play on the way to market fade-out.
You know it’s gotten bad when the depth of misspelt or silly 2.0 names has spawned a site called CERTIFYR. It humorously certifies your site as trendy-compliant as it checks it for big fonts, me-too names, a “beta” designation, overly bright colors with or without pink, rounded corners, use of Google maps, and whether or not the “founder has a blog”.
A strong, relevant connection with your customers, along with an identity that supports a unique market position, will generate revenue and awareness far more effectively than a me-too name emulating the first-movers in the social networking and media spaces.
Here are some examples of copycat naming. I list them here not to say they’re “bad companies” but to point out the overwhelming similarity and lack of differentiation when you choose a copycat name.
Paying homage to Flickr…or just a lack of imagination?
Flickr.com was apparently registered by Ludicorp in November 2003. Here are a sample of sites employing lipogrammatos, Greek for missing a letter, and how long after Flickr they registered their domains:
Blogr – (Jun 2003 – predates Flickr’s domain registration by 6 months)
Talkr – text-to-audio tool for blogs (March 2004)
Lookr – Japanese site (March 2004)
Colr.org – a site for playing with colors (Jan 2005)
Wrickr – Polish open-source startup (March 2005)
Coastr – “the social guide to beer” (May 2005)
Gtalkr – IM client purchased by Google (Aug 2005)
Suprglu – ties together results from Flickr and others (Sep 2005)
Frappr – Google maps mashup (Oct 2005)
Flagr – geo-bookmark sharing (Oct 2005)
Gabbr – social new sharing site (Oct 2005)
Zooomr – Flickr competitor that adds localisation (Oct 2005) – the 17-year-old kid who launched it gets some slack for being 17, but has said slack removed due to being the worst copier
Enablr – software firms with products called Transcribr, Stenographr (owner says he “runs a marketing firm” – run, customers, run!) (Nov 2005)
Nabbr – broadcast/share your lists (Nov 2005)
FeedBlendr – combines RSS feeds into one (Dec 2005)
Squishr – unknown app in alpha (Dec 2005)
Grazr – RSS feed browser (Feb 2006)
Calcr – online calculator (March 2006)
Ticklr – legal bookmark sharing (March 2006)
Rel8r – tag, read, search blogs
Phixr – photo editor
Empressr – Flash-based PPT competitr
Skinnyr – Widget for MySpace (“Beta!”)…they just get lamr and lamr
AT LEAST THESE HAVE AN EXCUSE
These apps/plugins/sites have an excuse for the dropped vowels: they’re directly related to Flickr.
Bloggr – WordPress plug-in to display Flickr shots
Bubblr – add speech bubbles to Flickr shots
Delivr – create digital postcards, “made possible by the fabulous Flickr”
Grabbr – Flickr uploading app
Groupr – Flickr mashup
Mappr – Flickr map mashup
Phrasr – Flickr mashup
Retrievr – sketch-based image search of Flickr
Slickr – Flickr screensaver app
Stalkr – email search tool, now renamed
Tickr – Flickr mashup (slideshow)
Worst Branding Award goes to…
Zooomr, a competitor to Flickr that not only copied the name, but colors the R differently too, just like Flickr.
Ob.noxio.us copying?
Digglicious – live comparator between Digg/Delicious
Expialidocio.us – Delicious mashup
Fort.uito.us – blog
Grat.uito.us – tagged, social wishlists
Icio.de – German clone of Delicious
Lib.rario.us – catalog your media collection
Mobilicio.us – Del.icio.us bookmarks via mobile phone
Podolicious – personalized podcast news
Script.aculo.us – Javascript library
Singlestat.us – MySpace relationship monitor, now shut down?
Staralicious – Delicious about celebrities
They dig Digg
BlogDigger (predated Digg)
TalkDigger (predated Digg)
Diigo – social annotation
Digforit
DiggDot
Diggnews
Diggol – personalized news site
DigLog – Chinese Digg
HotDigg – blog
Hugg – environmental Digg clone
Polidiggs
SlashDigg
StockDigg
VCDiggz
The Yahoo!/Google double-O thingy
Accoona – “Hakuna Matata, what a wonderful phrase…”
Asoboo
Baeboo – mix Billy Blanks and Taebo and you get…
Congoo
Cluckoo
Dodloo
eefoof – very descriptive for a video site!
Emongoo – tools & marketplace to sell your property
Favoor
Favoritoo
Foonance – manage your finances
Getboo
Gootodo
Gumshoo
Newroo
Noodly
Nooz – news for MySpace members
Orangoo
Ouioo – Captain, consonants have failed!
Picaboo
Polloo
Publicloos
Qooxdoo – WTFHell?
Queoo
Reevoo
Sabifoo – which was one of few names available on all IM clients: nice IM-to-RSS-feed app
Schoopy – classroom organizer
Squidoo
Springdoo
Woomp
Wufoo
Yoosi – create your personal startup page
At this point, I stopped searching. It was just too painful.
Hat tip to fellow marketer Alison Moore for getting me thinking about this one, and Simon Looker for “lipogrammatos”.
I won’t debate the effectiveness of our branding, but, just so you know, Blogdigger was around a full two years before digg. And Talkdigger was inspired by our name (or so the founder told me).
I agree it’s very difficult to come up with a good name nowadays without being or sounding derivative.
I won’t debate the effectiveness of our branding, but, just so you know, Blogdigger was around a full two years before digg. And Talkdigger was inspired by our name (or so the founder told me).
I agree it’s very difficult to come up with a good name nowadays without being or sounding derivative.
So sorry that our name has caused you pain. For ma.gnolia, we really wanted the name magnolia for the product, but prying manolia.com away from Exxon, who owns it, was probably not going to happen. So we went with the next best thing which was to break up the name. We also thought it would be a good hat tip to del.icio.us but don’t anymore as people seem predisposed to look at it as copying.
So sorry that our name has caused you pain. For ma.gnolia, we really wanted the name magnolia for the product, but prying manolia.com away from Exxon, who owns it, was probably not going to happen. So we went with the next best thing which was to break up the name. We also thought it would be a good hat tip to del.icio.us but don’t anymore as people seem predisposed to look at it as copying.
Now, you just need to go back and figure out how many millions of dollars were wasted by all the companies you mentioned. I would bet it’s a lot of Moola, or maybe a bunch of Dollrs.
Now, you just need to go back and figure out how many millions of dollars were wasted by all the companies you mentioned. I would bet it’s a lot of Moola, or maybe a bunch of Dollrs.
Actually, Todd, I dig ma.gnolia a lot. Yours was the most imaginative of the companies using dotus-interruptus names.
Actually, Todd, I dig ma.gnolia a lot. Yours was the most imaginative of the companies using dotus-interruptus names.
Actually the more I think about it, Ma.gnolia doesn’t belong on the list at all. It’s certainly not ob.noxio.us, nor copying del.icio.us. Greg, I’ve updated Blogdigger and Talkdigger as well. I appreciate the comments…sorry for lumping you guys in.
Actually the more I think about it, Ma.gnolia doesn’t belong on the list at all. It’s certainly not ob.noxio.us, nor copying del.icio.us. Greg, I’ve updated Blogdigger and Talkdigger as well. I appreciate the comments…sorry for lumping you guys in.
No problem, thanks for the correction!
By the way, the other name I was considering back in the day was RSS (pronounced arse) Kicker; so we’re at least not as bad as it could have been. 😉
No problem, thanks for the correction!
By the way, the other name I was considering back in the day was RSS (pronounced arse) Kicker; so we’re at least not as bad as it could have been. 😉
Do you think you could move Grabbr into the “at least they have an excuse” section.
It’s a teeny tiny app I knocked together very quickly, specifically to upload to Flickr. I’m not trying to build a brand, the name was just the first thing that popped into my head.
I’m getting a bit bored that it has become a lightning rod for the dropping an e backlash ever since it got scoblized.
Ta 🙂
Do you think you could move Grabbr into the “at least they have an excuse” section.
It’s a teeny tiny app I knocked together very quickly, specifically to upload to Flickr. I’m not trying to build a brand, the name was just the first thing that popped into my head.
I’m getting a bit bored that it has become a lightning rod for the dropping an e backlash ever since it got scoblized.
Ta 🙂
Thanks for the correction, Gareth.
Thanks for the correction, Gareth.
This is a great thing about blogs, where you have an idea, have a discussion, and evolve or refine the idea.
It’s also characteristic of the web that we now live in an age of de-localized brands, where all these names can come before our eyes more easily and quickly, and we can see the patterns that happen around a new innovations. It doesn’t mean, of course, that there aren’t other innovations to be had in products that adopt a pop naming convention, but it does sort of situate their inspiration and aspects of their philosophy. Everyone wants to be in the busy party, and naming after a pattern can at least get you in the door. To be a hit, you still have to have the real goods behind you.
This is a great thing about blogs, where you have an idea, have a discussion, and evolve or refine the idea.
It’s also characteristic of the web that we now live in an age of de-localized brands, where all these names can come before our eyes more easily and quickly, and we can see the patterns that happen around a new innovations. It doesn’t mean, of course, that there aren’t other innovations to be had in products that adopt a pop naming convention, but it does sort of situate their inspiration and aspects of their philosophy. Everyone wants to be in the busy party, and naming after a pattern can at least get you in the door. To be a hit, you still have to have the real goods behind you.
Occasionally someone mentions that the Web 2.0 names are some of the ugliest every to hit the planet; maybe it’s an unconscious nose-thumb at the “pretty” names that ad agencies come up with.
But then they copy each other’s names! I noticed this and did a post on a smaller list of dropped vowel names: http://www.namesatwork.com/blog/2006/07/02/whatevr/
Flickr, Zooomr — Whatevr!
Occasionally someone mentions that the Web 2.0 names are some of the ugliest every to hit the planet; maybe it’s an unconscious nose-thumb at the “pretty” names that ad agencies come up with.
But then they copy each other’s names! I noticed this and did a post on a smaller list of dropped vowel names: http://www.namesatwork.com/blog/2006/07/02/whatevr/
Flickr, Zooomr — Whatevr!