As Facebook has changed the name of its parent company to Meta Platforms Inc., people have constantly been talking about it. If you are also curious about this bold move by the brand and why it happened, then read on. Here we have explored 6 reasons a company may need a change of name.
1. Social Pressure
Sometimes,
a company changes its name due to social pressure. It was the key reason why
Philip Morris and Total changed their names. Total became TotalEnergies so that
it could tell the audience that it has shifted beyond oil and gas to include
renewable energy.
2. Reset is Needed
A brand
often has to deal with negativity or criticism. It can tarnish the image of a
brand, and some of the damage might be irrevocable. To get over one negative
incident and re-brand itself, businesses often select a new name. It allows the
company to enhance its re-branding efforts and be perceived as a reliable brand
again. Internet and TV providers who have changed their names often do it for
the reset reason.
3. Increased Scope
Businesses
often change their name to tell their customers that they are not what they
used to be. It usually happens when a brand offers more services or products
than before. Starbucks is a key example of this reason for a name change. The
brand dropped Coffee from its name back in 2011 so that it could tell customers
it offers more than just coffee. The gamble paid off for the company. Even
Google changed to Alphabet for this reason.
4. Start-Up Name Pivot
One more
common reason companies change the name is because they are not comfortable with
the early-stage name. Google was earlier known as Backrub, Twitter was Twittr,
and Instagram was Bourbn. These brands changed their names because they wanted
short, memorable, and snappy names.
5. Copyright Issues
Many
companies go for a name change not because they want to but because they have
to. When a company is just in the initial phases, the team is more focused on
making the name catchy rather than checking for copyright issues. It can become
a problem later on if there is another brand with the same name. In addition to
warnings, copyright infringement can also lead to lawsuits that can be very,
very costly.
One example
of this reason is WWF. Both World Wildlife Fund and World Wrestling Federation
used this acronym. Eventually, World Wrestling Federation had to change to WWE
(World Wrestling Entertainment) after losing a lawsuit.
6. Back to Square One
Sometimes,
a company changes its name in an attempt to re-brand itself, but it backfires.
So, the company has to go back to the name it used before the re-brand. It is
also known as a course correction. It happened with Tribune Publishing that had
to backtrack after changing its name to Tronc in 2016. The latter was seen as a
failed attempt to be a digital-first publisher.
Do you want
to name a new business? Here’s a Business Name Generator that might help.
Here are
some handy tips on how to name a business
by Shruti , BNS Business News
Source:
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/saying-bye-to-facebook-why-companies-change-their-name/