

Ask HN: Would you build a startup with "LOL" in its name? - jessor

Hi HN folks,<p>we're in the process of finalizing an idea for a bootstrapped startup. Today, finding a nice name came up. As we're headed for a pretty crowded niche, we're looking for something with strong branding potential. While brainstorming, "lol" has come up.<p>Our name would consist of what we do, prefixed with "lol". So, if we were to do an email service, our name would be "lolmails". In our particular case and context, it would be an awesome fit and definitely help attracting early adopters.<p>We're sympathetic to the name, but a little bit afraid that we could frighten more "ordinary" customers who might have bad associations.<p>What do you think?
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makeramen
NO.

My concern is that instead of coming up with a better name, you're here asking
if "lol____" is acceptable, which says something about your ability to come up
with good branding ideas.

For me, this would immediately fall under the category of "if you have to ask,
you probably shouldn't do it" ... unless of course you have a really good
reason, but then you wouldn't be asking.

So without more information on what exactly the proposed name is, and what
amazing product your startup is promising, I'm going to straight up say no.

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eccp
I was thinking the same, but then I thought "What if this guy is building a
competitor to www.icanhascheezburger.com ?" maybe on that context it would be
appropriate.

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makeramen
then he wouldn't be asking, and LOL would probably be in at least 30% of his
brainstorming ideas...

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Hoff
In an interview some years ago, director John Hughes (and I wish I could find
a citation) commented that the (made-up) slang he incorporated into his dialog
was expressly invented to keep the movies fresh (longer); that (real) slang
tended to quickly become stale.

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slig
I remember reading the same thing about "The Clockwork Orange".

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pcowans
I can't really see you getting a lot of useful advice unless you're able to
give details of the product and market. Any branding decisions are going to be
completely dependent on those factors.

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jessor
You're probably right. I'm not protecting the idea itself, but with more
information on the subject one could quickly squat the domains which we're not
able to reserve just for fun right now.

All other domains with names we've come up with have been taken.

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znt
Well there's Lolapps (<http://www.lolapps.com/>), they have closed about $ 4
million investment if I recall correctly.

But they don't use that name to market their products, instead they create
social games and market each product seperately I think.

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brianr
Actually we've recently started branding all new games as "by Lolapps". You
can see this on Critter Island: <http://apps.facebook.com/critter-island/>

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YonghoShin
I highly recommend reading this free report (123-page PDF) from Igor
International (naming and branding agency):

[http://www.igorinternational.com/process/igor-naming-
guide.p...](http://www.igorinternational.com/process/igor-naming-guide.pdf)

~~~
StavrosK
I started reading it, and then I thought "Do I really want to take naming
advice from a company called Igor?"

That said, it was a good read. I don't agree with everything, but there are
good points.

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dstein
If it's a b2c product (lolchat, lolcards), then yeah you can get away from it.
But if it's a b2b product then probably not -- unless it is a ridiculously
innovative lolcode application server.

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sabj
Pretty much totally agree here.

I would be 75% OK using a service with such a name, but you would alienate
some people for sure. Keep it in reserve, but might be worthwhile to keep
thinking about some other names, too. You don't want to limit yourself based
on your brand.

~~~
ams6110
Any name that is not completely bland will alienate someone. I will refuse to
even consider any app with "Twit" or "Tweet" in the name. But I'm not their
customer anyway. A name that is appealing to your target customer is probably
better than a generic one.

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StavrosK
Only if you make lipops, I guess...

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loumf
Cisco is currently using something like "redefining LOL" in their ads -- they
definitely target B2B, so if it's not too edgy for Cisco, then I can't see it
alienating "ordinary" customers. In fact, it's evidence that it's not edgy
enough to attract early adopters.

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stoney
It's one thing to put it in your apps, which can be updated when they get
tired, but if you put lol in your name you're pretty much stuck with it (or
facing an expensive rebranding exercise)

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danielhodgins
People may or may not respond to your favorite name choice. For this reason,
Tim Ferris tested 15 different book titles with Google Adwords when
determining the title for 4 hour Workweek. Why not test 5 - 10 names with
simple Google Adwords and Facebook ad campaigns to see which name(s) resonates
the most?

You could use metrics such as: # clicks, click through rate, and # of email
sign ups to help determine the winner. Make sure your landing page(s) are
very, very well written and beautifully designed in order to encourage sign
ups.

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niico
Why not?

Startups are cool.

I believe to build a startup need a special kind of attitude. This could be
reflected on the team activities, way of work, office feel and look and of
course... the name.

My opinion. Go for it. If that's your favorite option, go for it.. all the
way.

My best hopes from South America ;)

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code_duck
It depends whether this fits your target consumers. Basically, decide whether
this fits your branding. Is your startup's product intended to appeal to young
or whimsical consumers? Are you portraying a refreshing, lighthearted
attitude? Is it related to humor in some way?

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jcapote
Go for it. It's a filter, do you really want people who think twice about a
"lol" in the name using your software anyway?

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jaekwon
how long has lol been around anyways? I know it's been around for at least a
decade. longer?

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sbierwagen
Nope.

