--- title: Startups - What's in a name? description: Startups - what's in a name? image: https://blog.selectstrategies.com/hs-fs/hub/447849/file-2340276860.jpg --- [![selectstrategies](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/hs-fs/hub/447849/file-2095342574.png)](http://www.selectstrategies.com/) - [Our Story](http://www.selectstrategies.com/our-story/) - [Business Growth Transformer](http://www.selectstrategies.com/services/) - [Growth Insights](http://www.selectstrategies.com/growth-insights/) - [Business Battlecard](http://www.selectstrategies.com/battlecard/) - [Blog](http://www.selectstrategies.com/blog/) - [Clients](http://www.selectstrategies.com/clients/) ![ss-banner-blog.jpg](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/hs-fs/hub/447849/file-2097799143.jpg?width=1442&name=file-2097799143.jpg "ss-banner-blog.jpg") ## [Startups - What's in a name?](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/blog/startups-whats-in-a-name) Posted on July 21, 2014 by [Emer O'Donnell](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/blog/author/emer-odonnell) ![Startups_-_Whats_in_a_name](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/hs-fs/hub/447849/file-2340276860.jpg?width=250&name=file-2340276860.jpg) Have you ever wondered how startups go about selecting a name for their businesses? Often it seems they choose a name that reflects what the product does. Seems to make sense – yes? Yet when you are an early stage startup trying to find [product/market fit](http://www.selectstrategies.com/growth-insights/product-management-finding-the-right-productmarket/) that can be tricky. What if you pivot to a new industry or application of your product? We often see the names of [startups](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/blog/getting-to-product/market-fit-how-can-startups-get-there-faster) changing as the product and [market](http://www.selectstrategies.com/growth-insights/plan-your-market-entry-or-you-may-find-your-waterl/) evolves. Often what works at the start is no longer applicable as you move to finding product/market fit. And sometimes the name you originally chose means something to your audience that you never intended… We recently worked with a company producing an app who had selected a name they believed reflected what the product did, and had a link to their target audience. Yet a colleague of mine commented the other day that she thought when she first came across them they were producing a toiletry product! Just goes to show – as well as testing your proposition with customers, it might also be worth testing the name! Posted in: [Startups](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/blog/topic/startups), [Product/Market Fit](https://blog.selectstrategies.com/blog/topic/productmarket-fit) [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on LinkedIn](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/linkedin-24x24.png)](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dlinkedin) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Startups%20-%20What%27s%20in%20a%20name%3F) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on LinkedIn](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/linkedin-24x24.png)](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dlinkedin) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=Startups%20-%20What%27s%20in%20a%20name%3F) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20http%3A%2F%2Fblog.selectstrategies.com%2Fblog%2Fstartups-whats-in-a-name%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ### Blog Archive - 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