Google’s Branding Mistake
Analytics. Blogger. iGoogle. Gmail. Picassa. Docs. Alerts. Reader. Desktop.
See the trend in the naming of Google products? Simplicity.
They haven’t come up with brilliant names… they’ve taken simple words and put “Google” in front of them. And it works because of the brand Google has built.
Today Google will release “Google Chrome.” What’s Google Chrome? Great question…
Chrome is Google’s new web browser. (When it is released, you can find it here.) Google’s a phenomenal company. But “Chrome” as it’s name… Really? Is that the best you could think of?
Call me crazy… but I don’t see how it fits. Any thoughts?
Off topic - I love that they released a comic book describing the new features instead of releasing a typical FAQ. That’s brilliant thinking that makes Google one of a kind. I’m sure the browser will be the same… even if the name sucks.
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The fact that they are using simplistic names IS brilliant in itself - at least if you measure success by results. Chrome is a bit of a half-assed name though, isn’t it. It’s neither simple like “Gmail” or neat and catchy like “Picasa”. I was a bit dissapointed when I heard it. Better names? Hmmm… Google Surf. Google Goggles. Google Gadget. Go-Go-Google-Browser. The Googlet. The Googler. Google Base. Googlefox. “Google-net Explorer”. G-Net? Spy Net… “Elgoog”. The GOOG. The Googster. Googarama. Google-fi. Googleplex (that one’s not too bad actually - Maybe two words: Google Plex, and we could just call it “Plex”).
Ah, I knew I had heard of “Google Plex” somewhere before. That would be the name of their headquarters building. duh
They could have just named it Google Browser, but then it would have been harder to track feedback and buzz on Twitter.
Like you mention, it doesn’t really seem to fit into the Google stable of names and they probably could have come up with something better, but at least it’s not atrocious. Google Chrome does have a decent ring to it.
I hate the new name, and I hate that they haven’t come to the market with a Mac version. Totally underwhelmed.
More interestingly, FireFox (my browser of choice) recently released a super-cool new component called ‘Ubiquity’. If you haven’t heard about it, google it
It’s incredible. It will change the way you surf the web.
Google’s got it’s hands full in my opinion. It might not be tough to get the IE followers over, but the FireFox users are a loyal group to crack!
Thanks for the comments guys. Apparently the rest of the world (at least in Des Moines) disagrees about the name.
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=PluckPersona&U=06f3f8034b3d42dd8076d0b1046749a6&plckController=PersonaBlog&plckScript=personaScript&plckElementId=personaDest&plckPersonaPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3a06f3f8034b3d42dd8076d0b1046749a6Post%3a422b6b78-2fff-43d3-ad4e-19c1b6cb5c8f&sid=sitelife.desmoinesregister.com
ah, those people are just Google-heads who feel the need to defend the company who has delivered us so many helpful products. I like Google, but I don’t worship Google. Plus, I don’t feel the need to slam someone personally for posting their opinion about something so immaterial as the name of a browser. Like one user mentioned, who cares what it is named - could be Google CRAP and I’d still try it out because of Google’s reputation with churning out awesome products. I still think your point is valid, because Ihad similar feelings when I first heard the name.
They went with a comic book instead of an FAQ because they couldn’t decide if it was pronounced “f-a-k” or “eff-a-que”
My mom and brother are trying it. We’ve been using Firefox for several years. So far they seem to like it quite well.
And wow. That one fellow was nasty wasn’t he? Maybe they are just that insecure!