In the long run, it will be which name(s) best catches the attention of the consumer. Then once it gets embedded into the mass stream of consciousness it/they will dominate long-term. I'm betting on Gold.
This isn't true at all, actually. It's like the HD-DVD vs Blu-ray debate several years back -- Blu-ray was the superior format...but a ton of money was backing HD-DVD and they were betting on the fact that consumers would prefer it due to the fact that the name makes more sense to them. Everybody knew what DVDs were...and everybody knew what HD was. This, of course, was not the case.
Another thing that doesn't make sense is that Goldcoin has nothing to do with gold. That would be like discovering a new element and calling it SilverRock even though it has no similarities to silver -- it's just confusing. You can't just give something a name that is associated with value and instantly everybody wants it -- most people aren't that dumb. By your logic, DiamondCoin should be the top coin. What if somebody comes out with PlatinumCoin? Also, there are a number of people that think Goldcoin is related to E-Gold/etc. The gold name has been tarnished with things like "shares of gold" schemes and jokes like cash-for-gold and more -- it's slowly being associated with scams in the digital world. The only type of gold I'd want to own would be physical gold bars and coins I can hold in my hand.
I'm not saying Goldcoin doesn't stand a chance...I'm just saying the name is probably hurting it more than anything with serious miners and investors. The second I saw the name Goldcoin, I thought "cheap junkcoin." I have done no research on it (simply haven't had a chance -- too many irons in the fire) so I'm not accusing Goldcoin of being junk -- just saying that's what the
name implied to me. It's a digital currency we're talking about -- that's why bitcoin is so perfect. It's a new concept to most people and unless Goldcoin is actually backed by gold what's the point? If it's not tied to the value of gold in any way it's just misleading/confusing more than anything.
Litecoin could potentially fail -- the value has been stagnant for quite a while. However, it's hands down #2 right now and there are a ton of services/etc (and even more in the works) -- it just has a huge headstart. The name is irrelevant, really. If it fails, I assure you it wouldn't be due to the name.
No offense intended, but investing your time and money into a currency primarily because of the name is pretty naive, really.
Excellent points.
However, most digital currencies are very much like gold. There is a limited supply and in order to obtain it, it must be mined or purchased. And just like in the real world, anyone can mine it as long as they have the proper equipment. To mine physical gold you use pick axes, to mine digital gold you use special computers. In addition, the more gold that is mined the harder it becomes to mine. In other words the same effort with the same tools produce less and less coin output. This is identical to how a mining operation functions in the real world. So what's wrong with using a name that perfectly fits?
I've had a lot of time to test market this name with community members, family, and friends. Try this: Explain to someone you know that is oblivious to digital currencies that you would like to give them a few coins and they can choose from one of three. Pick any two coins to match up again Goldcoin and you find that 100% of the time, the person will choose Goldcoin. So now we have a name that not only fits, but the name that people (aka consumers) prefer to have and hold.
I'm not suggesting that people invest in this coin strictly because it has a great name that fits or because consumers prefer it over every other single coin, I'm simply suggesting that once we complete our work at building a solid foundation, we will be well positioned to compete in the digital currency market at the highest of levels.
You could argue that all commodities are "like" gold...but they're not gold...which is why they have their own name. I tried your test using BitGem, Goldcoin, and Diamond and the test subject chose diamond. At this point, I don't know anybody who hasn't at least heard of Bitcoin so I left it out of the test. So as soon as somebody rolls out PlatinumCoin the "power" of the Goldcoin name will be further diluted.
I have nothing against your coin...but I find it surprising if you really believe it will be #1 because of the name.
