Bitcoin Branding

[k]

how about "digital cash"

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[SgtSpike]

Grassroots reminds me of hippies as well.  It doesn't really matter what the term is supposed to mean, only the imagery that said term conjugates in someone's mind.

Internet money is... kind of cheesy.  I think a less generic name would be appropriate.

I like decentralized currency.  It is self-explanatory, memorable, a bit cold, but the idea of it helps warm the imagery a bit.

How about universal currency?  Global currency?  I think global anything could have a negative connotation in people's minds.  Just my feeling though.  Universal sounds better.

If you think about it, many of the internet mega-sites have non-traditional names that don't mean anything otherwise (or at the very least, are completely unrelated to the items/services they are selling).  eBay?  Amazon?  Google?  Geocities?  Pandora? 

I think a unique name (i.e. bitcoin) in and of itself will be enough once the majority of people have at least heard the term "bitcoin" thrown around once.  The only question is whether bitcoin can/will have a negative association in the average person's mind just from the term.  What would someone who has never heard of bitcoin think of when they first hear the word bitcoin?

When I first heard of bitcoin I immediately thought of bittorrent. Good thoughts flooded my mind. Next I thought, well, what the hell is bitcoin? Read the faq, thought "oh, it's like an opensource internet money" and there we are.

Fact is, a byline isn't going to truly affect what people think about bitcoin. It can pique interest, but it can't replace fifteen minutes of reading a few things and making up their own minds about it. To me the most important thing is to reflect in the "branding" the nature of the project, which is in practice almost apolitical because it is almost universal.

please, if you want to make some branding for Bitcoin, try o use a name can be used independent of the talked mother language. what is supposed to mean "grassroot"?

Quoted for truth. The common consensus of how we refer to bitcoin should be as inclusive and non-Americentric as possible. There's plenty of room to have an "American bitcoin," and that's a huge share of bitcoin use right now and always will be, but eventually if it takes off the way we hope it will, it is agreeable if it's based in concepts that can translate well.

Wikipedians somewhere along the line decided that they would have every article translated into every language. That eventually became one of the guiding principles for editors. I realize that these are fundamentally different things but that just seems like a worthwhile, if diffuse, goal to have - to be globally, linguistically and culturally inclusive as much as is functionally possible. Nothing can stop anyone from firing up BitCoin the software, but plenty of piddlin' little things can deter them.

You might think of bittorrent as a good thing.  I, and many other people, do not.  It means lost jobs, lost profits, theft, and a myriad of other things to people who choose not to participate in such activities.

There are plenty of people who make an opinion about something without reading a word about it.  I think first impressions and brand name imagery is incredibly important, and any competent marketer will tell you the same thing.

I do agree about it being de-Americanized as much as possible.  We want it to be global, not just American.  Again, I'll go back to my "wordless names" point again, about having words that aren't works take on new meanings.  Pandora is a good one... since it doesn't mean anything in English, something like that is about as good as we're going to get regarding a name without a mother language.

[joshg]

Fact is, a byline isn't going to truly affect what people think about bitcoin. It can pique interest, but it can't replace fifteen minutes of reading a few things and making up their own minds about it. To me the most important thing is to reflect in the "branding" the nature of the project, which is in practice almost apolitical because it is almost universal.



Shortline, a byline or a tagline absolutely will affect what people think about bitcoins.  Big firms literally spend fortunes to determine the optimum words to use with their products.  They know that by optimally branding their product they can increase their sales many times over.  People form an initial impression in 1-5 seconds of hearing a new concept.  After that, it is a fight to change someone's mind.

Most people will NEVER spend 15 minuter to learn what crypto-currency is, but they might want to learn about the new internet money.

[N12]

Wiki money. Democratic money. The People’s money.

I like the "Internet’s currency" best. It’s not just another Flooz, Beenz or e-gold, but THE Internet’s currency because it is universal.

[Sawzall]

You might think of bittorrent as a good thing.  I, and many other people, do not.  It means lost jobs, lost profits, theft, and a myriad of other things to people who choose not to participate in such activities.

There are plenty of people who make an opinion about something without reading a word about it.  I think first impressions and brand name imagery is incredibly important, and any competent marketer will tell you the same thing.

I do agree about it being de-Americanized as much as possible.  We want it to be global, not just American.  Again, I'll go back to my "wordless names" point again, about having words that aren't works take on new meanings.  Pandora is a good one... since it doesn't mean anything in English, something like that is about as good as we're going to get regarding a name without a mother language.

Copyright infringement is not theft, and I have seen no real proof that it causes lost jobs or profits.

[SgtSpike]

You might think of bittorrent as a good thing.  I, and many other people, do not.  It means lost jobs, lost profits, theft, and a myriad of other things to people who choose not to participate in such activities.

There are plenty of people who make an opinion about something without reading a word about it.  I think first impressions and brand name imagery is incredibly important, and any competent marketer will tell you the same thing.

I do agree about it being de-Americanized as much as possible.  We want it to be global, not just American.  Again, I'll go back to my "wordless names" point again, about having words that aren't works take on new meanings.  Pandora is a good one... since it doesn't mean anything in English, something like that is about as good as we're going to get regarding a name without a mother language.

Copyright infringement is not theft, and I have seen no real proof that it causes lost jobs or profits.

It doesn't matter - those are some of the connotations that are in people's heads.

And I lost my previous job because the company I worked for went under, partially due to piracy.  But I'm not here to argue whether it is or isn't true, I'm just saying that those are some of the things people think about when they think of torrenting.

[N12]

Many (more?) people hate the media industry, banks, large corporations though. And many like Bittorrent, Wikileaks, Anonymous, …

Who doesn’t, really, except for people who would never get involved with Bitcoin until they have to anyway?

[SgtSpike]

Many (more?) people hate the media industry, banks, large corporations though. And many like Bittorrent, Wikileaks, Anonymous, …

Who doesn’t, really, except for people who would never get involved with Bitcoin until it is established anyway?

Those are the questions to be asking indeed.  Maybe a market research expert can chime in, if we have one around?

I wouldn't go around making the assumption that most people agree with torrenting and wikileaks.  That's a dangerous and potentially catastrophic assumption to be making...

[lacedwithkerosene]

prefixes
universal - toomanysyllables
decentralized - evenmoresyllables
cyrpto - girls will love it, not
internet - sounds vanilla
global - much better
digital - good. digital cash seconded. digital bucks, digital change,coins,money,dough,moola,bills

new cash? e-cash? world cash? space money, lol.

Solve the puzzle, what fits best in a subway billboard: Bitcoin - The __________ or Bitcoin: It's __________ and you will have your answer.  Ex. 'Bitcoin: It's Global' or 'Bitcoin: It's Space Money' or 'Bitcoin - The New Cash'


Bitcoin ... the most trusted name in digital currencies. Bitcoin - let it win you over slowly. rofl.

[Sedo2]

Wiki money. Democratic money. The People’s money.

I like the "Internet’s currency" best. It’s not just another Flooz, Beenz or e-gold, but THE Internet’s currency because it is universal.

+1 The People's money

Sounds very charming and highlights the collective fashion of BitCoin in a clean and simple way.

[Shortline]

You might think of bittorrent as a good thing.  I, and many other people, do not.  It means lost jobs, lost profits, theft, and a myriad of other things to people who choose not to participate in such activities.

It is like bitcoin (at least so far, fingers crossed) in that it works at whatever it does. It sucks that you lost your job - really, it does, and I don't think I have any answers for you there:(

There are plenty of people who make an opinion about something without reading a word about it.  I think first impressions and brand name imagery is incredibly important, and any competent marketer will tell you the same thing.

Shortline, a byline or a tagline absolutely will affect what people think about bitcoins.  Big firms literally spend fortunes to determine the optimum words to use with their products.  They know that by optimally branding their product they can increase their sales many times over.  People form an initial impression in 1-5 seconds of hearing a new concept.  After that, it is a fight to change someone's mind.

Most people will NEVER spend 15 minuter to learn what crypto-currency is, but they might want to learn about the new internet money.

All that's true. Marketing is important. The question is, when you're posting here on this forum are you a marketer? You and I may be buying or selling bitcoin personally, sure. It seems like allowing it to stand on the strength of it's technological merits and the depth of it's economy is smarter marketing than trying to change anyone's mind in a big way. Be slick about it but not too slick if you get what I'm saying. It's not a product to peddle, it's an idea to be rejected, accepted or modified.

Wiki money. Democratic money. The People’s money.

I like the "Internet’s currency" best. It’s not just another Flooz, Beenz or e-gold, but THE Internet’s currency because it is universal.

+1 The People's money

Sounds very charming and highlights the collective fashion of BitCoin in a clean and simple way.

Has a nice ring to it but not strictly true

The People's Money, if you have electricity.

[BitterTea]

I've included some conclusions from this thread in the PR page:

https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Public_relations

This is fantastic. While I myself hold some of the "don't say" views, I agree that they need not be shared by anyone else in order to find bitcoin attractive as a medium of exchange or store of value.

As far as terminology, I prefer "decentralized digital currency", as I think that differentiates bitcoin from fiat and other virtual currencies (not decentralized) and physical commodities (not digital).

[SgtSpike]

I do like The People's Money.  Sounds slightly communistic/socialist for some reason, but w/e.  I like it.

Shortline, while trying to let the technology sell itself on its own merit sounds like a great idea, in practice, it doesn't work.  People just aren't tech-savvy enough to even begin to understand the underlying technology, or why it is better than other e-currencies out there.  They also aren't smart enough to know much of anything about how an economy works, the effects of an inflationary or deflationary currency, or the way the government can affect the currency supply.  You have to put it all in layman's terms, and that starts with how you name it, and continues with how you market it.  How bitcoins are marketed to the general public will make or break it.  Fortunately, the most powerful marketing tool out there is also currently the most-used to promote bitcoins: Word of Mouth.  No one listens to anyone more than their own friends and family.

I am not a marketer either.  Not sure what point you were trying to make about that if I was/wasn't.  I do have a business degree though.

[Shortline]

I do like The People's Money.  Sounds slightly communistic/socialist for some reason, but w/e.  I like it.

Shortline, while trying to let the technology sell itself on its own merit sounds like a great idea, in practice, it doesn't work.  People just aren't tech-savvy enough to even begin to understand the underlying technology, or why it is better than other e-currencies out there.  They also aren't smart enough to know much of anything about how an economy works, the effects of an inflationary or deflationary currency, or the way the government can affect the currency supply.  You have to put it all in layman's terms, and that starts with how you name it, and continues with how you market it.  How bitcoins are marketed to the general public will make or break it.  Fortunately, the most powerful marketing tool out there is also currently the most-used to promote bitcoins: Word of Mouth.  No one listens to anyone more than their own friends and family.

I am not a marketer either.  Not sure what point you were trying to make about that if I was/wasn't.  I do have a business degree though.

Just trying to be as far away as possible from the "this magical object can only go up in value" as-seen-on-tv type thing. Bitcoin seems to have an unpleasant whiff of that nowadays. There were lots of people trying to sell email and it obviously wasn't necessary, it was just time. It was time for Tor this year. Hopefully it's bitcoin's time soon.

At any rate Sarge, I'm down if bitcoin is portrayed by anyone however they want, more or less. Consensus isn't strictly necessary. I don't necessarily think memorydealer's radio ad is the greatest thing ever, doesn't really speak to my idea of bitcoin, but I wouldn't blame 'em for doing it.

+1 on the word of mouth though. Everyone I know who sells stuff (not many but a few) I've told about it.

[Mike Hearn]

I added "decentralized currency" to the do-say list, but terms like "the peoples currency" or "the currency of the people" would be associated with communism, I think.

Agree that the term peer-to-peer is also loaded. I wouldn't describe Bitcoin has P2P because that will make many people think of piracy and law breaking. Besides, it's a technical implementation detail that might not always be true. I think over time the network architecture will evolve to no longer be pure P2P but more resemble the internet: a broadcast backbone with most users connecting via star topologies to a nearby (trusted?) node.

[charliesheen]

Hipster currency.
"Yea I use bitcoins, you probably haven't heard of them"
or
HEX#4A7023-Backs

I built my bitcoin site for the non technical people. If you watch "The social network" Sean Parker Scott tells Zuckerberg to remove "The" from "Thefacebook" because college students would pick up on it more quickly. Im adding "The" to bitcoins with http://thebitcoin.us so that non college students will pick up on it.

[Alex Beckenham]

Im adding "The" to bitcoins with http://thebicoin.us so that non college students will pick up on it.

Try adding another t

Edit: Oh you spotted it.

[MysteryMiner]

"Grassroots money" is great and will appeal to most people.  If we can get people referring to bitcoins as "internet money," we have won the game.

"Grassroots" will not appeal to me and my people. The grass is mostly useless plants that grows on uncultivated places. Roots is part of the plant that sticks into dirty soil. So it will associate with dirty and weak part of useless plant.

Internet money also will not work. For people still learning how to open Firefox instead of Internet Explorer, the "internet money" is all that can be manipulated by computer, from homepage of your online bank, to paypal and bitcoins. They don't get the difference at all.

My suggestion is to continiue call Bitcoins simply Bitcoins. When people ask what is so special about them, then start to tell all the unique differences one by one at the time. We call Bittorrent the Bittorrent, not small piecedistributed downloader or grassroots filetransfers.