--- title: "Business Names Trending Back to Conventional | Grit Brokerage" description: "Startup names are shifting from misspelled and made-up words to conventional ones. See what Crunchbase found and why one word .coms still matter." url: https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/business-names-trending-back-to-conventional publisher: Grit Brokerage contact: https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/contact offer: https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/inquiry --- [Market insights](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/blog?topic=market-insights) # Business Names Trending Back to Conventional Studies cited in this post show startups are moving away from misspelled and made-up names toward recognized words. A Crunchbase article by Joanna Glasner says straightforward and evocative names are most popular. Grit Brokerage adds that it still sees fast growth in one word .coms being purchased and branded on. By Grit BrokerageSep 9, 20202 min read ![Startup logos showing a shift from made-up brand names to conventional word names](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/_astro/a53ed9_0bca738f419641d989e17b7b5e889e72.CewoiQ-F_ZUFxLn.webp) For several years, perhaps even decades startups went through a phase of very creative and even odd naming methods. Misspelled and made up words were the naming norm, many of which are now household brands. Several of these words are even used in everyday conversation by millions of people - for example if someone asks for a Kleenex, you know they mean facial tissue and chances are they won’t be holding out only for a Kleenex brand tissue if they need one. And of course, now there is Google - tens of millions of people daily tell someone they will “Google it” which is understood as looking something up online…but they most likely will actually be using Google for their search. However, over the last couple of years, studies have shown that startup and business naming is reverting back to a more conventional style. As pointed out in the Crunchbase article [_Startup Names Are Getting Less Silly_](https://news.crunchbase.com/news/startup-naming-trends-2020/) by Joanna Glasner, recently funded startups are more often naming their brands after better recognized words. Crunchbase is a great source of data for startup information so they certainly have a good insight on naming trends as well. As pointed out in the article, words that are straightforward or evocative seem to be the most popular types of new brands being launched. Straightforward names are popular because they describe the service or desired outcome of what you should expect from that brand. Evocative words do what they sound like they do - evoke an emotion or feeling. It should be pointed out that in Joanna’s article she mentions that these more simple monikers are becoming popular again because _“…startups are less concerned about getting a dot-com domain with their exact brand name”_. This may be partially true as many startups are more focused on growing their product or service from the outset and will settle for their name in .io, .co, .net or a .com with a keyword in front of or behind the brand name. It should be noted that we are also seeing rapid acceleration of straightforward and evocative one word .coms being purchased and branded on as well. In many cases, once companies reach a certain point they realize they had better rebrand or upgrade to a premium .com if they are to become the company their shareholders want them to be. One example of this is a domain we recently brokered the sale of, Prove.com which was a big rebrand from a company operating on a more creative misspelling; Payfone.com. [Click here](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/11-recent-domain-name-upgrade-acquisitions-revealed-on-twitter) to read about just a handful of the many .com domain upgrades we’ve observed already this year. It is interesting to see the trend start to sway back towards conventional monikers for startups and businesses. Overall, they do make for more intuitive brands and as a general rule of thumb for domain names - shorter is better. However, I’m sure we will continue to see a lot of funny sounding names coming out of the woodwork as well. It’s only natural that as more and more words get branded on that people will have to come up with creative alternatives. Some will stick and rise up to become part of our lexicon, but it will take a lot more marketing dollars to make that happen than it would to acquire a premium one word .com, build on it and almost instantly have a brand with mindshare the masses recognize. ! ## Questions this post answers ### Are startup names getting simpler? Yes. The post cites the Crunchbase article Startup Names Are Getting Less Silly by Joanna Glasner, which found recently funded startups more often use better recognized words. Straightforward and evocative names are the most popular types. ### Why are simple startup names coming back? The article says startups are less concerned about getting a dot-com domain with their exact brand name. The post agrees this may be partly true, since many start on .io, .co or .net before later upgrading to a one word .com. ### Does a made-up name still work? It can, but the post says it takes far more marketing dollars to build mindshare for a new word than to buy a premium one word .com and build on it. Shorter names are also more intuitive. ## Terms in this post - [Brand name](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/glossary/brand-name) - [Rebrand](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/glossary/rebrand) - [.com](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/glossary/dot-com) ## Keep reading - [When Should a Startup Upgrade to a Better Domain Name?Upgrade when the weak domain costs you more than the better one would: customers mistype it, investors or partners question it, or you are about to spend on brand and marketing. Most startups do it right after a funding round or before a major launch, using a broker so the owner does not see a funded buyer.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/guides/startup-domain-upgrade) - [11 Recent Domain Name Upgrade Acquisitions Revealed on TwitterThis Grit Brokerage post lists 11 confirmed domain name upgrades revealed on Twitter within 30 days, plus one bonus corporate acquisition. Examples include Evolution.com, Stash.com and Orchard.com. Grit credits domain trackers Jamie Zoch and James Iles for finding them and recommends following both to watch premium domain moves.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/11-recent-domain-name-upgrade-acquisitions-revealed-on-twitter) - [35 Recent Premium Domain Acquisitions & UpgradesThis post lists 35 domains that recently changed hands, mostly one word .COMs now used as the buyer's permanent brand. Examples include Cal.com, upgraded from Calendso.com, and Deel.com, which came from LetsDeel.com. Grit Brokerage compiled the list from James Iles of JamesNames.com and his Twitter feed.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/35-recent-premium-domain-acquisitions-upgrades) - [Do Domain Names Still Matter When People Search With AI?Yes, domain names still matter, but the reason has shifted. AI answers cut clicks to keyword and content sites, while they recommend brands by name. A short, easy to spell brand .com is simple to say, remember and type. Keyword-only value is weaker. Brand value is stronger.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/domain-names-ai-search-2026) - [Domain Trends and Predictions for 2022Grit Brokerage founder Brian Harbin shared 2022 domain market predictions on a Domain Name Wire podcast, summarized here. Expected trends include rising prices for one word .COMs, higher sales volume, strong alternative extensions such as .ORG, .IO and .AI, Web3 demand, and fractional ownership following directions.com.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/domain-trends-and-predictions-for-2022) - [One Word -ed (Past Tense) .COM Domains on the RiseGrit Brokerage explains that past tense one word .com domains ending in -ed are rising in price. They often cost less than singular word .coms. The post lists dozens in use, including Booked.com and Placed.com, and notes -ed sales in the mid five figures, including Versed.com, Installed.com and Unchained.com.](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/post/one-word-ed-past-tense-com-domains-on-the-rise) ## Buying or selling a domain? Call, text or email. Responsiveness is our trademark, and a broker answers, not a form robot. [Talk to a broker](https://gritbrokerage.preview.multisites.ai/contact) [Call (442) 500-GRIT](tel:+1-442-500-4748)