ISIS. Terrorism. Al-Qaeda. Three words most people would stray far away from. The two companies in this article by the Dailymail and this article by TVNZ are no different and doing exactly that. A Florida condo development named Isis is looking to alter its name in an effort to disaffiliate itself with the the terrorist group.
Isis – a condo development in Florida
ISSIS, a talent and event agency based in Auckland, fearing ISIS links is also looking to rename itself.
ISSIS events: based in Auckland
Companies with a broad customer base and brand recognition are capable of shortening the company name to an acronym. Ries and Trout’s views on company positioning err on the side of avoiding abbreviating company names on the basis that it can reflect multiple meanings and that it gives larger, more established companies the upper hand. ISIS reflects just that but in a different sense. Instead of competing for customers and the market position, companies are now forced to defend their image and reputation. Losing clientele is just a side effect of the presupposed “links” to ISIS, the terrorist group. It’s extremely difficult to reposition the perception of a company in the consumer’s mind after the seed of thought is implanted.
This idea of “name-sharing” parallels that to a prospective undergraduate looking for post-university employment. Having a commonly used name could hinder an applicant’s image when employers search for them and someone else’s profile appears. A more established profile would appear first and hinder the applicant’s chances of recognition — much like the case with the aforementioned companies.