More Accessible Board Branding (Names)

That is a nice true life story. But it would not have run differently if the Arduino would have been called AXXON and the Duemilanove "2009". (You might recall a lot of products from the nineties, having been called "2000".)

He did not know of the Arduino, because it is not a relevant concept for him. It is a concept for "the rest of us". The Arduino was developed to HIDE AWAY the idiosynchrasies of historic processors as the AVR series.

Many things here in the forum have to do with DISCLOSING them again, which is a little bit perverse, I think...

I'm afraid there's a little bit more to marketing than using an English word as a model name.

"Arduino" doesn't have any problems getting noticed in the hobby electronics sector - just look around you. They're everywhere and from what I can tell, growing all the time.

You're trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist.

I never said that I thought Arduino should be changed....But in all honesty, it might be helpful as well.

When I tell people about it, like I did today, they honestly go, "Ardew...what?" When I finally send them a few links, they all seemed genuinely impressed and that's the problem. There's probably a lot of potential users who would make great additions to the community. There's a lot of people I know who are electricians/electrical engineers, and Arduino would be something they'd really be into.

But if I tell them verbally, they'll go home and try to type in "Arduino Duemilanove" into Google, but instead they'll type something like "Ardeeno Demalnov" and who knows what result they will get.

Think of Apple. Apple is the epitome of marketing. Now, Arduino isn't really a corporation racking up millions of dollars a year, but that doesn't mean we can't spread our user-base by marketing a little.

But think about Apple. Their products are simply named and fairly descriptive. The name Apple is easy to remember, and you know exactly how to spell it and say it. Arduino on the other hand, there is like 5 pronunciations for it, and Duemilanove, well who knows?

Apple MacBook: Three syllables and fairly descriptive
Arduino Duemilanove: Seven syllables (I think) And what is this telling you about the product?

If anything is to get changed by the next revision, (which it can, and has), it should be the Duemilanove part. It doesn't matter where you are from, besides Italy that is, you probably won't know how to spell Duemilanove and that's not good for marketing.

Humans are guilty of jumping to conclusions or making a bias without even knowing anything about the matter at hand. They judge a book by its cover and not its contents. Same thing with Arduino. People are going to hear the name and automatically become skeptical.

If it is a more accessible name, something short and consise, we have a better chance at grabbing those people who might be interested but are deterred by the name or similar things.

Also, a more professional website might be more helpful. Pretend you are Apple or Microsoft. Hell, look at the Atmel site. To be brutally honest with you, I LOVE the Atmel site. It's simple but intricate and just really appealing. Also, I'd like to have the Arduino site fit the whole screen and not just stay left aligned. If anything make it center aligned.

Well that's just my input. Hope it's not too repetitive. It's constructive criticism. Don't think I am trying to get down on anything/anyone. I am really just trying to help. I rambled a lot, but its really just what I think.

I for one hope the Arduino folks never get too caught up in the what's best for marketing purposes mindset. They seem to be down to earth engineering folks having fun with their creations. If we can live with the non-standard shield spacing then we can certainly live with whatever cute names they come up with for their products. :wink:

Lefty

Oh thats not the point.... -________-

But if I tell them verbally, they'll go home and try to type in "Arduino Duemilanove" into Google, but instead they'll type something like "Ardeeno Demalnov" and who knows what result they will get.

What you get: Arduino Duemilanove

Gotta love google; by the way, with their new "instant" feature, I bet they find it easier...

:slight_smile:

Possibly. I am using Google just as an example. I have like 5+ friends that are really good at C/C++ and tons others that are casual programmers. They want something new/fresh/interesting. This is a perfect place to do that. You have open windows to do whatever you want.

Now some may argue that we don't want people who judge a book by its cover. True. Maybe you'll get a little different mix of people, but there are some really smart people that are really really ignorant.

Do you want to have to surrender to BeagleBoard or not? :-/

judge a book by its cover

What the heck are you talking about? I love the name "Arduino." The first time I heard it (not too long ago) I looked it up. Really. On the Internet. You can do that. (No, I didn't have any problem spelling it and Google didn't have any trouble finding it.)

Those baby-name sites all have definitions like "good friend", "staunch friend", "brave friend". Has anyone ever called an 8088 or a Pentium or "Windows Vista" or anything else from Intel or Microsoft any kind of friend? (Well, maybe their shareholders...)

When I looked a little more I found stuff like the following on http://www.digicult.it/digimag/article.asp?id=1276:


"Arduino from Dadone or Arduino from Pombia, known as Arduino from Ivrea, was the King of Italy from 1002 to 1014. The Romantic culture made his figure popular, because they saw in him a precocious representative of the struggle for Italy to get out from under foreign domination."


Man! That's some heady stuff! I mean, damn, I get goose bumps from that (even if it did turn out that our Arduino name was taken from that of the snack bar at the Design Institute in Milan).

As far as the name "Duemilanove" is concerned, I just love it. Sounds a little exotic to this good ol' boy from Arkansas, but it actually means something: 2009. Imagine that! What the heck does Celeron mean? (That crunchy green stalk that you put peanut butter on.) Pentium? (Maybe it means something to someone, but it's Greek to me, and I can't think of any etymological connection to the actual product.)

On the other hand, maybe I'm not in the ideal marketing target demographic group for any computery stuff. (Really old guy with Welsh/Pennsylvania Dutch forbears, born and half-bred in the Southern U.S.)

Anyhow, don't people sometimes like to stretch their intellects and try the sounds of new things? Maybe even look them up? Maybe even learn a little? See Footnote.

Easy to remember? I can't say. Likable? What's not to like? And, I think that Arduino has expanded beyond some kind of "cult" status that is only appreciated by a few technogeeks. What's the post count on this forum? How many registered members?

Regards,

Dave

Footnote:

TheLaw, you said something about

really smart people that are really really ignorant.

Well...

"Men are born ignorant, not stupid. They are made stupid by education."
---Bertrand Russell

Marketing?

In Silicon Valley, there's an old joke that goes like this:

Q:
What's the difference between a Marketing VP and God?

A:
God doesn't think he's the VP of Marketing.

---davekw7x (With apologies to Larry Ellison)

born and half-bred in the Southern U.S.)

In that order? :wink:

Lefty

From idioms.freedictionary.com:


"if you were born and bred in a place, you were born and grew up in that place and have the typical character of someone who lives there "


So: I was born there and half of me grew up there. The other half is still developing (at least that's what we all hope). If I had half the character of my dad, I would be truly remarkable. As it is, well...

Regards,

Dave

Ah...I give up. Perhaps I am not portraying my point as clearly as I would have hoped.

A lot of people like the Arduino name. I have said in previous posts that I personally have nothing against having Arduino as a name. In fact it is original and pretty catchy. There might still be better but its really quite cool sounding. It kind of rolls of the tongue nicely. (Atleast the way I say it).

But in the courses I have taken over the years, whether it be business related or not, a good percentage of successful marketing lies within the name. Sure giving it some flashy ads or a stunning theatric trailer can help. But without a solid name, you loose a lot of the effect and its hard to make that up by other means. Your product's name is the foundation. Arduino is a great start, but how about something a little shorter? Something that you can say with the snap of a finger.

You won't have to hesitate at all. And you might say you say "Duemilanove" perfectly. And you might. But how about to the 7 Billion other potential users. As I have said. There are tons of smart people out there. From the corners of Asia to the the innards of Africa to somewhere in Alabama. So many people which could make Arduino into something so much more. We need to attract them, not deflect. Increase the user-base.

Again, I'm not saying the name isn't interesting and/or cool. Duemilanove is a funky word and as others have said its quite "exotic". Indeed it is. But what if Microsoft released its new OS and named it Microsoft Windows Centocinquantamila, what would be your immediate reaction? Probably like, "Eww....what the **** is that supposed to mean?" and you'd probably be a little put off. That's not to say you wouldn't purchase it but it makes you wonder. Make the person know that Arduino is legit and that will be accomplished with a name that will stick and a name that can get around.

Oh and also on the Google example I gave, there's a good chance they don't even remember the word Duemilanove at all. Gosh, I would be lucky if they even remembered Arduino. Make it stick. Apple iPhone. It tells you its a phone. Arduino Duemilanove tells me when it was made....in Italian. What are people going to think of that? I am sorry. I do not carry around an English> Italian dictionary with me.

Really don't think I am trying to be obnoxious. I am coming from a different point of you than perhaps you are.

I am still relatively new to Arduino. Most of you guys have been around for at least a year, some from the start. But now that you are very much involved, you (may) forget that there are still people who want to join the community. I was one of them a short time ago. Hey, I love electronics. I love programming. And I am clearly not the only one like this. People are curious but if you want them to be involved you have to recruit them. You have to do something make it feel like what they are getting into is worthwhile, which Arduino clearly is.

Well, lets see how many quotes/accusations this post accumulates.

Good day.

Ah...I give up.

And then you go on once again about your opinions on how much more successful they could be if they just changed the names of their products. ::slight_smile:

As the great scribe himself stated "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet".

It's great that you like electronics and the Arduino platform, take some more time to enjoy it more. :wink:

Lefty

I'm not here to bash on anyone and your here ranting about my post. I'm not targeting anyone so I do not see the necessity of that comment. Oh well, I got carried away. Big deal.

I am a newbie and that of course means I have no point of reference and should just go back to my cave where I belong...

I was looking for some genuine feedback. This is not a selfish thing. I KNOW that Arduino is a cool thing. I KNOW that you can do whatever you want with it. My suggestion was only to address people who DONT KNOW about Arduino. Hey we don't need to be insanely professional or do all sorts of fancy things. There's isn't tons of money floating around. That's not the point. The point is to outreach.

Oh well, I guess I'll just carry on with life.

and should just go back...

I'm assuming that you are smiling when you say that. I hope so. I mean, I was smiling when I gushed about Arduino and Dum... Demall... well you know.

I was looking for some genuine feedback.

Mission accomplished!

I kind of like the way things are going. (I'm kind of new here myself, and I'm just getting the feel of the culture, or at least I think I am.)

I don't know how you feel about it, but I wouldn't want to live in a world where everyone had the same opinions as mine. See Footnotes.

Regards,

Dave

Footnotes:

[1]
"I never learned from a man who agreed with me."
---Robert A. Heinlein

[2]
"Opinions are like a$$holes elbows.
Everyone has his own, and I wouldn't want
it any other way."
---davekw7x

@TheLaw

Ah...I give up. Perhaps I am not portraying my point as clearly as I would have hoped.

No, you are, just noone here agrees with you.

As part of your marketing courses, I'm sure you learned that successful marketing is targeted and completely dependent on context (within the market place and within society as a whole). Basically, to market Arduinos is very different from marketing a breakfast cereal.

If you're really interested: I'd suggest you dive in and start researching. Research and profile the target audience (not just your mates); conduct a detailed analysis of the worldwide sales figures; examine perception in the market place and exposure levels; look at the competitors closely; look at how Arduino are operating compared to non-competitors in the same market sector or targeting the same audience.

Then, you can judge whether the model name is a problem. The anecdotal "evidence", experiences, exposure and successes of the Arduino team indicates otherwise.

Edit:
Incidently, I like the fact that you're starting to think about this stuff. Even if I disagree with your summary. A critical approach to marketing (or an awareness of this) is a useful skill to get you through life.

Ah thank you all for your feedback. I suppose maybe not this time around but maybe we will think about marketing in the future if perhaps Arduino becomes even more popular, not just in the hobbyist segment but in real world applications and beyond.

P.S. I think the website could use a little more juice to it. The informations is all very good and the layout is very clear and straight-forward but perhaps a little more flash could be added. Not necessary of course, but something that I think a lot of people could agree on. And it won't have drawbacks or too many complications.

I am a passable ActionScript programmer, but I hate what people nowadays call "Flash" :wink:

I see there is some sort of connection to this but I am too dumb to recognize it... :stuck_out_tongue:

I like the Arduino name. When I see it in written form sometimes I confuse it with Android (which is not entirely a bad thing).

I kinda agree about Deumolinove. That's a mouthful.