Another startup moving from .com to .co
Following in the footsteps of Supply.co, Playbuzz a company that helps publishers add tools to their articles like polls is rebranding to EX.co.
Co-founder and CEO Tom Pachys told me the name stands for “the experience company,” and he said it reflects the company’s broader content marketing ambitions. Ex.co will continue working with news publishers, but Pachys said there’s a bigger market for what the company has built.
“The previous name does not reflect the values that we stand for today — not even future values,” he said.
Interesting rebrand, founded in 2012 the company has raised close to $66 million.
Playbuzz is storytelling platform that provides publishers & brands with interactive tools to craft engaging editorial & commercial content.
That domain is going to leak like crazy, both the term and extension are confusing.
I actually like Playbuzz I think sometimes people try to get too cute or clever. I would not know right away it’s the EXPERIENCE Company. Maybe it’s Exchange or Ex mates, lovers, etc…
thats why they are smart with $66,000,000 in funding and a great .CO
and you are eating cheeetos and saying “in a minute mom”
This all seems rather vague. If you have to explain to domainers that Ex.co means “the experience company” how is the public going to get on board with this? How do they know it’s not a site for ex-spouses or ex-anything? And what kind of “experience” will this company deliver-not exactly a targeted name, IMO. I think we domainers often get too close to these issues and forget our target audience.
Agreed Tom except I did not understand the last line, these are not domainers, they are a 7 year old startup with $66 million raised.
Raymond, I assumed that someone at the company was a savvy domainer and would’ve counseled them regarding a name that was memorable and better communicated who they were and what they did.
(But obviously, someone with $66 million can choose whatever name they want) Tom
I guess they raised so much money with the wrong choice of name. Just google experience company and you will see a similar name or even theexco. com. Lots of leaking and confusion definitely happening. Short name but wrong move.Better to find a premium name to rebrand to and stand out. I think they lack the experience and they are talking about being called “the experienced company “. Having the short ex.co doesn’t mean they got it right even with all the millions.
Clamp, Is this reminiscent of the time before the “Internet bubble” burst when investors threw money at just about any startup?
I think the rebrand made the company a more formal, serious business and is a good move. “Playbuzz” sounds like a puzzle game to me.
.CO is hot and will be getting hotter.
Yes, .co and .io are hot now (with some startups). Eventually though, if and when, any of those startups turn into successful/sustainable/mainstream businesses, most will switch to the .com equivalent/variation.
A couple of notes here as the Domain Buyer Broker who proudly brokered this acquisition:
– Feedback is always interesting to get, but ultimately it doesn’t matter what *domainers* think of the choice of a domain; what matters most is the company’s target audience, who are already familiar with .CO domains in general and have responded positively to this rebrand.
– EX.CO (formerly Playbuzz) is a B2B company, so the decision process for new brand name and domain is different than for a B2C company.
– The company has rebranded itself as EX.CO (look at the logo and the copy on their Website) and now has the exact match domain name: EX.CO … that’s always a best practice: your company name mirrors your domain name.
– I salute my client for this bold rebrand and making use of a killer two-letter .CO domain.
Salute? Name sucks. That is all.
the name makes no sense, he salutes them because he got a commission. Where the pride comes in who knows. You are a broker you got paid.
I;’m amazed everyone is discussing the new URL and no one is discussing the $499 a month (paid annually) they are now trying to charge publishers. Whatever the name, they won’t exist for long and it won’t be because they changed domains. Is making $66m from publishers not enough?