To some of us, the thought of naming an intranet may seem like a silly idea. Do we name our CRM or accounting software? Probably not. But an intranet is unique and unlike a lot of other enterprise technology. It’s a social tool that enables and encourages company-wide collaboration. It’s about community more than it is about technology.

It’s also a tool that needs to be adopted company-wide. Your CRM likely isn’t used by your developers, and your marketing automation tool isn’t used by your tech support, but an intranet is used by an entire company. Adoption is not just good to have, but essential for its success. This is why it’s important to get creative with tactics to improve intranet adoption. One of the easiest ways to get this ball rolling is to name your intranet. Here are a few tips to help you get started:

Examine Your Intranet Goals

Are the goals of your intranet to collaborate more or to simplify where documents are kept online? If the goal is collaboration and you are a company that doesn’t take itself too seriously, consider choosing a name that reflects this--like “Chatty Kathy”, or the “Vicki the Virtual Water Cooler”. If your goals surround internal knowledge share, try names that imply information sharing, like “The Hub”.

Look To Your Core Values

Are your core values collecting dust on the wall or do your employees actually live them? Your core values and your mission or vision statement should tell a lot about who your company is (If it doesn’t then it might be time to rewrite them!) If your company values things like ethics, honesty, and integrity, than maybe “Goofy” isn’t the best choice for a name.

Get Your Employees Involved

The more employees are involved in the naming of the intranet, the greater the chance they will engage with the intranet. This is why it is important to get employees involved in the naming process from the beginning right through to the end. Make it fun with a contest, and as you get closer let your employees choose the finalists by adding a poll to your intranet.

Look To The Future

So maybe you are a fresh startup right now with just a few employees, but where will you be in two years, or ten years? Just like the trend where many businesses created within a certain era all had a trendy name that ended in the suffix “ify”, you don’t want your intranet name to reflect where you were at that moment. Rather, it should be about the direction you see your company going. Again, consider your company vision.

Promoting The Name

Finally, the best way to ensure your name sticks is to constantly use it. Consider running a few campaigns that continually mention it. You could even put up a few posters and signs in high traffic areas such as lunch rooms, meeting rooms, or company bathrooms. You could also hold an actual launch party. Yes, many companies actually hold launch parties. I’ve seen some super creative ideas where companies create cakes, and give away swag branded with the intranet name.

What ideas do you have for naming your intranet?