The Corporate Name: To Change or Not To Change

The announcement ads are everywhere-in magazines, in newspapers and on television. Hundreds of companies, large and small, change their names every year. The Wall Street Journal reports that some 400 to 800 annually make a name change, and these numbers don't include the thousands more that only consider such a move. Why is it that so many corporations are reassessing their names? What spurs them to undertake a procedure that is often painfully emotional, and, in all cases, is time consuming?

Bell, James. Communication World Bulletin (2005). Careers>Management>Marketing