06.13.19
WASHINGTON: Blue Engine + JDA has rebranded as Seven Letter.
Since Blue Engine Message & Media acquired JDA Frontline last October, the combined firm has been called Blue Engine + JDA.
The name Seven Letter comes from terms, all of which have seven letters, the firm uses to describe its work for clients: Content, insight, inspire, message, amplify, dynamic, digital, counsel, measure, results and success.
CEO and founding partner Erik Smith said the firm ran through 213 names before settling on the new moniker. A particular challenge, he said, was finding a name that didn’t already have a social media handle or registered URL.
“When I came up with Blue Engine 13 years ago, it was a relatively easier process,” Smith said. “Now, it’s more complex. You have to get a name that works on all the social media properties. And a clean URL is hard to come by.”
Smith said they even considered keeping the original name for a moment, but someone had hijacked the most appropriate URL.
“I discovered that someone registered it on the day of the merger,” he said. “It illustrates how hard it is to get a clean URL.”
The firm didn’t hire a branding expert to help with the process, Smith said, and the idea for the name came from discussions among the agency’s leaders.
“The branding work was done ourselves after figuring out who we are and what we’re about,” he explained. “We’re in the business of building public affairs brands, so it was intuitive to us and important that we do it ourselves.”