A rose by any other name would smell as sweet... but roses already have exceptional branding in the crowded flower market, having established unparalleled associations with romance, commercial holidays and last minute apologies. 

Those of us still building our #brand have to consider more carefully how to communicate what we're about.

What's in a name?

Niall (the insurance guy) came up with the name ‘Wrisk’ before he even met Darius (the tech guy). It’ll surprise no-one to learn these two, from such different backgrounds, have often had different opinions on how to describe us! (No fisticuffs, of course, but maybe a verbal tug-of-war once or twice.) 

However, they have always shared a strong vision for the future of Wrisk. That the name resonated with them both from day one was a very good sign.

‘Wrisk’ as a name has three great advantages:

1. It’s memorable. Partly because it’s short and sweet, partly because it sparks thoughts like: “Really? Isn’t risk a negative thing? Why would an insurance company take a name like that?” or "Great name, insurance is all about spreading risk between many!" It sticks in your mind - and that’s what a new venture needs.
2. It says something important about us. Specifically: we’re not afraid to take risks. Some have raised eyebrows at the name, even objected to it… but we love the name 'Wrisk' and - more importantly - it has tested well. So we’re keeping it.
3. The domain name was available and it doesn’t take up too many characters in a tweet. Hey, practical considerations are important.

Now we have a name we love, a vision we can all get behind, a team that’s in it for the long haul and - almost - the first version of our first product. It’s finally time to give our future customers a glimpse behind the scenes - starting with this blog.

Things change

The insurance industry is changing. Fast. Look into any insurance magazine right now (actually, best not - unless you're already an insurance geek, of course!) and you’ll see plenty of buzz about ‘insurtech’ - insurance and technology companies like ours. AI, blockchain, the Internet of Things… we’re staying up to date with everything new and intriguing. We plan to break down the hype, work out which emerging technology will actually make our customers’ lives easier, then check that you agree. 

Society is changing too. People share more, from houses to holidays, and live with less stability. We move around a lot, both jobs and homes, and having only one income stream is so 20th century. Things change for us as individuals, more often and more quickly than before. Any insurance provider has to adapt to fit your life, not the other way around. As we roll out product developments we'll explain our reasoning and make sure it makes sense.

We’re proud to make a positive impact on an industry like insurance. There's a huge opportunity for us to improve people's lives just by making insurance more simple, personal and transparent. However, we know not all of you will have such fluffy feelings about insurance as an industry - understandably! So we’ll do our best to demystify insurance for you, including common jargon, situations and practices. 

We'll also give you insight into the thinking, processes and people that go into making Wrisk. It's important to us that you know who we are as well as how and why we make the choices we do.

Embrace Wrisk

We’re not making ‘Tinder for insurance’; we’re just building Wrisk, for you. So we aim to talk with you as often as possible, on this blog, on social media and in person. We’ll share news, views and sneak previews whenever we can. In return, we want to hear all of your feedback and questions - starting right now!

Let us know: 

1. What do you think of our website?
2. What do you wish an all-powerful insurance app would do?
3. What is your worst insurance horror story (or your best experience, if you've had an amazing one)?

To give us your answers to all or any of the above, contact us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or email. We will respond to every message we receive!

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Photo by Wesson Wang on Unsplash