I understood the branding reason for de-branding Froogle into Google Product Search. And I understood why Google Search History became Google Web History. But I’m not exactly understanding the re-branding of Google’s Personalized Homepage into iGoogle. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve been a user of Google/ig (which is what I’ve called it because I didn’t know what else to) since it was launched two years ago. It is my start-page. I go to it several times each day. I evangelize it (along with a few other Ajax-type start pages) to those who I discover don’t use a newsreader, as it is a great way to experience RSS with training wheels.

I just don’t get the “i” part. Like it or not, the “i” prefix has been captured in the minds of consumers by another company noted for its branding acumen. I’m not talking here about a “copyright” issue — I’m sure the other company will not “go there” on claiming prefixes. I’m merely talking about branding at a Rorschach-test level: “What do you think when you see the prefix ‘i’?”

I don’t know, but when I saw the term iGoogle, all I could think of was the recent skit (embedded on left) on MadTV that has become popular on YouTube.

Bonus link: Great background on the evolution of iGoogle at Search Engine Land.

Looking at some of the follow-up coverage from last week’s econSM conference, I ran across Advertising Age’s Abbey Klaassen’s report that included this great quote:

Rishad Tobaccowala, CEO of Publicis Groupe’s Denuo, said the big mistake is using the word “advertising” in (online social media). The single most important lesson in marketing is to understand your consumer. “Social media is the best way to think about marketing, but it’s not necessarily about advertising,” he said. He suggested marketers can provide editing and recalled a conversation he had with humorist ZeFrank, who said, “We’re living in a world of crapacopia and brands can be very good about eliminating crapacopia.” Amid heady valuations for social-media companies, Mr. Toboccowala offered a reality check: “One single show in prime time has more impressions than the top six shows on YouTube. … If we go tell clients something that’s not mathematically true, they’ll say you’re a bunch of idiots and we’ll have 2000 and 2001 again.” Search has been such a booming online business because it scales, he pointed out, and added: “The rest is really hard work.”

I’ll be adding more to this post later in the day as I want to connect some dots.

• David Zinczenko is the prince of magazine publishing | MarketWatch
  Quote: “Men’s Health editor says that branding means everything.”
  (tags: magazines)