The Problem:

Lost in the cloud
Short on time
Category creation

Okta is a billion-dollar identity management company that securely connects people to their applications from anywhere. When we met them they were a small company called SaaSure. They’d just received their Series A, and they were in dire need of a new name.

The founders, Todd McKinnon and Frederic Kerrest, agreed with our findings: there were already enough “cloud” names out there. Cumulus This, Cloud That. They wanted to signal that they were a cloud company without saying they were just like all the others — and they needed to do it fast. This was music to our ears.

“It’s tough to separate yourself from the competition. And it’s even tougher when you’re in cloud computing.”

— Freddy Kerrest, President, Okta

The Fix:

Talk about the cloud in a new way
Keep it in the inner circle

After a thoughtful, intensive process with just the two founders, Okta rose to the top. They liked its brevity, and they felt its power. An available four-letter URL that actually has a clear connection to what your company does — well, that doesn’t hurt, either.

Okta is a meteorological term: it’s how pilots measure cloud cover. One Okta is equal to one-eighth of the sky covered with clouds. And with support for over 2000 apps across 185 countries, Okta’s getting close to having all eight eighths to themselves.

SaaSure is now Okta. Same company, better name. http://okta.com Look fwd to UnderTheRadar on Fri! http://bit.ly/bcUJt5 #Okta

— Okta (@okta) April 13, 2010

“These guys get it. They understood us. They knew what we were going through. And they immediately took responsibility for solving the problem.”

— Todd McKinnon, CEO, Okta

+++ okta.com

More you say?

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