Brand Name Creation for Lemon8 by ByteDance

Challenge

Originally named Sharee, the upstart app developed by ByteDance was born from the desire to connect people to new ideas and inspire people to explore a life they love. After initial success in Japan, ByteDance, the operator of TikTok and Douyin, was looking to expand the app to across Asia and facing diverse cultural backgrounds and vastly different languages.

Solution

Labbrand created the Alphabetic name Lemon8, which comes from the word “lemonade”. The universally loved beverage is the embodiment of fresh sensation and positive thinking, a perfect analogy for the refreshing points of view and uplifting contents that are always available on Lemon8. The number "8" symbolizes "∞" (infinity), reflecting the endless stream of useful, fun, and refreshing ideas originating from everyday life.

Lemon8 also enables the app to leverage a universally recognizable symbol of “fresh lemon” as the anchor of the new brand’s visual language, transcending regions and cultures.

Results

After a successful brand name creation and relaunch in October of 2021, Lemon8 experienced rapid growth in Japan and achieved 1 million downloads by March of 2022, according to media reports. Building on its success in Japan and Southeast Asia, Lemon8 expanded to the U.S. and the U.K. in early 2023.