On Monday, Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino sent a memo to her staff addressing the transition to the new company name, “X”. The rebrand follows owner Elon Musk’s announcement over the weekend that the platform would officially become “X”. In the memo obtained by CNBC’s Sara Eisen, Yaccarino praised her team for their hard work and emphasized the company’s inventor mindset and its drive to move at the speed of light.
Yaccarino’s Memo to Staff
In her memo, Yaccarino acknowledged the rare opportunity her team has to make a big impression on the world, both in life and in business. She reflected on Twitter’s impact on the world 17 years ago, noting how the platform changed the speed at which people access information and created a new dynamic for communication, debate, and response to global events.
However, Yaccarino emphasized that there is still much further to go with the new company name, “X”. With the inventor mindset at the company’s core, Yaccarino called for continued learning, testing of new approaches, and ultimately succeeding.
Yaccarino praised the pace of innovation over the last nine months, including advancements in creator monetization, long-form content, and brand safety protections. She also highlighted the company’s goal to create a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities through experiences in audio, video, messaging, payments, and banking.
Yaccarino reminded her team that they are writing history and there is no limit to their transformation. She emphasized that everyone is invited to build “X” together and that she and Elon Musk will work across every team to bring “X” to the world, including keeping the entire community up to date.
Elon Musk’s Vision for “X”
Elon Musk’s goal for the rebrand to “X” is to turn the platform into an “everything app”. The transition is part of his vision to create a platform that offers anything a user could possibly want, from messaging and social media to banking and payments.
Musk has previously stated that he wants to create an app that is like the WeChat app in China, which offers a wide range of services, including messaging, social media, and payments. Musk believes that if Twitter can become a platform that offers a similar range of services, it will become a more valuable company and attract more users.
The Challenges of Rebranding
Rebranding a company as large as Twitter is no small feat. It requires extensive planning and coordination across all teams to ensure a smooth transition.
One of the biggest challenges with rebranding is maintaining brand recognition while also signaling a change. In the case of Twitter’s rebrand to “X”, the company will need to find a way to inform users of the change while also maintaining the same level of recognition and trust that the Twitter brand has built over the years.
Another challenge of rebranding is the potential for confusion among users. The transition to “X” will likely involve changes to the platform’s user interface, which could take some time for users to adjust to. The company will need to provide clear and concise instructions to users to ensure a smooth transition.
Actual Memo Yaccarino Sent to Staff:
Hi team, What a momentous weekend. As I said yesterday, it's extremely rare, whether it's in life or in business, that you have the opportunity to make another big impression. That's what we're experiencing together, in real time. Take a moment to put it all into perspective. 17 years ago, Twitter made a lasting imprint on the world. The platform changed the speed at which people accessed information. It created a new dynamic for how people communicated, debated, and responded to things happening in the world. Twitter introduced a new way for people, public figures, and brands to build long lasting relationships. In one way or another, everyone here is a driving force in that change. But equally, all our users and partners constantly challenged us to dream bigger, to innovate faster, and to fulfill our great potential. With X we will go even further to transform the global town square — and impress the world all over again. Our company uniquely has the drive to make this possible. Many companies say they want to move fast — but we enjoy moving at the speed of light, and when we do, that's X. At our core, we have an inventor mindset -- constantly learning, testing out new approaches, changing to get it right and ultimately succeeding. Over the last nine months, we've made incredible strides in the pace of innovation, including advancements in creator monetization, long-form content, and brand safety protections. We've made significant progress in our goal to create a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities through experiences in audio, video, messaging, payments, and banking. Going forward, X will continue to develop experiences that will delight our users in video, audio, messaging, banking, and payments. Elon and I plan to work across every team to bring X to the world, including keeping the entire community up to date. Please don't take this moment for granted. You're writing history, and there's no limit to our transformation. And everyone is invited to build X with us. Linda
Final Words
Twitter’s rebrand to “X” is a significant move for the platform and represents a new era for the company. With Elon Musk’s vision of creating an “everything app”, the platform has the potential to become even more valuable and attract a wider range of users.
While rebranding a company as large as Twitter comes with its challenges, the company has a talented team and a strong inventor mindset that will help it navigate the transition smoothly. With Yaccarino’s call to build “X” together, the future looks bright for the platform.