Platform naming for NBC Sports Next

Background & Challenge

NBC Sports Next, the “tech arm” of NBC Sports, decided to reorganize its SportsEngine division, which provides tech solutions to more than 30,000 youth and recreational sports organizations worldwide. Consolidating GoMotion (class-based sports such as dance, martial arts, and gymnastics) and Team Unify (swimming) would streamline the management tools for these sports businesses. A single intuitive platform for scheduling, registration, communications, financials, marketing, and more means owners can focus on what they love: helping kids get the most out of these sports. The company returned to Catchword, who had named GoMotion in 2019, for the new name.

Naming the Brand

Because SportsEngine’s reimagined portfolio would also include HQ, Play, and Tourney platforms and had to be easily findable in app stores, we knew the name needed to be short. We explored well over 500 candidates in a range of styles, but the best solution was the simplest (as it so often is): SportsEngine Motion. Shortening GoMotion helps retain the brand equity the platform had built over 4 years and is broad enough to easily encompass both Team Unify and GoMotion users. For parents and students looking for the app, the name intuitively appears in stores as SE Motion.