CASE STUDY: ONTRA
Renaming a leader in contract automation and intelligence
After working in big law and finance, the founders of InCloudCounsel set out to create solutions that would free companies of the constraints of high-volume legal work. Founded in 2014, the company’s technology and services help customers automate the management of routine legal documents and processes.
Due to potential misperceptions of both “cloud” and “counsel,” InCloudCounsel’s leadership decided to find a name that better fit the company’s expertise, personality, and future business. In partnership with HUb Strategy & Communications, Heirloom developed the name “Ontra,” a truncation of “cONTRAct.” While nearly 1,000 names were created in total, “Ontra” was one of the first ideas presented—the client team was excited by the nod to contracts, the fact that “on” subtly suggests technology, and the opportunity to describe themselves as “at the heart of your contracts.”
Ontra’s rebrand coincided with the announcement of a $200 million Series B round of funding. A post on the company blog describes the name as representing “our mission to make contracts more efficient and to free businesses and lawyers to focus on impactful, engaging work.” On Brand New, which provides reviews and opinions on brand identity work, the new name was one of the top 10 name changes of 2021 based on an analysis of the site’s trademark “Great,” “Fine,” or “Bad” polls.
