Are you considering rebranding your company? You may feel that your logo, website and or common messaging no longer properly communicate what your brand is. If this is the case, your company may need to strategically think through a partial or complete rebranding strategy. Here, we’ll walk you through the basics of how to rebrand and how to better define your brand identity.
In our experience, a partial rebrand is much more common than a full rebrand. We see this in companies of all sizes from small agencies to Fortune 500 companies. Oftentimes, a simple logo update can make all the difference. If you think your company may need a change of this sort, there are a few key factors to consider:
- Do you need a partial rebrand or a full rebrand? A partial rebrand may do the trick and will cost you a lot less time to complete. Full rebrands can mean changing the company image entirely and reworking the brand message, strategy and overall feel.
- Is a rebrand really needed? Seriously take the time to evaluate WHY you are wanting a rebrand. Is there a new CEO? A merger? Have new service offerings changed who you are? Do you feel the brand is falling behind the times?
- What kind of message does your brand try to communicate? Are you currently doing a good job of communicating that message?
- Do you have data to support what people think of your brand? How does your audience currently feel about your brand. Take consensus, do surveys and find out where your audience is dissatisfied. This will help guide any form of rebrand or rule out the need entirely\
Good reasons for a full rebrand:
- Changes to your Audience - Your target demographic has changed. Maybe your audience has become younger, older, you find more success in other regions, etc. Whatever shift there may have been in your target audience, you may need to address the challenge with a full rebrand. Perhaps (like Burberry) your product has been adopted by a less than desirable audience and you need to shift the focus away to a more desirable audience group. If so, you’ll need to find a strategy that points people in the right direction and helps your brand to speak to the right channels.
- Changes to the Organization - Significant company changes such as mergers or changes in leadership, business strategy. With new people in power, the company may need to be steered into a different direction. Completely rebranding may be the best way to guarantee a clean slate and clear messaging.
- Negative Press or Feedback - Audience has responded negatively to something about the brand. If you’re putting an unpopular message out there, consider taking your brand in the total opposite direction. You may need to consider what big changes are needed to correct the negative press or feedback and how to best implement them. It may be as simple as killing a campaign or as huge as completely changing the company’s image.
- Change to company culture - Maybe your company is a bit outdated and needs to learn how to move with the times. A total rebrand may be the perfect means to sprucing up your brand and tapping in to the modern market.
Good reasons for a partial rebrand
- The brand is dated - A brand should be designed to be timeless if possible, but sometimes even the best brands become dated for one reason or another.
- Branding is unclear - If your brand message and actions seem without a purpose, you’ll lose your following quicker than you think. There is no room for ambiguity in the modern world.
- Brand representation - Brand management blah blah The brand is not being conveyed properly
Many companies have served as rebrand success stories but this is definitely not a move to be taken lightly. If you’re considering formulating a rebranding strategy, talk to the experts. If your company is considering making this massive decision, let’s chat. We’ll talk you through each step of the process and let the data guide our way. Contact us here.
Image by StartupStockPhotos from Pixabay
