As companies are continually changing, your brand may need to be seen in a different way due to growth, change, or even difficulties you didn't see coming. At first, a strong brand name is crucial, but every business needs to consider making big changes every now and then. A poorly conceived rebrand, on the other hand, might confuse customers, turn off dedicated fans, and undermine the value of a brand that has been built up over time. This blog will help you figure out when to start rebranding and, more significantly, how to perform a successful brand overhaul.
A rebranding plan is a significant undertaking that costs a lot of money and needs to be done carefully. So, the first and most important thing to do is to figure out when it truly needs to be done. You don't always need to completely revamp your brand; often, a little modification to the product or marketing plan is all you need. There are, however, a few important signals that you should look into your brand identity more closely.
Changes in the market or in what people desire to buy are a common explanation. Things that your audience appreciated five or 10 years ago won't look significant or relevant anymore. Your brand identity may not fit with the times if there are new trends, changes in national values, or a new generation of customers with different wants.
Another big reason is an old or inconsistent brand image. People can still see your brand in the same manner they did when it was smaller, even though it has grown and added more services. Because of this, customers might not realise what your business really does.
It's crucial to know about these issues early on and think about how they will affect your brand's effectiveness in a fair way. This will help you figure out when to update your brand so that it stays relevant and competitive over time.
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When a business gets a new look, people's opinions of it vary slightly. It implies changing the way things look and what they say without breaking the brand's promise, values, or target demographic. It's like starting a business from scratch. You can make your business sound more modern or intriguing by changing the way you talk about it, updating your website, or using more modern colours.
The basic purpose of updating a brand is to maintain it helpful, exciting, and up to date for the people who already buy it. You can improve the brand's message and picture without losing loyal customers. People usually use it to remedy things like an old look, little defects, or to stay up with the latest design trends. A brand refresh is usually safer because it builds on what people already enjoy and know about the brand.
A thorough rebranding plan, on the other hand, is a considerably broader alteration to how people see a business. Most of the time, it makes people think about things from a different perspective. Most of the time, it entails more than just updating the brand's look. The name, the aim, the vision, the values, the target market, and even the fundamental idea behind the firm are all part of this.
Sometimes a business will change its name if it doesn't match its future plans at all if it has taken on a lot of bad meanings, or if it is going through a huge shift, like merging with another company or moving into a new industry. It's necessary to do a lot of research, make a plan, and make sure that the rebranding happens at all levels, from the company's culture to its legal trademarks. You might attract new customers or get rid of a negative one if you modify how people think about the brand.
You can't just modify the look of your business to do a brand refresh or rebranding plan the right way. It's a planned, studied, artistically interpreted, and consistently done journey that is strategic. The first thing you should do is study more about it. This involves looking closely at your current brand, including its strengths and weaknesses and how customers see it from both inside and outside the company.
The next step is to make plans. Based on everything you learnt, write down the new brand's mission, vision, purpose, values, and the type of person you want it to be. You should know who your audience is and what you want them to think about your brand. What sets you apart from your competitors? This plan for the future will help with all kinds of creative activities. Before moving forward, internal leaders and key stakeholders need to agree on this new method of doing things.
This means that you need to talk to people in the business to make sure they know about and follow the new brand. You also need to communicate with customers to make sure they understand why the change was made. After the launch, you should keep a watch on the brand's image, consumer feedback, and key performance indicators (KPIs) to see how well it went and make any changes that are needed.
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There are a few crucial components that make up the visible parts of your new brand identity when you modify or refresh your brand. A full makeover can change everything, but a brand refresh usually only updates a few things to make the brand look newer and better.
The name is usually the most obvious part. When you change a logo, you might make complicated designs easier to understand, convert to more modern fonts, change the colour saturation, or get rid of old parts of the brand while keeping the core familiarity. The goal is to make it look more modern without hurting the brand's image. A new logo could be necessary to convey that you intend to fully change your brand.
Another important part that is often overlooked is typography. Fonts may say a lot about how you feel and who you are in many ways. If you want to change the look of your brand, you could pick a new main typeface that fits the style you want. For a more modern look, you could go from a regular serif font to a clean sans-serif font, or you could add a display font that is more expressive. All of your papers should use the same fonts so that they all seem the same.
By carefully fine-tuning and routinely using these important parts across all touchpoints, a well-planned brand renewal or rebranding could give your brand a new purpose and make it more appealing to your target audience. This will provide your brand with a new chance to succeed in the market.
The first step, which is often missed, is to talk to each other inside the company. Your staff should be the first to know and understand why the company is changing its name before you tell anybody else. People often forget that the first step is to get in touch with someone inside. Before you tell anyone else, make sure your staff know and understand why you are changing your brand. They are the best people to promote your brand. Talk about how the new brand shows how the business has changed and what it aims to do in the future.
It's important to be clear and give folks time when you communicate with them. Make a full launch plan that includes when and how the new brand will be shown on the website, in social media, in news releases, in commercials, through email marketing, on signs, and on the packaging of the products. The message shouldn't only say what's new; it should also say why the company changed its name and how it will help customers.
Timing and clarity are very important when talking to people outside the company. Create a full launch plan that shows how and when the new brand will be revealed on all platforms, including the website, social media, press releases, advertising campaigns, email marketing, physical signs, and product packaging. The message should make it obvious why the branding happened, focusing on the benefits to the client instead of just describing what's new.
A rebranding strategy is an investment in the future of your brand, and for it to work, you need to plan carefully, communicate clearly, and commit to living your new brand identity in every part of your organisation for the long term. This attentive management makes sure that your refresh or rebrand really gives your brand new life and helps it develop over time.
Contact Scratchpad today to build a brand that evolves with purpose and stands out where it matters most!
1. When should a company consider rebranding?
A company should rebrand when its current identity feels outdated, misaligned with its offerings, facing reputation issues, entering new markets, or targeting a new audience.
2. What is the difference between a brand refresh and a full rebrand?
A brand refresh updates visuals and messaging while keeping the core identity intact. A full rebrand changes the name, mission, audience, and positioning entirely.
3. What are the key steps in a successful rebranding strategy?
Steps include brand audit, audience research, redefining core values, stakeholder alignment, creative redesign, internal rollout, external launch, and performance tracking.
4. What elements are typically updated in a brand refresh?
A brand refresh often includes new logos, colour palettes, typography, messaging tweaks, and website design to reflect a modern, consistent visual identity.
5. How do you successfully launch a rebrand?
Start with internal alignment, then launch externally with clear messaging across all platforms. Explain the “why” behind the change to build customer trust and excitement.
