Customer demands change. Markets mature. Competitors move into your space. You might no longer stand out. Should your brand carefully evolve or could it take an entirely fresh approach? Knowing what to keep, and what to let go, requires a clear brand strategy and thoughtful design. So how do you know if you’re ready for a rebrand?
Before you consider a rebrand you need to understand the reasons for change and the problem you are attempting to solve. Sometimes a simple evolution (brand refresh) will be enough whereas other times its an extensive transformation (rebrand) that is necessary. To determine the level of brand change that’s required you must first explore why you might want to make a change.
Common signs that it’s time for a rebrand
- We need to reinvigorate our brand to move with the times
- Our image looks tired or inconsistent
- We are losing market share to new entrants
- We are undergoing or recently underwent a merger
- Our brand doesn’t stand out in our category
- We want to appeal to a different audience
- Employees are struggling to stay motivated in our mission
- Our business model or strategy has changed
- We are having trouble attracting top talent for our business
- Our brand name no longer reflects who we are
- We haven’t reviewed visual identity in many years
- We need to raise our prices and increase our profit margins
Six reasons to invest in a rebrand
- Gain costs savings — Strong brands out-think rather than outspend the competition. With a strong brand, you will organically grow your business without unnecessary advertising spend, or having to engage in a price war.
- Build brand champions — Brands form communities driven by customers and employees, and in turn these can become your tribe of loyal advocates who will champion your brand and can help your business weather the storm and ride the tough times.
- Attract top talent — Powerful brands grow from within. They have expertise rooted within their businesses which keep them top of their game. Intellectual capital is grown through attracting and retaining the top talent in the employee marketplace.
- Grow market share — As your market share grows, so will your brand equity. Brand equity is how your brand is valued. As your brand equity increases then you can expect to attract more investment opportunities too, whether that’s capital or distribution opportunities such as channel partners.
- Command a premium price — Distinctive brands don’t need to discount, they are confident their promise will deliver for their customers. As such they can charge a premium and know that people will pay for it as a mark of quality. It goes without saying your profit margins will grow too.
- Stand out from the crowd — Drive customer preference by differentiating your company. If your product or service is sufficiently different, you could effectively be competing in a ‘category of one’ which positions you as a leader, gives you the room to flourish and renders your competitors irrelevant.
Return on investment
The evidence is clear, companies that invest in branding reliably outperform those that don’t. A recent study by Interbrand (the Best Global Brands Index 2018) uncovered enduring proof that investment in long-term brand-building enables businesses to thrive over time and survive market volatility.
Year after year, Interbrand’s brand valuation analysis has shown that strong brands are powerful business assets that deliver a sustainable competitive advantage, enabling companies to outperform the competition and accelerate growth.
Organisations who invest in brand building over the past five years have achieved Brand Value growth rates 2.4 times higher than those brands who didn’t.
Planning for a rebrand
Rebranding is a collaborative effort. The success of your rebrand project depends on your commitment to investing into it, and the project team you assemble to deliver it. We have provided a checklist to help you consider what you need to do to prepare for the rebrand:
- Research and select a branding agency to help you deliver the project
- Gain buy-in from senior management
- Establish specific goals you want to achieve with the rebrand
- Identify any operational challenges
- Identify your internal rebranding project team
- Ensure you have a good cross-section of marketing, HR and operational teams
- Assign roles and responsibilities
- Identify a realistic project timeline taking into account internal and external factors
- Set-up regular meetings to discuss project status and deliverables
- Establish your project budget and get sign off internally
- Begin collecting existing collateral for the research phase
- Consider writing a business case on the importance of the rebrand
A practical guide to rebranding your organisation
Regardless of what size of business you are, there will come a time when you consider revitalising your brand. Firebrand’s free guide offers practical advice to successfully rebrand your organisation.
