When is it time to rebrand?

Understanding when your business needs to rebrand and why.

This article covers when it is time to rebrand, the reasons why you may need to rebrand, how to rebrand, and what to do next.

A rebrand can be a full transformation, or it can be applied to specific assets of your existing brand. For example, you may need a logo refresh, keeping elements from your current branding. Or, it could be an intensive make over of all of your band identity and marketing material.

To what extent you wish to rebrand will depend on the needs of the business and the reasons why you need to rebrand.

When is it time to rebrand?

There are many reasons why a business will undertake a rebrand, here are a few:

Under new Management or ownership
Business growth
Change of reputation
Repositioning - Additional products or a change in the products/services you provide
When you want to change your target audience or appeal to a new market
If your logo was designed a long time ago or is too similar to an existing identity.

How to rebrand your business

A rebrand is a sensitive project that demands respect, understanding and research. It needs to be handled with care.

Do not attempt to design your own rebrand, always hire a brand identity designer or consult with a brand identity expert to ensure your rebrand will be professional and long lasting.

Before you meet with your chosen designer, it’s a good idea to have a strong understanding of what you want to achieve.

Reach out to your employees, how do they perceive the current branding? How do they feel when they represent the brand?
Analyse how potential clients and existing clients/customers respond to your existing brand identity, logo design and visual branding.
How do you want to be perceived?
Research into the brand identities of competitors and similar businesses.
An overview of your suite of branding and marketing materials, social media etc. Analyse their effectiveness.
And for whatever your reason for the rebrand, you will need to tailor the research. E.g if you want to attract a different target audience, your market research would be targeted and specific.

Your employees are brand ambassadors. Make sure your employees, stakeholders and any contractors are fully informed of the process of the rebrand and what you wish to achieve, get them excited about your brand. If you use a different designer for your ongoing brand management, make sure they are briefed on the brand/rebrand, the brand goals and your new brand guidelines.

How to launch a rebrand

The initial impact of a rebrand is most effective when it is rolled out seamlessly. Plan out a timeline of the order of importance when it comes to redesigning marketing material and social media. Choose a flexible date to aim towards to announce the new visual identity of the business. If your deadline is tight, it is a good idea to rebrand any client or customer facing material first before tackling internal material.

Successful ways to announce your rebrand

Launch party – Invite clients, customers, employees, local business owners, the community and the press. Invest in designing and printing freebies that your guests can take away and spread the word. Stationery, flyers, brochures, gift bags are always a good thing to take away.

Create a launch video for social media and your website.

PR campaign – Getting your rebrand in the media can really draw attention to your business and get the new message across to your audience.

Social media campaigns, digital marketing. – Send emails to your client lists with your new branding, start a campaign on social media to reach more people.

What next?

Your business now has a new striking image, you have successfully launched the new brand and all is going well. What happens next?

One of the most critical stages of a rebrand is ongoing. Your brand needs to be managed at all times. Continuity is crucial for a strong and successful brand identity. Inconsistent branding will confuse your message, undo the effectiveness of the rebrand and will result in your audience perceiving you in a different light.

A professional brand manager, or a marketing team will keep your brand on the right path and strengthen your brand through consistency and exposure.

Get in touch

Is it time your business had a rebrand? Do you need a brand refresh?

Get in touch to discuss any rebrand queries, feel free to contact me on social media to ask questions about your current branding or starting a new brand, I’d love to hear from you.

Are you in need of a Rebrand?

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When is it time to rebrand?

Understanding when your business needs to rebrand and why.

When is it time to rebrand?

How to rebrand your business

How to launch a rebrand

Successful ways to announce your rebrand

Are you in need of a Rebrand?

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