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When you started your business, you put together your brand identity. Now, for one of several possible reasons, you find yourself preparing to rebrand. Rebranding your business can be a tricky proposition, so we’ve put together some information about rebranding, when you should consider rebranding, and four strategies for doing it right.
What is rebranding?
Branding is a name, term, design, symbol, or feature that identifies your company as distinct from others. It presents a memorable impression that increases your company’s value. Your brand identity includes logos, typography, colors, packaging, and messaging. Rebranding is changing, updating, or improving one or more of these elements. Rebranding falls into three categories.
- A brand refresh changes minor details—modernizing your logo or subtly changing the color palette you use.
- A partial rebrand changes some elements of your brand identity, like changing your logo but using the themes and colors from your old logo.
- A full rebrand changes absolutely everything about your existing brand identity. You start from scratch as if it was a completely new company.
When you are considering your company’s marketing strategy and rebranding, you should try to develop a strategic and fresh brand that is relevant and familiar to your customers. There are advantages and risks within rebranding, so the strategy requires careful consideration.
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When to consider rebranding
Rebranding can give new life to a brand that’s not well aligned with its company values, vision, and market. But you may also risk losing some of your existing customers. Does your situation warrant rebranding? Here are a few scenarios in which a company may consider rebranding:
New products or services
Are you breaking into an entirely new market with completely different product offerings? Maybe you’re changing your pricing structure to offer a version of your luxury products at an affordable cost. Companies may also go through a rebranding if they’re adding new ingredients or materials—such as organic or recycled—into their product mix. Rebranding is a good way to introduce yourself to a new customer base and garner attention for your new features or product offerings.
Example:
China’s Origo Coffee decided to take advantage of the growing popularity of coffee by introducing local specialty coffees. Its old branding did not reflect the modern, sophisticated, yet authentically Chinese experience in their shops.
A new logo, an illustration of a bird feeding on coffee beans, a deep color palette, and all new messaging are part of their new brand identity.
New locations
Your business is growing and you’re considering expanding into new locations as a chain or into the international market where they aren’t familiar with your current brand. You’ll likely be making major changes to your marketing strategy, and a rebrand may prove to be an advantage.
Example:
Jumbo is an online lottery ticket retailer in Australia. Its plan to expand globally required a rebrand that could help the company reach its goals. The new brand slogan is, “Imagine More,” and is symbolized by their elephant mascot—he embodies the idea of big excitement, dreams, and jackpots.
Market repositioning
When you reposition your company to target a new market, your branding needs updating. Whether you’re making the change based on product, price, or promotion, your brand needs to reflect your new market position.
Example:
SurveyMonkey recently rebranded its parent company as we embraced our business strategy to move upmarket with Momentive. Our iconic survey platform isn’t going anywhere, but SurveyMonkey as a brand has outgrown its name. Our brand has become much more than surveys. That’s why the SurveyMonkey product remains, but our brand is expanding.
Momentive encompasses solutions for the wide variety of complex challenges our customers are facing. We think the new branding captures the momentum our customers are driving for—what do you think? Reach out on social media with #WeAreMomentive to let us know!
New philosophy or values
If your company’s mission, vision, and values are shifting and changing your business direction, reevaluate your brand to ensure it complements the new direction. If not, rebranding will be necessary.
Example:
When Airbnb started out, it was a service to help travelers with tight budgets find cheap lodging or a couch to sleep on instead of spending money on an expensive hotel. According to the founders, the brand identity was created quickly to get their business started.
As the company exploded into a global hospitality provider, the owners recognized that it needed a rebrand. They needed it to be less focused on the booking technology and more focused on people and places. Nicer places were being listed and Airbnb became less about renting inexpensive housing and more about the experience of renting out and staying in homes. In the case of their new product, Airbnb Luxe, homes that are extraordinary and luxurious.
In addition to a new vision and mission, they updated their logo to better represent the Airbnb community. They named the logo “Bélo,” from the word belong, and it signifies belonging through shared travel experiences.
Mergers and acquisitions
When two companies merge or one acquires another, it shouldn’t be a battle of the brands. Instead, create a new brand that reflects the vision, mission, and values of the new business to prevent confusion and start building trust with customers.
Example: When Continental Airlines and United Airlines merged, they kept the name United Airlines and used the Continental globe logo. Eventually, they dropped Airlines from their branding and are currently just known as United.