Rebranding can breathe new life into your business or product, but it has to be actioned with a focus on strategy, a clearly understood process, creative vision & thought, and most of all for the right reasons.
There are a few misconceptions about branding, the biggest one being that a logo is a brand and vice versa.
A logo or identity is just a small part of the overall branding of your business or product. It’s often the most recognisable device used to communicate with target audiences; this sometimes means that a logo is often the only element that a lot of businesses concentrate on when rebranding.
A brand is the sum of all of the touch-points that come into contact with current or potential customers.
These touch-points include the logo, stationery, marketing material and websites, business premises, vehicles and even how your staff communicate with your customer base. In short, your brand is the much bigger picture, but the logo, is on the front line.
There are many reasons to rebrand, some of which are outlined below.
1. A merger or take-over of a company or organisation
This could mean a new name, a new logo, and a re-evaluation of all brand materials. This is where the benefits of using a full-service design agency are important – they can help you manage the whole project.
2. A period of considerable growth
Not just financial growth; expansion into new markets may mean a business may outgrow its current branding and therefore be missing opportunities to connect with new markets.
3. Moving with the times
Your current branding may have become outdated and not reflect your business as it is now. It may be that when you started the business, finances were tight so a logo was produced cheaply and quickly to “make do” but now it just doesn’t suit your business or allow your business room to grow.
4. A change in company strategy
Target audiences, positioning and market share can all change during a product or companies lifecycle. What was once highly effective may now hold your company back, which means its branding needs to be updated to reach new target audiences. If you find yourself in this position, a brand audit may prove a worthwhile exercise.
5. Reflecting a change in the type of products that you sell
It could be that when starting out, your business offered a particular type of product or service and a brand was built around that, even its name might reflect this. But as your business grows, its product line and aspirations can grow too, which means it’s branding may need to be revisited to reflect these changes.
6. To differentiate a business from other competitors
Sometimes the branding of your business can look very similar to that of a close competitor, so your potential customers may struggle to tell the difference. A business may consider a rebranding project in order to reinforce individuality and communicate why it’s different to its competitors and gain a greater market share.
7. Technological advances
Advances in technology may mean that your business operates in a very different way to when it first set out. For example, you may have become more of an online business, this can affect the brand and how it is perceived. You might want to consider animating your logo, or simplifying it for use on your website designs and across social media.
We would never advocate “throwing the baby out with the bathwater”, a rebrand doesn’t have to be a complete overhaul of the whole company image, it should be driven by the needs for a rebrand.
A rebrand could be as simple as developing a new strapline for the business, or it could be a revamp of the logo, keeping some familiar styling that customers associate with the brand.
It may be a larger project involving a change of name, logo and involving all marketing material online and offline.
The key is to plan, research and consider a number of factors including at the very least what will your customers think of a rebrand, the benefits of rebranding can be pretty considerable if carried out with diligence and care.
Speak to TEAPOT Digital today about your next project. Call 03 9329 8286.