Our Approach to Rebranding

Deciding whether to rebrand is a difficult decision. It can feel risky. 

You’ve probably heard that consistency is essential to branding. So if consistency is good, you may think that any change to your brand is a mistake. While you certainly want to be careful with making unneeded changes to your brand, there are times when it is better to adjust something about your brand rather than carry on with what you have.

Another concern is that you don’t know what to expect with the process or the results. Will it all be worthwhile?

You may have heard from colleagues about a bad experience: they didn’t like the result, felt it took too long or was not worth the expense. Following a process will make it more likely that you’ll end up with something you like and have a strong ROI.

Figure out where you are and where you want to be

Just like you can’t use a GPS without a start and end point, a successful rebranding process defines your current and ideal new brands.

We use the following tools and strategies to clarify where you are and where you want to go.

• Brand audit: We review your current brand by looking at your website, marketing campaigns, proposal, sales decks, etc.
• Customer or employee surveys: We’ll ask current customers and employees how they perceive your brand.
• Interviews: In-depth, conversational questions to unearth more subtleties than a survey.
• Marketplace review: Take a fresh and thorough look at what your competitors are doing. Your customers may be comparing your business (and brand) to other options in the marketplace.
• Inspiration: We’ll help you articulate and clarify how you envision your new brand by looking at examples for inspiration.

Define the qualities of an ideal new brand

Agreeing on how a new brand will look and sound is essential. That doesn’t mean we decide upfront what font to use or color. It means that we define the traits of your ideal brand.

You’re asking your branding firm to try many options without guidelines. Don’t just wait to see what you like. Following the “I’ll know it when I see it” philosophy will be a long, frustrating process.

For many people, it can be challenging to put into words how they envision a brand’s creative and ephemeral qualities. Using our decades of experience developing new brands and improving existing brands, we can help you define the qualities you’re looking for.

These established goalposts become the way to measure every creative decision. Rather than just saying that you like or dislike a logo, you can compare the design against your wish list. 

Determine how much change you need

After we understand the gap between where you are and where you want to be, we can determine how much of a rebrand you need. Sometimes, you’re not that far off and need to clean up, refresh or expand your existing brand. Other times, it’s clear that everything from your name to your logo, website, value proposition, and everything in between needs adjustments.

Consistency is vital to branding, so if there’s a way to connect your old brand to your new brand, it’s probably a good idea. This can often be done by reusing one or more of your colors from the old logo in the new logo. Or, the concept of a logo can be retained, but the design is upgraded.

In some cases, retaining those old elements will be a hindrance. 

Rebranding is a signal to the world that your business has changed. A fresh new logo is a highly visible way of showing customers and prospects that you are heading in a new direction.

If your current brand does not represent your core traits or attract your ideal clients, you should move away from the old one. In this situation, similarities between the old and new brands are not particularly beneficial. Getting an on-target new brand that captures your brand traits and appeals to your buyers is more important.

Is it time to rebrand?

A good next step is to read our e-book to help you plan for a successful process.