The Art of Rebranding: Navigating Change for Business Growth
Changes: The only constant is change, so is your brand being championed or neglected by your customers and the market?
According to LinkedIn, a 2023 research study of 10,000 businesses globally, Rebranding is among the highest areas of change and investment. It also states that this business investment has one of the best ROI.
The Rebranding efforts reflect a problem space for businesses that are evolving. Businesses change and adapt their target markets, models, products, services, and ways of being profitable. Markets are powerful engines of massive change.
Our circle of consumption, production, identity, and community is fluid, and we constantly struggle to stay buoyant and relevant. Design helps drive this change by working with business leaders. Together, we work and think about what it means to be open to possibilities, to have purpose and ideals, and to measure our work against our purpose and ideals constantly.
To bring understanding to Rebranding, I like to start with a few things it is not.
- Rebranding is not a logo and tagline; although these tools can be used to communicate or symbolise the brand.
- Rebranding is not a product or suite of products; however, products can express meaning & generate revenue.
- Rebranding is not a promise; say what you like, but will the customers like it? or even get it?
- Rebranding is not an impression; no matter how cool your ads are, customers have their own ideas about the world.
OK, so what is it then?
- It is a result - your customer’s intuitive, emotional feeling, which some call “gut feeling”.
Each customer has slightly varied feelings based on their experience of your products, services, ads, customer service, culture, product design, etc. All your business sectors and all your people affect the customer in some way.
An important quote from Peter Drucker relevant to the idea of the brand is, “A business has one valid purpose: to create a customer.”
So, how is your business helping your customers get jobs done? How can you enable greatness in your customers? Don’t position your products or services position your customers.
All Customers do not want to be told; they want to tell! For over ten years, the dominant push has been creating frameworks, platforms, and instances where your customers can share their stories. Is your brand allowing your customers to shape and improve their identity and purpose or drowning in the noise of social media static?
“Brand is not what you say it is; it’s what they (your customers) say it is.” (Marty Neumeier - Minding The Brand Gap - 2003).
So why Rebrand?
- Attract Better Customers: Rebranding can help businesses target and attract higher-quality customers who are more likely to remain loyal and advocate for the brand.
- Stand Out from the Competition: A successful rebrand differentiates a company from its competitors, making it easier for potential customers to recognize its unique offerings and value.
- Command Premium Prices: By shifting customer perceptions, a rebrand can enable companies to position themselves as premium brands, allowing them to charge higher prices for their products or services.
- Boost Brand Awareness: Rebranding can refresh a company’s image and increase its visibility, helping it stay relevant in a competitive market.
- Enhance Company Value: A strong brand identity can increase a company’s overall value, making it more attractive to investors and potential buyers.
- Improve Employee Attraction and Retention: A refreshed brand can help attract top talent who align with the company’s values and mission, fostering a positive workplace culture.
- Facilitate New Market Entry: Rebranding can open doors to new markets by appealing to different customer segments or geographic areas.
- Reflect Evolving Business Goals: As companies grow and evolve, Rebranding can communicate new goals, products, or services effectively to the market.
10 Common Mistakes in Rebranding
- Lack of Research: Failing to conduct thorough market research can lead to misaligned branding that does not resonate with the target audience.
- Ignoring Existing Customers: Not considering the preferences and loyalty of existing customers can alienate a brand’s current base during the Rebranding process.
- Overcomplicating the Brand Message: A convoluted or unclear brand message can confuse potential customers, undermining the Rebranding efforts.
- Neglecting Brand Consistency: Inconsistency across various platforms and materials can dilute the brand’s identity and confuse consumers.
- Focusing Solely on Aesthetics: Prioritising visual changes over substantive brand values and messaging can lead to a superficial rebrand that lacks depth.
- Failing to Communicate Changes: Not effectively communicating the reasons for the rebrand to both employees and customers can create distrust and confusion.
- Underestimating the Impact on Employees: Ignoring how Rebranding affects employee morale and engagement can lead to internal resistance and disengagement.
- Rushing the Process: A hasty Rebranding effort can overlook critical details, leading to a poorly executed brand identity.
- Not Measuring Success: Failing to establish metrics for success can make it difficult to assess the effectiveness of the Rebranding efforts.
- Ignoring Feedback: Dismissing customer and employee feedback during the Rebranding process can result in a disconnect between the brand and its audience.
By understanding these benefits and pitfalls, companies can navigate the Rebranding process more effectively, ensuring a successful transition that enhances their market position and provides growth and profit.
Get your FREE tool kit here…
To help you with your Rebranding journey, I have put together a Rebranding Tool Kit. It is a simple PDF with the core initiatives you must tackle and execute for a successful Rebranding journey. Drive the change, surf the tsunami, ski the avalanche, no matter what parable fits, use the tool kit. You can find it here and start your journey towards transformation:
Download your FREE Rebranding Tool Kit
An afterthought:
I have been reading a lot of Cal Newport’s essays, and he has risen to the top of the stack in the Silicon Valley thought leaders by writing about productivity and quality problems. Here are some of my thoughts from his recent Deep Work and Slow Productivity essays. (He has published 2 books on these topics – his essays are free to read on Discord).
When you try to do everything at once, you end up doing nothing particularly well. I’ve learned that the key to real progress is to fully commit to one project or goal at a time. By focusing your energy on just one thing, you not only make better progress but also create a higher-quality end result.
