What You Should Consider Before Rebranding
Rebranding can be a risky and a complicated business move to make. It sends your customers a message that you have the intent to change. However, you can’t predict exactly how the changes you make will be perceived by your customers. This makes your company extremely vulnerable once the rebranding efforts begin.
Your brand helps you communicate your purpose with your customers and differentiate your business from the competition. Additionally, brands take time to develop and even longer to build trust with your customers.
So, you might be wondering why would you even consider changing your brand once you’ve gone through all the trouble of creating it. Sometimes it is necessary to make changes to a brand in order to stay relevant and evolve, just as you and your market have. But, there are some important things to consider before you start the rebranding process.
1. It’s going to be risky!
It is important to be aware that rebranding always comes with a risk. This is because you can’t predict how your new brand will be received by others once it is launched.
You should be mindful of the consequences that making changes to your brand could have. You could either revitalize your image and keep your company relevant or it could backfire and cause confusion.
Keep in mind that rebranding will affect all areas of your business and knowing the risk of rebranding will help you decide if you want to go through with this process or not.
2. Why am I rebranding?
If you are considering taking the risk to rebrand, stop and ask yourself why? This is the most important question you could ask yourself when you are deciding whether or not you should rebrand.
Understand exactly why you are considering making these changes to your business.
Some problems you may be facing could be fixed by making other changes to your business or creating new marketing strategies. Try to fix the problems without rebranding first to cut back on the risk and see if rebranding is necessary.
If you’ve made these other changes and have found that you’re not getting the desired results, then rebranding could be your next move.
The best situations to consider rebranding are when you need to:
- Change your brand’s image
- Target a new demographic
- Create a new mission for your business
- Adjust to a changing market quickly
Rebranding will allow you to recreate yourself and adjust to the changes of the market, or your own company.
3. Have I done enough research?
So, if you believe that rebranding is the direction you need to go in for your company to be successful, then it is important to have a clear understanding of every aspect of your business.
Start by researching:
- Your own company and brand. You should know what message your current brand is trying to convey, what your mission and values are as a company and who your target audience market is.
- Your customers’ perceptions. How is your brand currently perceived? Does it match with how you want others to think of you?
- The market. Think about how it may change in the next few years. Will your new brand still be relevant then?
- The competition: Knowing what your competitors are doing can help you come up with a branding strategy that will set you apart.
Gather as much information as possible, as it will help you recognize the problems you’re up against. Then, take the information that you have collected and think about what changes you need to make when you rebrand to convey your new, desired message. It would be helpful to research other brands rebranding experiences and learn from their situations.
4. Do I have a clear rebranding plan?
The best way to create your plan is to identify what goals you want to accomplish by rebranding.
Once you have made goals, ask yourself: What steps do I need to take to accomplish these goals? This plan will help you stay on track with the entire rebranding process and increase your chances of successfully rebranding.
The creation of your new brand should be just one part of this plan. Make sure to include how you plan on introducing your new brand to the world. Remember first impressions count!
Making a drastic change to your brand will impact your customers. You should be one step ahead of them, guiding them in the way you want them to think. Also, you can use this as an opportunity to explain why you have decided to change or put an emphasis on the fact that you have improved for the better.
By having a detailed strategy, you can be more prepared to handle any problems that might arise as a result of the rebrand and help your organization have a uniform procedure for tackling the situations.
Also, take time to reflect on what happened that got you to the point where considering to rebrand was the best way to fix your problems. Come up with ways you avoid having to rebrand in the future.
5. It takes time.
Finally, be patient with the rebranding process. It is going to take time to do the necessary research to pinpoint the changes you need to make to your brand to make it successful. Understand why these changes need to be made.
Most importantly, a successful rebranding strategy has a specific purpose and are well thought out. Take your time to do the fundamental research to be prepared for this undertaking. Do not rush through the process. This will help you strengthen your rebranding strategy moving forward.
Following the launch your new brand, it will also take time for your audience to adjust to the changes you have made. Give them time to start forming their relationship with this new brand. For example, help guide them by creating advertising campaigns that share the important elements of your new brand with your audience.
In conclusion, before you start to rebrand you should be sure that you and your team are committed to the journey you are about to embark on. It will be a long process, but if planned well and executed correctly, it can help your company become more successful.
If you’re considering rebranding, let the experts at Pinckney Marketing help you succeed! Our branding experts will guide you through every step of the process. Find out more here!