One of the most overlooked parts of starting a business is deciding on a branding strategy and sticking with it throughout the rise and falls of the business’s journey, but not recognizing the need to freshen things up. This is one of the biggest mistakes small businesses make throughout their business’s growth. The reason large businesses like Pepsi, Lays, and Apple are so well known is that they stick to their branding strategy and slap their logo on anything and everything that represents their brand. The moment you see a red and blue yin and yang symbol you are automatically reminded of Pepsi. This is not by coincidence, they intentionally place their branding on items and visuals to make themselves memorable.
A question that we hear a lot is, "When do you know when it’s time to do a total rebrand?" We recently noticed that our company was in need of a rebranding. Although we loved our logo, it had been with us since day 1, and honestly, a lot has changed since then. We changed our fonts, colors, logo, and many other things to make our company stand out against competitors and better align with our current mission and vision for the company. It is recommended that every company looks into rebranding their company every three to four years to keep up with constantly changing trends and developments in your specific field. However, the frequency of rebranding depends on the company's goals and outlook for the future.
A few key things to look for when deciding whether or not it might be time to rebrand your company include; how your target audience is reacting to your current branding, have you recently had a merger or acquisition, is your company memorable and unique to your target audience, and has your business model changed since your last rebranding.
"What does rebranding entail?" Rebranding is giving your business a new and improved makeover. This can include updating your company name, logos, fonts, colors, company message, etc. Rebranding looks different for every company, so make sure to evaluate what other companies in your industry are doing and how you want your company to be represented before fully diving in. Lastly, be sure not to slowly transition your company's branding. This may confuse your clients and may do more harm than good. We know that rebranding can be confusing and challenging, so you might consider hiring a professional or agency to help guide and ensure success for your company following a rebranding. We recommend Think516. ;)
For help rebranding or to work with Think516, please visit www.Think516.com and tell us more about your business and your future goals.
Notes:
A sign that you need a rebrand could be that your branding is out of date and not applicable for your target audience
You have too broad of a target audience
Possible merger
Your business isn’t unique enough or memorable to customers
Change in business model or function
Negative brand image
Rebrand every 3 to 4 years
However the frequency of a rebrand depends on the company and their goals for the future
Rebranding includes updating name, logo, fonts, colors, company message, etc.
Prior to diving into a rebrand make sure to do research on other businesses in your field and see what’s working
Rebrand all at once so not to cause confusion
Rebranding can be confusing and challenging so it’s not a bad idea to hire a professional to help guide and ensure success for your company
Contact Think516 to see if a rebranding could be appropriate for your company
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