Logos are important, but good branding is more than about an eye-catching logo. Effective branding tells a story and permeates to all facets of business that allow for customer interaction. From the product packaging to social media posts, it’s crucial to take a moment to assess what you’re saying to consumers.
Here are some questions to ask yourself (or your entire marketing team) before deciding to rebrand.
Can you pinpoint the problem with your current brand?
If you can’t identify a justifiable reason to overhaul your branding, it’s probably not a great idea to do so. Take Gap, for instance. In 2010, Gap replaced the tall, elegant font of their logo with Helvetica. The blue background turned into an awkwardly floating blue box on the letter “P.” The brand received negative feedback within days of the rebrand, forcing them to revert back to their old and very recognizable logo.
From logo font to web design colour palettes, branding is delicate. You need consumer research and lots of market testing before launching a rebrand, especially if you’ve been sticking to your branding for years.
How will a rebrand affect your brand equity?
Brand equity is the value that derives from the consumer perception of a company’s brand name, rather than the product or service itself. Companies with high brand equity usually earn more money because people recognize and trust them. When rebranding, ask whether it will confuse your customers or devalue your brand equity. Your goal is to give your branding a new or fresh twist without confusing customers.
International House of Pancakes or IHOP successfully rebranded without devaluing their brand equity. How did they do it? They launched a new logo but with easily recognizable colour, shapes, and fonts. The biggest change they did was turning the red banner upside down into a smiley face. And that smiley face in the new logo is now incorporated into other aspects of brand identity, such as using #IHOPSmile hashtag on their social media posts and launching happiness-focused traditional advertising campaigns.
Is it the right time to rebrand?
If your business has been working with defamation lawyers to overcome a negative online reputation, a rebrand may boost your efforts. A brand overhaul may be a good way to break your ties with your bad reputation and help your consumers see you in a fresh new light.
Other reasons can give the green light to your branding. These include outdated brand colours, fonts, or graphics. If your target demographic has changed over the years, an overhaul of your logo, slogan, and overall messaging could help you connect with today’s audience.
Also, if your service offerings have changed over time or you need to streamline your services under one organization, crafting a whole new brand identity is a good move. It can help focus your company’s vision.
Change is never easy; in a way, a rebrand is a declaration of your commitment to upward growth. But then again, as the saying goes: if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. Ensure you truly need a rebrand before doing so. And while planning the overhaul, do proper research to ensure that the new logos, taglines, or colour palettes resonate with your audience.