So you're thinking of rebranding… But is that really what you need? Have you considered a brand refresh or a brand reposition? These words might all sound pretty similar; but knowing the difference could save you time and expense on a rebrand that might not be what you need.
Let us help you pick apart what it's all about.
Brand Refresh
Let's start with the simplest one of the lot. Refreshing a brand is such a smart move that it’s pretty much the only one the big players do these days. Think of all the variations of the logo you've seen from big brands like Coca Cola, McDonalds, IKEA and others. A slight tweak can keep your brand current in your market, help you get into a new market, or just inject new competitive edge. What's happening here is you're applying a tweak of colour, a modified logo, or an update to your language but keeping the changes so subtle that frankly, half of your audience won't even notice. And that's the point. This is the best move if everything is working well and you want your brand to be seen as as a safe pair of hands.
Take a look at our rebrand case study for Parking Eye – a classic case study of the importance of brand perception.
Brand Reposition
Let’s say everything’s hunky dory with your brand assets, but you just aren’t hitting the mark with your customers. Maybe what you do feels a little dated compared to the competition, or perhaps you want to take the premium angle. This takes a little bit of a deeper look at what your customers really think, so you’re totally in sync with what they demand. Could your brand reach a different target market? What does that look like or sound like? This is where what you need is a brand reposition, rather than a new logo. A simple change in your tone of voice and presenting yourself in a new, clearer way can make all the difference.
Take a look at our Jonesco brand case study – where we gave them purpose and a position.
Pure Rebrand
Finally, a pure rebrand is where you rip the rulebook apart and more or less start again. Chances are you’ll be building a complete new look and feel, redefining the unique values or advantages of your product or service. You’re talking a new logo, colour palette, tone of voice and language - or a complete overhaul with a change of name and all distinctive assets. In these cases re-branding breathes a completely new life into the brand.
Take a look at our brand case study for RBSL – the collaboration between former partners to create a new joint venture brand.
Bonus: You don't need to rebrand (yes, really!)
As brand strategists - it's our job to assess whether or not a rebranding project would actually give you bang for buck. Sometimes, the truth is there is no need to rebrand. It might be that you've gone astray. That you've lost the pizzazz that made you flavour of the month many moons ago. Usually, if you look closely enough the magic already exists somewhere in the company. But perhaps across the years it's been lost due to conflicting interests, internal politics or just a good old fashioned lack of direction.
In these cases, what you really need is brand revitalisation. You go back through your brand history and heritage. You look at what made it so special. And then you bring that to life for your colleagues both old and new. Sure, you might need a pinch of external help to work through this strategic stuff if you can't see the wood from the trees. But once done, the big job is then to update all your existing communications to reflect this old magic in a new way.
So there you have it. What's your next move?
