When someone mentions the term “rebranding” to you, what immediately comes to your mind?
Something like the literal Cambridge Dictionary definition of the word “rebrand” – “to change the way that an organisation, company, or product is seen by the public” – might be what you first think of. Or you may imagine a bunch of stereotypically formally dressed executives huddled around a boardroom table, scheming as to how their controversial company could be better presented.
Our point here is that the term “rebranding” isn’t always perceived positively by the general public. Indeed, some consumers might imagine that a rebranding exercise is merely done by a business in order to cover up, or somehow distract from, previous company failings that might have damaged the existing brand.
But it is also important to realise successful rebranding is far from just a “surface” exercise. Today’s consumers are much too savvy to be misled by a company simply introducing a snazzy new name or logo.
If you are implementing a rebrand for your own business, you will need to ensure the positive values communicated through your new brand logo, colours and messaging permeate every aspect of what your organisation does.
The COVID-19 crisis prompted many firms to think again about their brand
Very few of us specifically ask to experience times of turbulence, such as the coronavirus pandemic or the current period of economic uncertainty and high inflation. However, these difficult phases can certainly have one benefit, in how they cause us to reflect on what we have done up to this point, and what we might change in order to improve in the future.
Did you know, for instance, that according to polling of 600 business owners and brand marketing experts in the United States and Canada, more than half (51%) said they had changed their branding strategy since the COVID-19 pandemic?
That finding probably won’t be greatly surprising to you, or to many web marketing experts, given the wholesale change the COVID-19 situation forced upon us – including how people run and engage with businesses.
However, not every reason why you might consider a rebrand for your company in 2023, will necessarily be ostensibly related to the pandemic. Nonetheless, here are some of the factors that might well lead you to rebrand now.
- A wish to improve your brand’s reputation. A rebrand is often undertaken to help a business reduce some of the negative associations that might have been attached to its previous brand. Such a move could be successful in this regard, although as we stated above, if this is the aim of your rebrand, it is crucial to make sure the exterior changes are accompanied by internal ones.
- A need to bring your brand into line with an increasingly digitalised world. Your organisation’s operations might have changed significantly since you first formulated your current brand logo, colour palette, and typographic approach. Such elements might have been conceived largely with offline, rather than online, expressions in mind. So, a rebrand can enable your organisation to present itself in accordance with the world in which your business operates now, while helping to ensure you make a greater impact through digital channels.
- A desire to reposition your brand in the market to better ensure its survival and growth. When you think back to when the COVID-19 pandemic first “hit” the UK in a serious way – resulting in quickly imposed lockdowns for high-street businesses such as non-essential retailers, restaurants and bars – you might well wince when you recall how vulnerable those firms were. Indeed, you might have been at the helm of such a business at the time. A rebrand, then, could help you to portray your brand differently for the later 2020s – as an organisation that has adapted to the changed needs of the post-pandemic market.
- A wish to modernise your brand in accordance with recent visual trends. You might be tempted to think that elements such as the logo and colours your brand uses are largely “superficial” ones, compared to the knotty aspects of what your business actually does for its customers. But with visual trends constantly changing – 3D effects like drop shadows and embossing, for example, having largely given way to flatter and less “cluttered” designs – you won’t want to risk your brand seeming “old-fashioned” in the post-COVID world. After all, if your target audience does perceive your brand as being “out of date”, the impact of this on your company’s success is likely to be far from superficial.
Working alongside our branding team could make a big difference to your business in 2023
The above is not, of course, an exhaustive rundown of every reason why your company might look to rebrand, or what aspects you will need to consider. But hopefully, we will have helped to get you thinking about the possibilities for the approach your organisation might take to its branding during the rest of the 2020s.
Would you like to discuss those possibilities with our own web marketing experts at PENNInk Productions? If so, you are very welcome to contact us via email, or to give us a call on 020 8144 7931.sp
Lisa Penn is a Visual Communications Specialist with a background in user experience and psychology. She has held a variety of roles encompassing user experience creative strategist, architect and manager, where she has successfully bridged the gap between design, technology and development.
