Rebranding Strategy: Breathing New Life Into Your Brand
So you’ve concluded it’s about time for a rebranding, have you? Well, fasten your seatbelt because we’re going on an exhilarating adventure into the world of rebranding strategy!
Whether you want to stir things up or respond to the changing times, a good rebrand plan can be all you need.
In this comprehensive guide, we will cover everything from why people need to rebrand to the essential details necessary for perfecting your new brand identity.
We’ll also provide some delicious real-life instances and expert advice. Think of this as your go-to source for everything related to rebranding – expert consultants, not included, or their high prices either!
- Rebranding is essential for staying current and resonating with evolving audience expectations.
- A strategic rebrand can refresh identity and eliminate outdated perceptions.
- Successful rebranding requires thorough research, clear positioning, and ongoing optimisation.
Why Rebrand? The Compelling Reasons Behind the Revamp!
1. Always Keeping Up with the Times
Our world is changing at an unprecedented rate. What may be in vogue today will soon become outdated. A rebranding helps keep your image current and makes it resonate with your new audience.
2. Getting Rid of an Outdated Look
Does your brand give off strong 1990s vibes? Or is it struggling between different identities, trying to be everything for everyone? A strategic rebrand can help you drop that tired appearance and adopt a sharp, consistent look that reflects who you are now.
3. Mergers and Acquisitions
When companies merge, they often have to share their names, much like a married couple. At this point, it becomes necessary to rebrand to fuse the two entities’ identities cohesively, thereby avoiding any future identity crisis.
4. Expanding into New Markets
Want to go global or reach out to different demographics? Then, consider rebranding to change how people perceive you, as this will enable them to relate better to what you offer without unintentionally crossing cultural lines.
5. Recovering from a Crisis
There are times when brands find themselves at rock bottom; such moments could result from being involved in scandals (public), launching products which fail drastically on the market, or even just experiencing bad luck back-to-back too many times.
In such cases, nothing less than a complete rebranding may be required to start afresh and regain customer confidence while rebuilding reputation, but this time, doing things differently. Therefore, this is done to avoid falling into the same pitfalls again.
6. Your Heart’s in a New Place
Look, sometimes a rebrand isn’t about escaping a disaster or just chasing new customers. It’s about growing a conscience.
More than ever, people want to know what you stand for. They’re spending their hard-earned cash with companies that align with their own values.
If your company has made a genuine shift towards being more sustainable, ethical, or socially responsible, your brand needs to reflect that.
It’s not just about slapping a green leaf on your logo; it’s about showing the world you’ve fundamentally changed for the better.
The Rebranding Strategy Roadmap: Where Do You Want to Go?
Before you put new logos on everything, have a plan in place. Here are the main steps of rebranding:
1. Establish your “Why”
What is the reason for rebranding? Define your goals so that you know what to aim for.
2. Investigate
Find out who your audience is as if they were an old friend. Use surveys, focus groups, social listening and any other means necessary to understand their desires, needs, pain points and what currently resonates with them.
3. Competitive analysis
Someone is already doing what you want to do—and doing it well. Identify those brands or organisations and determine how you can differentiate yourself authentically in a way that matters most to people like us.
4. Reveal Your New Brand Positioning
Based on this rich understanding of who these people (the ones we’re here for) are, describe a new aspect of our personality or values that hasn’t been mentioned before but rings true now. Because we get closer to helping them achieve some goal they’ve got deep inside themselves, also while selling more widgets than anyone else!
5. Create a fresh visual identity
This is where logos come from: colours and typography, tone-of-voice guides, and anything else that helps bring it all together visually under one big idea: what does our brand look like now?
6. Alleviate concerns among staff members (rally the troops)
You need everyone in the organisation behind this shift – top-down and bottom-up through company-wide training programs and internal communications plans explicitly designed to introduce these changes gradually until full adoption has occurred throughout every corner of our business.
7. Do It
Now go out there! — package design refreshes across packaging materials used internally and externally for consumer-facing touchpoints such as digital platforms, including social media accounts… etcetera, etcetera.
8. Measure twice, cut once, and optimise thrice
Keep an eye on things and adjust as necessary; data will tell us what’s working best and where, at which times, so stay nimble!
Stealing Smart: Stellar Rebranding Campaigns to Inspire You
Right? Seeing someone do great work always gets the gears turning. Let’s deconstruct three rebrands that knocked it out of the park:
1. Dunkin’ Donuts → Dunkin’
The Donut Mecca had a big year in 2018. First, they changed their name from the hefty “Dunkin’ Donuts” to just “Dunkin’.”
Why? They wanted to show that they’ve evolved beyond simply selling doughnuts. The new branding helps cement its positioning as an all-day, drink-forward, on-the-go destination.
But they didn’t stop there. They also introduced a sleek new logo, updating the iconic font, intensifying the pink and orange accents, and replacing the old coffee cup image with clean lines.
Even Dunkin’s stores got a modern makeover: warm colours, open layouts, and a more enticing coffee smell wafting through the air.
The result? A rebranding that perfectly honours tradition while staying current. Talk about having your cake (doughnut?) and eating it too!
2. Apple Computers → Apple Inc.
For their 2007 rebrand, Apple did what Apple does best: risk. This time by dropping “Computers” altogether.
Until then, Apple was all about – you guessed it – computers under the name “Apple Computer.” But something had to give once the iPod took off like wildfire (proving they were so much more than a computer company).
By becoming simply “Apple Inc.” going forward, they positioned themselves brilliantly as an all-encompassing innovator across multiple industries, rather than just another computer brand. Classic!
Of course, changing their name was only half the battle here. Their sleek new visuals and messaging hammered home that they’re design-driven makers of exceptionally great tech experiences, no matter which device you pick up.
This is how you rebrand to launch a company into the stratosphere (and keep it there).
3. Old Spice – “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like”
That’s right, we’re talking about a deodorant rebrand because this one was too good to pass up!
Old Spice had languished as your dad’s dated grooming product for years. But in 2010, parent company P&G made the brilliant decision to build a new brand around a series of laugh-out-loud ads starring the impossibly suave “Old Spice Guy.”
These spots turned Old Spice into an offbeat, Uber-masculine, self-aware brand for guys who didn’t take themselves too seriously – another enjoyable way to sell swagger (and antiperspirant).
While the actual product itself didn’t change much, this clever rebranding effort made Old Spice cool again practically overnight. That’s what happens when you nail your new brand personality!
4. Burger King – Back to Basics
In 2021, Burger King decided its brand needed a proper clear-out. It was their first big change in over 20 years, and it was a blinder.
They ditched the shiny, artificial-looking logo with the blue swoosh that had been around since 1999. In its place, they brought back a classic, retro look that felt way more authentic.
It was simple, confident, and looked like, well, a burger.
But it wasn’t just the logo. They rolled out a new custom font called ‘Flame’, used warmer colours inspired by their food, and designed packaging that was clean and minimalist.
The whole thing screamed “real food”.
The reason it worked so well? It effectively communicated their new focus on quality and eliminating artificial ingredients. It was a brilliant way of saying “we’re going back to what made us great” without feeling old-fashioned.
Survival Tips: 10 Pitfalls to Avoid When Rebranding
Even the smoothest rebranding efforts can still encounter unforeseen obstacles, but don’t worry! Here are a few common mistakes to avoid:
- Unclear Objectives – Understand and define your “why” instead of just winging it.
- Only Changing the Surface – A New Logo Is Just the Beginning. You need to redo everything.
- Analysis Paralysis – Don’t get stuck in research mode; make sure you take action!
- Trying to Make Everyone Happy – You can’t. Identify your primary audiences and embrace your unique approach.
- Lack of Support – Engage key stakeholders early and often to prevent them from becoming roadblocks.
- Overlooking Internal Audiences – Remember, your staff needs to understand and buy into this initiative as well.
- Random Rollouts – Piecemeal launches confuse. Plan it down to the last detail.
- Not Following Through – Your actions must match that bright new positioning statement.
- Ignoring Social Channels – That’s where your people are hanging out online. Be present!
- Set It and Forget It – Like any good casserole, a rebranding needs checking on as things cook.
Just avoid those minesweepers, and you’ll be on the fast track to having a successful brand overhaul!
A Lick of Paint or a Full Knock-Through? Refresh vs. Rebrand
Right, let’s clear something up before you start knocking down walls. Not every brand change is a full-blown rebranding.
Sometimes, all you need is a refresh.
Think of a brand refresh like getting a new haircut and some smart new clothes. You’re still the same person with the same values, but you just look sharper and more current.
It’s about modernising your logo, tweaking your colour palette, or updating your typography. Starbucks has done this a few times, simplifying its logo while retaining the core idea.
It keeps them looking fresh without confusing everyone.
A full rebrand, on the other hand, is the big one. This is a fundamental transformation.
You might be changing your name, your core mission, or the target audience you’re trying to sell to. The thing is, when you change something on a fundamental level, your old brand identity just won’t fit anymore.
Think about Facebook changing its company name to Meta. They weren’t just a social media site anymore; they were heading into the metaverse. That required a whole new identity from the ground up.
Knowing the difference is key. Don’t go for the nuclear option if all you need is to tidy up a bit.
Taking the Rebrand Plunge: A Step-by-Step Guide
Are you raring to go like a branding pro? Here are the key steps to bring your new brand vision to life.
Research: Open the Black Box
This is where audience research begins. You won’t hit the bullseye if you don’t know what (or whom) you’re aiming at.
Surveys, interviews, focus groups, social listening, website analytics—use every tool in your kit to build detailed personas for your core target segments. Look beyond demographics to uncover their mindsets, values, and aspirations—what drives them?
Once armed with these juicy insights, you can identify your brand’s unique “magnetic idea” that will attract specific audiences like moths to a flame.
And don’t forget to see what competitors are up to. A thorough competitive audit will help reveal gaps, differentiation opportunities and trends worth capitalising on.
And here’s a proper tool to get you started: a SWOT analysis. Don’t roll your eyes; it actually works if you’re honest with yourself.
It’s simple. You map out your company’s Strengths (what are you brilliant at?), Weaknesses (be brutal, where are your pants?), Opportunities (what’s out there for the taking?), and Threats (who’s coming to eat your lunch?).
Doing this gives you a reality check. It lays everything out on the table, so you’re not just guessing.
Perhaps you’ll discover that a weakness, such as your brand being perceived as ‘old-fashioned’, is actually a significant opportunity to rebrand for a younger audience. This isn’t just busywork; it’s the data-driven map for your entire strategy.
Brand Positioning: Take Your Stand
With research in hand, it’s time to articulate the refreshed positioning that will make your brand impossible to ignore.
Determine what single-minded benefit or idea you want to own in customers’ minds. What specialised value do you bring? How will you uniquely enrich their lives?
Then, map personality traits and brand archetypes, allowing for authentic delivery of that promise. Think about how you want people to feel – inspired. Delighted? Understood? Empowered?
Your messaging should rally around this core positioning, using consistent language, tone and emotional touchpoints across every channel.
If these capabilities aren’t housed internally, then this is an area where a professional branding firm or ad agency should be brought on board. Trust us; it’s worth investing here because everything else becomes more manageable if done right!
Visual Identity System: The New Threads
Now that we have nailed down our brand positioning and constructed a messaging framework, it’s time for the fun part – giving our brand a new face(s)!
Start by reimagining the logo – a simple yet distinctive graphical element that becomes the face of your brand. Use colours and styling that evoke defined personality traits.
From there, take the complete visual system outwards with the following:
- Colour Palette: Define tints/shades beyond logo colours for different applications.
- Typography: Distinctive font families which reinforce brand voice and energy.
- Iconography: Toolkit of icons/graphics for creating consistent visuals.
- Photography/Illustration Style: Consistent look and feel for all supporting visual elements.
- Branded Assets: Stationery, branded merch, apparel designs, presentation templates, etc.
The best identities strike a balance between standing out and fitting in. Go too wacky, and you’ll turn people off, but play too safe, and you’ll fade into background noise.
Consider bringing on a seasoned designer or agency to ensure a genuinely distinctive, cohesive look that reflects new positioning.
Internal Launch & Training: Getting Troops On Board
If employees aren’t sold on rebranding efforts, then even the most brilliant ones will fall flat because they are the ones who bring it to life every day!
Start with complete endorsement/participation from leadership – C-suite should be visible brand evangelists leading the charge.
Then, give training that includes everyone so they can understand the company’s new positioning, messaging, and visual identity system and how to live the brand genuinely in their respective capacities.
Ensure brand guidelines and tools are easily accessible through your internal network or cloud portal. You might even want to organise what I would call “Brand Camps” for a more immersive experience with a renewed identity.
Above all else, though… make it clear that the brand does not begin (or end) with your marketing materials. It is present in every customer touch-point, every communication piece, and all actions taken by your organisation.
Because this is when the magic happens.
External Rollout: The Grand Debut
All right, folks – it’s showtime! It’s time to introduce yourself to the world as someone entirely new.
But please… don’t just flip a switch and be done with it. You need a thoughtful, phased plan that allows people to follow without getting lost and builds anticipation throughout each stage.
Start by highlighting what’s coming next through digital/social media teasers, using tantalising visuals to pique curiosity. Get them wondering!
As you approach launch day, consider giving specific stakeholders (press, investors, customers) an exclusive sneak peek at everything ahead of time; this should help generate some buzz & goodwill leading up to…
Go big or go home, right? So, on launch day – why not try something like an attention-grabbing splashy campaign that blankets every channel simultaneously? Website takeovers, email blasts, out-of-home billboards, retail/office space overhauls, influencer outreach programs, media buys, swag giveaways – you name it!
And please remember: this isn’t over yet. If anything, it’s only just begun! Keep those fires burning by launching sustained marketing initiatives + engagement campaigns throughout the months following the initial launch date.
Evolution & Optimisation: Stay Relevant
A significant rebranding is like a beautiful garden – it needs constant care, attention and trimming to keep growing.
By continually optimising based on real-world data and feedback from your audiences, you can ensure that your brand’s messaging and visuals will continue to be compelling / resonate with them over time (as opposed to becoming stale).
Utilise tools such as A/B testing, social listening, surveys, focus groups — anything that will help gauge how people react to (or perceive) the new identity. And ensure those friction points are detected early on before they become full-blown issues!
Finally, feel free to make any necessary tweaks or updates along the way. Remember: Brands that remain agile/iterative throughout their lifespan are most likely to thrive in the long term.
So, keep working hard, stay curious, be hungry for knowledge, and never stop pushing boundaries. There’s no such thing as a finishing touch within a genuinely exceptional brand – they’re always in motion!
Frequently Asked Rebranding Questions Demystified
Even after thoroughly consuming this rebranding manual, you may still have a few lingering questions. But don’t worry; we’ve got answers to all your questions right here.
How much should I budget for a complete rebranding?
Unfortunately, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer — it depends wildly on scale and specific needs. However, allocating 5-7% of projected revenue toward the effort is a starting point. For something more comprehensive, you could be looking at $500k-$1.5M.
How long does a typical rebrand process take?
Typically, the timeline ranges from 6 to 12 months from kick-off to full implementation, although it can vary significantly depending on the complexity. Don’t rush it — that leads to rookie mistakes.
My leadership team is allergic to change. Any tips for getting buy-in?
Find ways to get them invested! Bring leaders into the process early, share provocative “what if” visions that inspire them, and focus on strategic growth rationale vs just aesthetic makeovers.
Should we keep any elements of our old brand?
Not necessarily! A complete rebranding often involves starting from scratch and rebuilding everything. However, if certain elements are too iconic to lose (or if executives are too cautious to adopt the “all-new” approach), look for ways to modernise or reinterpret them within the new system.
Besides visual stuff… what else should we rebrand?
EVERYTHING! Messaging, tone, employee culture, and service experience should reflect and support that new positioning. Internal impacts cannot be overstated.
How can I keep costs down?
Strategic rebrands aren’t cheap, but keep an eye out for areas where you can DIY. For example, conducting initial research in-house, utilising stock assets instead of commissioning custom photo shoots, negotiating agency fees creatively, and rolling out initiatives in waves rather than all at once.
Is there an ideal time to launch a rebranding?
Many experts recommend the new year, after significant holiday seasons, or the start of a fiscal quarter, as a time to coincide with fresh budgets/cycles. However, perfect timing depends heavily on your particular business cadence.
Our rebranding rollout went weirdly smooth… can we stop now?
Nope! You’re never “done” building a healthy brand. Continue to optimise based on data and audience sentiment. What works today may not necessarily work in five years.
We’re not a Fortune 500 company. Does rebranding matter for smaller fish?
Absolutely! A smartly executed rebrand can be even more transformative and business-critical for startups and challenger brands seeking to establish new territory and connect emotionally. Go deep!
That should cover most of the burning questions around branded beefcake-building! But as always, shout if any stumpers pop up along the way.
