Life is a constant evolution, and we can only adapt and renew ourselves accordingly. Music, internet, telephony, everything has improved over time. We, as humans, are also subject to change. If you have an established business, you will surely know that it is important to evolve as a brand, because the market is also constantly changing.
To do this, companies use a method that helps them to update themselves according to the needs of the market and to regain their lost direction – rebranding. In this article, we answer the most frequently asked questions about this marketing technique and give some tips on how to give your brand a fresh look.
Summary
- Rebranding is a good marketing strategy that allows your brand, product or service to stay updated over time. Remember that if we do not take control when the market changes, our business could remain stagnant.
- There can be many reasons to think about rebranding. Therefore, you should set a goal and create a good strategic plan. It is likely that your brand’s reputation will be damaged or that your customers will no longer identify with it.
- Don’t forget to take into account the key aspects for your rebranding to be successful. Always study your brand and your competitors’ brands in depth. You must know, in detail, the market in which it is positioned.
What you should know about rebranding
Is your business not going through a good time, or has it simply changed its focus? Without a doubt, it needs a change. This is the best time to think about rebranding. Before organizing a strategic plan, it is necessary to properly study the aspects to be taken into account for a successful rebranding. Below, we answer the most frequently asked questions.
What is rebranding?
Rebranding is a strategic process that is used for partially or totally renewing the identity of a brand, business or product. This is done through changes in specific elements, such as a change of name, logo, typography, design, advertising messages or a combination of the above. It seeks to change the opinion of customers and investors about an established brand (1).
However, this method not only renews your brand’s identity, but also helps it differentiate itself from the competition and makes it more credible and relevant to its target audience.
What a company wants to do is precisely to be one step ahead of the others, and then offer something better, such as being more sustainable.
What types of rebranding are there?
Depending on the needs of your brand, there can be different types of rebranding. Each model will give you that touch of renewal and freshness that will make the difference. Here are the ones that are known in the market:
- Proactive rebranding: In this case, it is the company that wants to transform the brand, perhaps to adapt to the evolution of the market. Or perhaps it is mainly an aesthetic factor that leads, for example, a company to invest in good branding, once it has achieved the desired success.
- Reactive rebranding: On the contrary, this is the case that leads a company to change due to external factors. Whether it is the union with another brand or the need to change the target audience itself.
What is the difference between rebranding and restyling?
We often confuse rebranding with restyling. Both are very effective marketing strategies, which companies use as ways to consolidate brands, but, without a doubt, they are two completely different things. Below, we show you the difference between these two methods:
- Restyling: As the name suggests, this is a change in the brand’s style. That is its visual identity. Normally, the logo or the format of the letters is modified.
- Rebranding: In the case of rebranding, the tendency is to change not only the visual identity, but also the brand in depth. It can be decided to change the philosophy, the target audience, and the tone, thus giving a completely different and renewing identity, in all its aspects, to the business.
What does a rebranding include?
Now that we know what rebranding is and what types exist, the question is what aspects it includes. As we have said before, there are companies that want a partial update and others that prefer to change their own image and philosophy completely.
A rebranding can include changes in the name, the design, the values, the idea, the positioning or, for example, in the internal way of working of a business. Whatever is necessary to keep pace and adapt to market changes.
What is the purpose of rebranding and when should it be done?
Rebranding may be necessary because of decisions, processes or events that cause a change in the organisation’s structure, strategy and performance (2). For each situation, a target is set, achievable through the chosen rebranding strategy. The situations and objectives are shown below:
| Reason | Target |
|---|---|
| Your business is no longer successful. | Rebranding increases sales again. |
| Your company is starting to have a bad reputation. | Re-establish a good company image. |
| Consumers no longer feel identified with the brand. | Update your business, to adapt to the new times. |
| The central objective of your business changes. | Make your public aware of what’s new. |
| You want to expand your business. | A good rebranding helps you reach your new audience, keeping in mind the needs of the place where you want to expand. |
| Your business idea starts to look like your competitors’. | It repositions you in a way that consumers see you as different and unique. |
Who is in charge of rebranding?
The moment you realise that you need to rebrand, to refresh your brand, it is important to know who to trust with this task. The person in charge of this type of strategy is usually a creative copywriter. A copywriter translates a customer’s needs into messages that, when they reach the receiver (consumer), trigger something in him.
However, the creative copywriter works in close collaboration with the executive, who relates directly with the brand to talk about the idea, and with the graphic designer who converts the idea into images.
The three of you, working together, will carry out a good strategic plan and launch a rebranding campaign, which will make your new brand image known to your target audience
How much does rebranding cost?
The cost of rebranding is certainly not cheap and will depend on the type of change the brand needs. The more aspects that need to be changed, the higher the price will undoubtedly be.
However, we are talking about a price that can vary from a few hundred thousand euros for a partial change to tens of thousands of euros for a total change.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of rebranding?
As we have already seen, rebranding is very important for the repositioning of your brand, store or product. But, now we ask ourselves, what are the benefits and risks of giving a new identity to your brand? Below, we show them in a table:
Advantages
- Increase sales.
- It can help you outperform the main competitors in your market.
- It can make more people aware of the brand.
- Reduces reputation problems.
- Can help you change target audiences.
- Secure your market share.
- Increase your presence.
Disadvantages
- If the changes are drastic, it can make your brand unrecognizable.
- Can be an expensive investment
- If not done well, you can lose your brand positioning.
How to make your rebranding successful?
If you really want to do a good job of rebranding, you should follow a series of analyses that will help you in the best possible way. In fact, because it is not a very easy job, it might not be successful if the most important aspects are not taken into account.
(Source: David Preiti/ Gitnux.com)
What are the best-known examples of rebranding?
Now that we know what to keep in mind to revolutionize your brand, let’s discover together which well-known companies have benefited from this marketing strategy. Below, you will see some examples of successful rebranding, which have managed to increase sales or the audience of some brands:
| Brand | Type of rebranding |
|---|---|
| It has changed typography and logo more times, in order to leave behind that somewhat retro look. In addition, new functions were added to the platform. | |
| McDonald’s | Mc Donald’s is a good example of rebranding, implemented due to the bad reputation that the chain acquired in the late 90s. In fact, the logo colour was changed to green, to give the idea of healthier. It was then that salad was added to the menu. |
| Don Limpio | Now we have an example of a brand that changed its naming and kept its original logo. Undoubtedly, this is a rather risky type of rebranding. This brand changed its name from “Mr. Proper” to “Don Limpio” in Spain, and chose a different name for each country. |
| A more recent example of rebranding is Facebook, which has also decided to change its naming. In fact, the world’s best-known platform is now called meta. Its new purpose was to reposition itself and focus on the creation of content for a virtual world. The so-called metaverse world. | |
| Tropicana | Finally, here is an example of a failed rebranding. What Tropicana did was change the packaging design of its premium orange juice. While the old design showed the idea of natural orange juice, the new design proposal moved away from the core ideas of the brand. Within just six weeks, sales had dropped by 20%, and Tropicana reverted to the original design. |
Are there tips for communicating rebranding to your target audience?
Now that we have an idea of what rebranding is and how to use it, how can we communicate it? Yes, you read that right. If we don’t want to lose impact or generate confusion, we must communicate the rebranding to our target audience. Of course, nowadays, there are several ways and means to do it. Below, we leave you some ideas:
- Clarify what you want to communicate with your new brand image.
- Create a launch campaign thanks to a creative copywriter.
- Showcase your brand change through social media.
- Find influencers in your industry and set up a partnership to promote your brand.
Conclusion
In conclusion, rebranding is very important and has many advantages that can benefit your company. It can increase your sales, make your products known to more potential customers, or help you change your target audience. This way, success will always be just around the corner and your presence in the market will increase.
When thinking about a strategic plan, you need to understand, what aspects of your brand need to be changed. By knowing this, you will take the right steps and not end up with a job poorly done, which could cause you to lose customers and ruin your brand’s reputation.
References
1. ANDRADE PERDOMO, J. A. A. M. M. E. S. G. G. A. B. R. I. E. L., MENDOZA PERALTA, J. O. R. G. E. E. A. R. T. U. R. O., & PULIDO MEDINA, C. A. M. M. I. L. O. A. N. D. D. R. E. S. (2014). DIAGNOSIS AND REBRANDING OF THE EDIME BRAND. -. Retrieved March 9, 2022
2. Maroun, D., & Villegas, L. (2016, September). THE EFFECTS OF THE REBRANDING CARRIED OUT IN 2014 BY THE MELAO BRAND: IMAGE AUDIT. – 2016
