Some brands grow on you like a colony of E. Coli on a room temperature steak. Others however, lose their lustre and begin to fade as time goes on. A strong brand is one that evolves and keeps up with its environment.

Most companies will inevitably come to a point in their lifetime where they will need to rebrand. For some, it happens six months down the track when they figure out who they really are, and for others it may happen 5 years on after outgrowing their brand ‘skin’. A rebrand is about redesigning and rewriting your story. Its about revamping who you are and how you wish to be perceived. It isn’t about slapping a trendy new logo on to your existing framework. Its about digging deeper than that and redefining why you do what you do.

Rebranding can be a subtle evolution or a dramatic revolution, either way the purpose of the rebrand should be to reconnect with your audience in a different, more meaningful way. A rebrand can be super dooper worthwhile exercise for businesses to undertake, however rebranding a business shouldn’t be taken lightly and should be done for the right reasons.

Here are my top 6 reasons to rebrand.

1. YOUR BRAND LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING YOUR NAN USED TO WEAR

If your brand makes you cringe when you look at it, that’s probably enough of a warning sign to rebrand. Trends come and go, just ask any fashion blogger – what was hot a year ago is no longer considered ‘en-vogue’. It may have been the bees knees back in the day, but perhaps your current branding is now outdated and doesn’t suit your business anymore. It might even be the case that during your set-up, pockets were shallow and your brand was produced cheaply and quickly to ‘make do’ but now it feels disconnected and amateur.

2. YOUR BRAND IS JUST ONE CUP SIZE TOO SMALL

I see it so often, a brand is created for a business based in the back garage, but starts going gangbusters. Before they know it they’ve got a real office with real staff and real money coming through the door. Their branding no longer fits. Perhaps, in the beginning, they didn’t have the confidence that their brand would be a success story. So they did it all on the cheap, commissioning their sister’s boyfriend’s cousin who once learnt microsoft paint in after school care, and got themselves a template website from the next door neighbour who thought that SEO stood for Secret Elephants Orphanage. After a few years in business, they realise that the hot pink flamingo may no longer be attracting the right type of clients you’re hoping to woo. It’s inevitable that your business will grow and change, so its important that you are flexible enough to do the same.

3. YOUR BRAND HAS DITCHED THE GPS FOR A NEW ADVENTURE

Over time, businesses will mould, move and adapt to new circumstances. You may find yourself adding new products, tweaking your services, ditching bad ideas or gathering new crew members. Throughout the twists and the turns of your business journey you may find that your goals and destination changes. It’s important that your branding joins you on that ride to encompass the same way of thinking and vision.

4. YOUR BRAND NEEDS TO HIT THE REFRESH BUTTON

The best brands are those that are constantly updating to remain fresh and relevant. Successful rebrands manage to rejuvenate and inject new life, whilst still celebrating the history and heritage of the business. By refreshing your brand, you show your audience that you are constantly adapting and evolving to change, and thus remaining relevant to consumers in a forever changing marketplace.

5. YOUR BRAND HAS BEEN A NAUGHTY LITTLE BOY

Often companies will rebrand to shed the skin of a negative perception or image from the past – kind of like waking up after a big night to delete all of your drunken instagram pics and uploading some new ones of yourself at a humble dinner party. Rebranding a business due to negative publicity is no easy feat, but 9 times out of 10 is a worthwhile process. Demonstrating to your audience that you’ve evolved and changed from the bad to the good (even if just a better look and feel), psychologically resonates with them that you’ve grown up or changed.

6. YOUR BRAND NEEDS A DETOX

In the process of growing and evolving, a business usually acquires a smorgasbord of different products, services, values, messages and ideas that get tacked onto the brand as it moulds and changes. Organic growth like this can result in a patchwork of mismatched brand clutter that can be complex and confusing to the audience. In this instance, a rebrand can act as a detox for a business to rationalise and consolidate their strategy to future-proof and allow for streamlined growth.

 

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Written by Owner and Creative Director of Smack Bang Designs, Tess Robinson.  Tess’s ballsy approach to business, incredible design prowess, and ability to build an empire without getting a single feather ruffled inspires the pants off us daily.  Head to her Instagram for more design inspo, or catch her as one of our feature Mavericks in our upcoming Owners Collective Mastermind.