You’ve done it. It’s taken a few years and a lot of hard work, but you established a brand identity in a highly competitive marketplace. While you may be tempted to take a step back and relax, now isn’t the time to take your foot off of the figurative gas pedal.
Now that you’ve established your brand, you need to cultivate it. Your brand is the face of your business as well as its voice, after all. Your brand is what comes to mind when people hear the name of your company. Put simply, your brand is your organization’s identity in every conceivable way.
As time passes, you may start to realize that your brand is no longer aligned with your business. When that happens, it’s time to rebrand. While the thought of rebranding may send shivers down your spine, the potential consequences of not rebranding may be even more intimidating. Failing to rebrand when you should can lead to lost sales opportunities, customer attrition and, worse, the end of your business altogether.
Reasons to Rebrand
There are many reasons businesses may want to rebrand themselves. To know when you should rebrand your organization, you must be familiar with the signs that a rebrand is in order. Here are some common signs that an organization should undergo a rebrand:
- You launched a new product that differs dramatically from the other goods you sell
- Your organization’s mission and/or values have changed
- Your target market’s needs have changed
- Your company doesn’t stand out from its competitors any longer
- The market is changing quickly and you’ve fallen behind or are perceived to have done so
- You want to attract a new demographic or your target market has shifted
- You want to change your image
- Your sales are dropping off or you’re attracting the wrong kind of customer
- The look of your brand doesn’t accurately reflect what you actually do
- Your management team has undergone significant changes
How to Rebrand Your Business
Just as there are multiple reasons you may want to rebrand your company, there are several steps involved in the rebranding process. The first step is to budget plenty of time for the process. Rebranding doesn’t happen overnight so budget an ample amount of time to avoid rushing through the process. Remember – your brand is your organization’s identity. As such, your brand deserves a considerable amount of time if you’re going to rework it.
Rebranding typically involves more than a simple name or logo change. While you may end up changing your company’s name and logo, rebranding will also involve your marketing, products or services, online presence, clients, employees and values. With rebranding influencing so many aspects of your business, it’s vital for you to know the exact reasons you’re undertaking the rebranding process right from the start.
Once you know why a rebrand is necessary, you need to develop a rebranding strategy. Your plan should account for the changes you intend to make to your brand and the parts of your marketing and business strategies that will be affected. Your plan should also appoint people to manage the different pieces that comprise your overall rebranding plan.
Communicating with your existing customers and prospects is essential to a successful rebrand. If you don’t explain what’s happening and why you’re implementing changes, you may end up alienating your clients and losing their trust.
Explaining what’s happening to your clients is a must for your rebrand to work as intended. With this in mind, you should publicize your rebranding efforts through every channel that’s available to you. From social media to your website, blog and traditional press releases, you should use every tool possible to spread the news of your rebranding effort.
Just as customer service is important every day, going the extra mile for your clients throughout the rebranding process is essential. Keep your focus on providing excellent customer service throughout the rebranding process so you can retain as many customers as possible.
Recognizing when you need help with the rebranding process is important, too. If you need help rebranding your business, contact DB Marcom. We provide a full suite of branding services in Frisco and we have the expertise to create and implement a rebranding plan for your organization. Contact us to learn more now!