Branding That Fits
A brand is a business's most valuable asset. The power of your brand influences customer loyalty, public image, and connection to your customers. Think of 3 brands that you would recognize anywhere, even if they changed their signature colors or tweaked their logo. You would still know, because that’s how much influence their brand carries. We find that rebranding can present itself as the perfect solution for business owners. They think it’s a new start, and customers will have to forget about their past image, right? You can imagine why this strategy often fails. When considering a rebrand, make sure that you’re not trying to rebrand from something you are trying to run from…if you are, rebranding won’t work!
The bottom line is that rebranding is a big deal. It’s alright to not know if this process is right for you, or where to begin. The rest of this article will help guide you through the questioning process so that you can make the best choice for your business and truly benefit from it.
Rebranding
We don’t want to scare you, but we’re here to be transparent. A lot of companies could benefit from an entire rebranding process, there’s no doubt! But rebranding isn’t something you do out of boredom or hopes for escape. Rebranding is a lengthy and heavily involved process. If you aren’t going to take action simultaneously along with your rebrand, then you will have spent a lot of time on nothing. Like we said, we aren’t here to discourage you. There are many, legitimate reasons why a business would embark on a rebranding journey. Here are a few:
Your branding is outdated
Your branding isn’t connecting with your customers
Your brand has outgrown its original vision or your business has changed directions
Rebranding, when done correctly and purposefully, can take your company to the next level. If you decide to go down the rebranding path, be prepared to commit to the process. Taking shortcuts will not only result in a poor execution, but could also tarnish your brand’s image.
There are a few key questions you should ask yourself when you are considering a rebrand:
Do I really need to start from scratch or will a refresh be the answer to my problem?
How much time can I commit to this project?
Are my expectations for this process reasonable?
Can I afford to hire a professional?
Before we go on, let’s take a minute to discuss item 4. Can I afford to hire a professional? Earlier we read that going through the rebranding process with no plan can have some major downfalls to your business. Because of this, we highly recommend hiring a professional to help with your rebranding process. Having someone who is knowledgeable is key to a successful rebrand. You deserve a professional who is skilled in the rebranding and identity process to take you through the right questions and considerations
The questions above will determine whether you can commit to a full rebrand, or if you just need a little refresh. Not sure what it means to refresh your brand? Keep reading!
Refreshing
Thankfully, there is an alternative to a full scale reboot: a brand REFRESH! A brand refresh can include things like an update or improvement to your logo, updating your brand colors, reorganizing your mission statement, or improving your tone of voice and copy.
Recently, Stillwell + Co went through a brand refresh! We knew that our current color palette wasn’t connecting to our target audience, and we found it really difficult to make content that looked good. Our old colors were beautiful and vibrant, but they weren’t sending the right message to the people who needed to see them. We want our colors and messaging to connect to the people our message was intended to resonate with. What we found was, when you do it yourself, it can be so hard! When it comes to our clients, choosing colors that fit their brand is a challenging but possible task. When it’s your own business, the challenge seems pretty impossible! We went through a dozen color variations before finally deciding on our new colors.
Refreshing might be for you if…
You want to expand your customer reach
You want your branding to stay current (please don’t rebrand every year! Sincerely, the professionals)
Your branding doesn’t reflect who you are
Need a brand refresh but not sure where to start? We can help you get started!
Staying True
No matter what you decide, the most important thing to remember is that it needs to reflect the values of your business and who you are and want to be. If you embark on a rebranding or brand refresh process, make sure you are doing it carefully and with a lot of thought. Make sure your mission is aligned with your updates and new branding elements. You want this brand to be relevant and powerful for years to come!
PS - check out our new colors!
