Rebranding is a long-standing practice among significant corporations. Consider Uber’s current rebranding as part of a lengthy tradition of rebranding.
Consumers rarely notice branding changes unless they are major overhauls. Most are subtle, such changing the color of a sports team’s emblem or jersey. For example, altering the typeface of your company’s name on business cards may not seem like a big issue, but it is. Rebranding signifies your company’s dedication to development and upward growth.
It can also be used to highlight a company’s growth in an ever-changing market. Is it time to rebrand your company?
Here are five possible causes.
1. To reach a new demographic
To keep your business moving forward, you may need to reach out to a new audience that may be interested in your product. Consider the congested alcohol market. In America, the moniker Pabst Blue Ribbon conjures up an image of cheap beer favored by hipsters and frat boys.
Pabst Blue Ribbon 1844, China’s version of PBR, is a hugely popular luxury beer that sells for $44. Isn’t it amazing? Pabst saw an opportunity in the fast rising Chinese craft beer market to capitalize on a clientele unfamiliar with their American brand. As though advertising a high-end scotch, Chinese PBR ads include a fine bottle next to a champagne flute, with stacks of barrels trailing behind. Finding a new market and targeting a different demographic can help your firm grow.
2. To shake off an old image
In America, this was less of an issue, but in England, criminals and gangs wore Burberry for many years as a status symbol. As a result, numerous pubs have banned Burberry and other companies from their premises. Unbelievable, yet it was a major issue for Burberry, as the unfavorable connotation turned away many potential buyers.
Burberry responded by actively reinventing itself as a high-end luxury clothing company, including pursuing notable celebrities like Emma Watson for advertising campaigns. The interesting thing is that Burberry didn’t modify their look or prices, therefore their tradition survived. Instead, they just focused on craftsmanship and cutting-edge fashion in their display. It may not be as extreme as it was for Burberry, but it is feasible that your company will attract a different demographic. If an unforeseen audience takes to your business, don’t abandon it. Simply rebrand, and do so with care and attention to presentation.
3. A fast-changing market
Sometimes a rebrand is required to be competitive in an ever-changing market. Companies whose services are excellent often be left behind because their brand is not linked with the cutting edge. Remember the old Mac versus. PC ads? Microsoft has done well to keep up with, and probably even outperform, the competition these days, but thanks to some excellent branding by Apple, PCs were once deemed outdated.
4. When you outgrow your original mission
Rebranding might help your company’s expert services reach a more demanding clientele. “Brand change is critical to a company’s relevance,” says Aspect CMO Jim Freeze. “A chief marketing officer must know when to transform a company’s brand to advance its legacy.”
Consider the relaunched Altify. Before “the cloud,” the company was a cloud-hosted sales transformation solution. It was one of the first to combine customer insights and data with decades of tested sales experience to enable salespeople to have intelligent business discussions with clients.
But the market shifted. In the age of big data, clients use Altify at every stage of the sales cycle, not just the transaction. “As we now support the entire revenue team, not simply sales, we believed it was appropriate and timely to alter our name,” says CEO Donal Daly. “Altify is our pledge to help your revenue team become better ready to go to market by putting your customers first.”
5. When all you’ve got is a name
When asked to imagine a motorcycle, most people think of a Harley-Davidson. It is, after all, an American institution, a symbol of freedom and rugged independence. Many people are unaware that Harley-Davidson was close to bankruptcy in 1985, despite being the most recognized brand in its market.
To save the company, Harley-Davidson devised a great rebranding strategy: preserve the iconic name but improve the product. A new generation of riders will be attracted to Harley’s timeless name by designing smaller, more controllable and more inexpensive bikes. A successful strategy has repositioned Harley among the top motorbike brands. Follow this model if your organization has done well in developing familiarity but not in execution.
Finally, a static market does not exist. Your competitors will evolve, and your company’s position in the market may need to adapt. A rebrand must not change the entire business. Rather, let your brand change with the firm.