IntroDuction To Rebranding
Rebranding. A buzz word you may have heard thrown around here or there, on social media or talking to other business owners. But what exactly IS a rebrand? How do you know when you need one?
After working six years in brand management for Big Food, then launching my own business as a wedding invitation designer - I’ll tell you what I’ve learned about rebranding and reinventing myself along the way!
When to Rebrand?
If you are a small business owner, you might feel that where you are today isn’t the same place as when you first started your business. Perhaps your business began as a hobby - and now you are no longer selling the same products. Or perhaps you started out at a lower price point, but have elevated into a more premium provider over time. Or maybe you’ve changed your target customer - in the beginning, you sold to parents; but now you have niched in on providing solutions for single mothers.
As a small business owner, I launched my business thinking that I wanted to provide affordable wedding stationery. Over time this evolved into highly customized, unique wedding invitations at a higher cost.
I believe that it’s perfectly natural for your business to evolve over time, especially as you become more familiar with what you love doing, and who you LOVE helping.
If your business has grown in a different direction than when you originally started - you may also feel that your brand feels “stuck” in the past. You may feel that your brand is no longer aligned with your future goals.
This is a sign that you might consider rebranding!
The goal of a rebrand is to update the face of your business. Keep in mind that your “brand” is the way that your customers perceive your business. If your business is pivoting in a different direction - you may find that a rebrand will empower you to confidently pursue your new business goals!
But What IS a Rebrand?
A rebrand is pretty much what it sounds like: an update or change to your branding.
In terms of what this ACTUALLY means, a rebrand basically boils down to three parts:
Updating your brand strategy (such as the positioning or target audience of your business)
Updating your visual brand assets (such as your logo, website, brand colors, etc.)
Updating your customer experience (such as the process of buying from you or using your products)
In best practice, your strategy should be refreshed before making any changes to your visuals. The reason for this is to ensure that when you update your brand visuals (such as your logo, website, etc.), the new brand visuals you create will attract the right consumers for your business.
A rebrand is also sometimes referred to as a brand refresh!
How to Get Started with a Rebrand?
My best advice for a rebrand is always to start by identifying your new brand strategy. This means revising your target audience, understanding what products & services you provide that best serve this audience, and getting clear on why your brand exists to serve these people.
A few questions to get you started on thinking through your brand strategy:
Who is your target consumer? Is this the same person that you were targeting when you first started your business? Does this person need the same things as they did when you first started your business?
What is the solution that you are providing to serve your target customer? Is this the same solution that you were providing when you first began? Has the value of your solution changed at all since you first began? How can you provide more than one kind of solution to your customer?
Why does your brand exist? How does your brand elevate the lives of your customers? What is your brand personality and tone of voice? What are your brand values? What makes your brand unique?
Thinking through these questions will help you determine the direction you want to take your business, and really get clear on how that will translate into your brand.
Once you have gotten clear on the brand strategy, then the next step is to update your brand visuals to align!
Rebranding Your Logo & Brand Visuals
Your brand visuals are the external-facing parts of your business. If your brand strategy is the recipe, then your brand visuals are the frosting & decoration on your cake. Think of your brand visuals like your storefront - the first thing your consumers see when they encounter your business.
Brand visuals are composed of many elements - the most obvious being your logo, your brand colors, your website, your business cards, and any other elements that your consumers might come face-to-face with when they first stumble upon your business.
Keep in mind that while your consumers might never see your brand strategy - your brand visuals are in front of your consumers every day. That’s why it’s important to make sure that your brand visuals are aligned with your brand strategy: so that everything is tight and cohesive.
When updating your brand visuals (such as your logo and website), here are a few questions to ask yourself:
Do these visuals speak to my ideal consumer? What kind of visuals would my ideal consumer be attracted to?
What are these visuals conveying? What adjectives would you use to describe these visuals? Do these adjectives align with how you want your brand to be perceived?
How would a stranger react to your visuals? Would a stranger pick up on what you’re trying to convey with your visuals?
How do your visuals align with your products and services? Do your visuals convey what you’re trying to sell?
Sometimes when you’re creating a new logo or website, it can be very helpful to get feedback from friends, family or potential clients who aren’t involved in the ins-and-outs of your business.
An outsider’s perspective can provide an unbiased viewpoint on whether the words you’re choosing and the images you’re curating really convey what you want.
Rebranding Your Customer Experience
A rebrand doesn’t have to stop at your logo and website - a great brand refresh can even go as far as to include your entire customer experience.
If we go forward with the cake metaphor where your brand strategy is the recipe, and your brand visuals are the frosting & decorations on your cake - then your customer experience is the way your cake tastes. Is your cake sweet or savory? Heavy or light? What is the actual eating experience?
In business terms, here’s what you can do to redefine your customer experience:
Deep dive into the way you communicate with your customers (and potential leads.) What kind of energy are you conveying to your leads? How do you describe your products & services? Your communication can extend beyond emails and phone calls - but also include the way you speak about your business on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media. Think about what information you’re putting out there on your business. Does the way that others perceive your business align with the way you WANT your brand to be perceived? If not, make a change!
Revisit the way your products & services are packaged. If you sell physical products - how does your packaging embody the experience that you want to provide to your customers? If you provide services - how can you make the experience of buying more aligned to your brand values & brand strategy?
Are your PRICES aligned with your brand strategy? Don’t forget that your prices say a lot about the way your brand is positioned! Are you an affordable solution that is meant to be accessible to everyone? Are you a premium provider that is meant to feel exclusive? Pricing is a huge part of your customer experience.
In my opinion, the most fun part of rebranding is taking your strategy all the way through to the end touchpoint with your customer. This is the best way to make sure your business feels cohesive, through and through.
But Will Rebranding Confuse My Customers?
You may be thinking that a rebrand sounds risky. After all - you’ve worked hard to get where you are today. You don’t want to risk confusing your current consumers by refreshing your brand.
I can definitely relate to this feeling. When I first considered adding branding to my services as a wedding invitation designer - I was scared! I felt like I might not be credible, and that my wedding invitation clients would be surprised and confused.
But the truth is, a rebrand doesn’t have to leave your current customers behind. A great rebrand can actually enable you to continue serving your current consumers, while also niching down on a more ideal customer.
Here are some ways that you can make sure your brand refresh doesn’t lose your current customers:
Choose one element to keep consistent during your rebrand. Perhaps your brand values stay consistent even while your target consumer changes. For example - your brand might be built on values of honesty and transparency, even though your candle company is shifting from targeting men to specifically targeting older bachelors with a taste for luxury.
Hype up your rebrand! Speak about your origin story, and how far you’ve come since then. Make your customers feel involved in your journey, and make them feel invested in the future of your brand. Your rebrand is part of your business story - and there’s no reason why you can’t hype this up and make your consumers feel just as involved and invested as you are.
Rebrand gradually. You may be tempted to wait for ALL the details to be finalized before unveiling the final result to your customers - but the truth is, rebranding is a process. It can take weeks and months to complete a full brand refresh, from the strategy to the logo to the customer experience. There’s no reason you can’t share bits and pieces of news as you finalize different parts of the process. Your customers will enjoy seeing the updates, and feel involved in the process as you share more. (Plus - You may even want to get feedback from customers along the way!)
Remember that your business is constantly changing and growing - so it makes sense that your brand is also a living thing, growing and changing along with your business.
As a business owner, it’s natural to take your business into the direction that feels the best for you. The goal of a rebrand is simply to bring your customers along with you in that new direction!
The Benefits of Rebranding
The benefits of rebranding may not seem obvious, but believe me - the more clear you are on your brand strategy, the more confident & purposeful your business will feel.
Think about it - having a brand or a logo or a website that doesn’t feel completely right can hold you back. You may feel that since your logo doesn’t really fit your personality, you can’t really present yourself in the best light. This in turn might undermine your ability to sell products, or book dream clients, or provide the best value to your current customers.
On the other hand - a brand refresh really gives you the opportunity to get clear on where you want your business to go, thus empowering you to pursue those dream sales and dream clients.
Here are some benefits of rebranding:
Create a cohesive look and feel for your brand. If you started your brand a few months or years ago, you may have added different elements at different times. Perhaps your website is old and doesn’t match your Instagram. Or your Youtube cover photos don’t incorporate your logo, because you made the covers before you even had a logo. Rebranding is the perfect chance to create a cohesive brand identity, so you can strengthen your brand and drive growth!
Align your brand to your goals. As I mentioned earlier, your business goals may have changed since you first started your business, and your current brand might not feel aligned to your future. This means it’s time for a brand refresh!
Reinvigorate your business. Sometimes our businesses just feel a little…tedious. And there’s nothing like a fresh look at your business to get you feeling passionate again. A rebrand is the perfect chance to deep dive into your business and really get honest about what you like or don’t like selling. Sometimes all it takes is a good strategy, to get you feeling re-energized about your work.
Gain clarity on your business goals. As a small business owner, do you ever struggle with having too many ideas? I know it can be hard to see how all your ideas fit together inside one business (or under one brand!) Doing a rebrand can actually help you get clear on who exactly you want to serve and what products/services you are best suited to provide. This can help you confidently identify & pursue your business goals.
There are tons and TONS of reasons to consider a rebrand - but these are some of the most common ones that I’ve heard from fellow business owners.
What’s My Experience With Rebranding?
Personally, I decided to rebrand The Hustling Heart this year because I am adding a completely new service to my business.
When I started my business, I only offered wedding invitations & stationery design.
But over time, branding crept into my business quite naturally! I started doing logos and design for fellow wedding professionals. And now, branding is at least 50% of my business.
So now, here I am - deciding to rebrand my OWN business, so that I can add branding as a new service in my offerings.
Ironic, huh?
To Sum It Up - Don’t Be Afraid of a Brand Refresh!
As you can see - there’s a lot to think about when rebranding. That’s why it’s best to start with your brand strategy first, and nail down who your target customer is, as well as your new brand positioning.
Once you’ve gotten clear on your strategy, all the decisions you make in your business should tie back to that strategy on some level. This will help you create a cohesive business that is aligned to your goals!
Did you enjoy this introduction to rebranding? If so - stay connected with my Up Close & Personal newsletter; I’m currently working on a rebrand for my own brand (The Hustling Heart) and will be sharing more tips & tricks as I go through the process myself!
Cheers,