How to Launch a Successful Rebranding Strategy

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Rebranding is not for the weak. Not only does it take a tremendous amount of work and require a sizeable chunk of your budget; it’s also extremely risky.

Why?

Because it takes years for a brand to gain the trust and loyalty of its customers. Despite the magnitude of the task though, expending energy and money to woo your target market can be incredibly rewarding. With 64% of customers saying that they patronize brands that echo the values they share, it’s no wonder that 77% of marketers view launching a successful rebranding strategy as a crucial factor in the growth of every business.

So, why do businesses even bother to rebrand? Why take the risk? Why won’t they just stick to the status quo?

The answer is simple: It’s because change is inevitable.

While a number of entrepreneurs would choose to simply close up shop and move on to the next project, there are a select few who believe that their brand can survive the changes. It only needs re-adjusting and refocusing in order to better cater to the demands of the market. Truth be told, that’s basically what a successful rebranding strategy aims to deliver: an improved and updated version of your brand.

If you are one of those brand managers or marketing & advertising experts who still believe in your dream, then this post is for you. It offers valuable pieces of advice for brands that seek to reinvent themselves and come off as better versions of their old business.

Know your “WHY”

Businesses are at the mercy of the trends. Every second that passes pushes marketers and entrepreneurs to evaluate their brands. Are they still relevant? Do their values remain suitable to their target audience? Are their go-to branding strategies up to date?

This is where rebranding comes in.

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To be able to keep up with the changes, businesses must take time to evaluate their brands and determine if they’re getting left behind simply because their models are outdated. It’s a painful process, and only the fully committed brand managers can actually follow through.

Admitting that your current brand is failing to deliver results can undoubtedly test anyone’s mettle. However, it’s the most crucial step towards a successful rebranding strategy.

The next step would be to understand why you need to rebrand. Here are some reasons businesses choose to reinvent themselves:

•         They want to eliminate confusion among customers and set themselves apart from brands that are too similar to theirs
•         Their current brand suffered a huge PR blow, and its image needs sprucing
•         Their sales are dwindling because of outdated models or services offered
•         They’re targeting a new demographic of potential and more profitable customers

Proactive Successful Rebranding Strategy

Rebranding is not always just a solution to problems of a brand. It can also be a pre-emptive tactic. Let’s take Instagram as an example of a successful proactive rebranding.

Since its launch, Instagram has introduced a number of changes in the way their almost 1 billion users can utilize the app. They have added features such as various custom filters. They even hosted several contests to amp the engagement level of their users. On top of these, Instagram has collaborated with other brands like Boomerang and Layout. Hence, they’ve added new features unique to those sub-brands as well.

While they’ve been promoting these changes nonstop, they also worked hard to reflect the innovations in the most obvious way possible – by altering their logo.

OLD LOGO

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NEW LOGO

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Now, Instagram’s logo embodies how far it has evolved. It’s modern and creative – pretty much like their target users. While the brand didn’t exactly need to reinvent itself since it was doing quite well at the time, the move to rebrand was prompted by their desire to bring more value to their clients.

Consistency is Key

Once you’ve decided to rebrand, it’s critical to ensure that the changes are reflected across all your online and offline platforms. That is, your website should match the changes implemented on your social media accounts, email signatures, business cards, and other pages. Make sure that the transitions are executed as seamlessly as possible.

Remember, 90% of consumers demand to have consistent and similar experiences on all platforms they encounter your brand. This will ensure that your customers do not get confused. Keep in mind that a successful rebranding strategy with a consistent presentation across the board has an average increase in revenue of 23%. More importantly, this will guarantee that your rebrand won’t look disorganized.

Organize an in-house launch

Host an internal unveiling of your reinvented brand among your team. Aim to get every member involved and excited over the rebranding. Apart from keeping everyone in the loop, this also ensures that your employees are aware of the new direction and vision for your business. It boosts the company morale and encourages everyone to help promote the changes.

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In addition, it was found that promotional messages get through to 561% more users when these are shared by team members or employees compared to the brand accounts themselves. The disparity in reach lies in the fact that people tend to have more confidence on accounts used by actual persons as opposed to a faceless business entity.

Host an external launch

Social media accounts of brands get unfollowed by at least 45% of users when they post too many self-promoting messages. This poses a quandary for businesses in the process of a rebrand. How will you disseminate information if you’re not supposed to post too many self-promotional materials?

This is where your contacts in the media and other platforms come in. Weeks or even months before you launch your rebranded business, make sure that you already reached out to news outlets. Seek publicity from social media influencers and bloggers as well. Send them your rebranding journey story to help pave the way for your relaunching.

Final thoughts

Given the impressive results a successful rebranding strategy can bring a to business, it comes as no surprise that 70% of brand managers admitted to focusing their efforts on building a loyal following among their clients. However, it’s critical to bear in mind that change is the only constant thing in business.

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A brand that refuses to adapt to the changes around it is destined to end in failure. That’s why you must keep evaluating your business and ask whether or not you’re services or products are still relevant to your target market. Most of the time, the minute changes are the ones that rake in the biggest profits.

However, rebranding is a complicated and risky undertaking. This is why this process shouldn’t be taken lightly when considering your brand development. You should consider all angles before committing to the reinvention strategy. Keep in mind that rebranding is not just a way to keep your business up to date with the trends, it’s actually one of the most sustainable ways to survive.