For anyone who has been in business for more than a few years, rebranding is sure to come across your mind. Times change, trends change, and it becomes easy to notice outdated artwork such as logos, websites, and other marketing collateral. I’m coming at you with this topic today, because I’m in that boat right now. My logo is over 7 years old! My business has changed dramatically since I first opened in 2010 and I’ve come to realize it is time to rebrand. Here’s a sneak peak into my new look. I’ve completely revamped my logo’s look and color scheme, leaving all the old elements in the past! Stay tuned for more changes to the LR Design brand.
According to Wikipedia, Rebranding is a marketing strategy in which a new name, term, symbol, design, or combination thereof is created for an established brand with the intention of developing a new, differentiated identity in the minds of consumers, investors, competitors, and other stakeholders. Often, this involves radical changes to a brand’s logo, name, legal names, image, marketing strategy, and advertising themes. Such changes typically aim to reposition the brand/company, occasionally to distance itself from negative connotations of the previous branding, or to move the brand upmarket; they may also communicate a new message a new board of directors wishes to communicate.
With that in mind, it may help you determine if a rebrand is in order for your business. It may be time to take your brand 1.0 to brand 2.0!
How to Rebrand
There is a lot of research that goes into a rebrand before you start making a new logo, name, or pieces of marketing collateral. Take your time to clearly define your mission, your beliefs, and how you want to meet your client’s goals through your business. Here are a few steps that you can take that will help guide you through the rebranding process:
- Collect It All– Map out the marketing you are currently using within your company. Do you have a blog, social media, email newsletter? On top of that, what are other marketing avenues you may want to explore? Collect all the information in one place.
- Layout your Marketing Elements– Organize your logo, signage, and graphics used. Put these all in one place.
- Assess Your Position– Review your marketing materials and elements. How is it working for you? Who is it targeting? How can it be better? These are all key questions to ask yourself before creating a new brand.
- Describe your Current and Target Market- Think up your perfect customer. Give that person a name, job, and hobbies. Think about why they chose to work with you. The more you know about the perfect customer, the better you can market to them and turn them into a paying customer.
- Map out your New Marketing System– Now that you have your target market all figured out, lay out how you want to market to them. Maybe a new website is in order because you have a younger audience that values modern websites. You may or may not add/remove marketing avenues from your current strategy, but the point is to be aware of what you are doing and how well it’s working.
- Build a Pipeline– Your leads should be going through a carefully planned sales funnel. Write out the process you want your potential clients to go to that will bring them closer to a paying customer. This could start with a website visitor signing up for your email newsletter or downloading an ebook, then receive a welcome email. Based on their actions, a personal email could follow to get them closer to getting to know you and your brand.
- Build your Strategy– While this is the last step, it’s the most important one! Sticking to a plan of action is the only way to make any real change! Not only do you need to write out a strategy, but you also need to establish goals and timelines to accomplish these goals.
Be honest with yourself! It’s okay to admit that you didn’t get your brand right the first time around. It’s all a big learning curve! If you follow these 7 steps, you will be well on your way to crafting the perfect new brand for your business.
I’m in the very beginning stages of the rebranding process and I’m so excited to share it all with you! Ready to rebrand? Get in touch with me to kick off your project!
