7 Signs it’s Time to Rebrand Your Company

Businesses will usually value their brand as their most valuable and recognizable asset. Therefore, it’s only natural to want to remain consistent with your branding so that audiences can have an easy time identifying your products and your company. However, there are a few situations where redesigning your entire branding is a good idea. At the LO:LA creative marketing agency, we’ve helped many clients re-invent themselves and successfully grow their companies. From our experience, here are the 7 most important signs it’s time to rebrand your business.

1. You are struggling to stand out from the competition

You shouldn’t feel bad if your business has difficulty getting customer attention; what matters is how you choose to handle the situation. Most businesses will struggle with this issue at some point, and they fail to find adequate solutions. While you could invest in marketing and run a campaign to improve brand recognition – that same campaign would probably be more effective after a rebranding.

Business owners aren’t usually keen to admit if their current branding is, and we aren’t trying to insult you – downright bland and generic. Increasing your marketing budget will probably yield a poor ROI in these situations, especially if users find your current branding unexciting. A fresh coat of paint and a carefully tuned redesign can help you stand out and generate more leads.

However, we have to recommend that you don’t stray too far and rebrand your business so that it is totally unrecognizable. This drastic change in branding can alienate your loyal customers. For this reason, try to remain at least somewhat consistent with your brand values when planning the redesign.

2. You’ve outgrown your old brand

Depending on when your company was founded, it may be time to rebrand your business if the current branding is outdated. Trends in the modern marketplace can change quickly, and what was once considered relevant can easily feel out of touch. Besides reflecting company values, your branding should also keep up with the cultural zeitgeist.

On the other hand, it is possible that your company had humble beginnings and has grown significantly since its founding. Sadly, many small companies that start experiencing growth often don’t have the adequate funds to perform a complete rebranding. For this reason, we offer Brand in a Box solutions that are ideal for small and medium-sized businesses.

3. You want to expand into new markets

At their inception, brands are usually products of their time and place and tend to encapsulate those values. If your business is trying to make a presence in a foreign market, there could be a slight mismatch between the cultural norms and your brand. You need to take the trends and sensibilities of the local market into account and adapt your brand accordingly. This situation is actually more common than many would believe. Most industry leaders make slight brand adjustments to appeal to a new audience.

We can see similar trends occur when existing companies are trying to make a name for themselves on new digital platforms. You can consider adjusting your brand to incorporate some of the traits and qualities of the new platform. Before making these sorts of changes, it would be a good idea to see what the competition is doing and how they have changed their branding strategies to adapt to the new medium.

4.  If you are recovering from bad PR

Although no one wants to admit it, PR mistakes frequently happen. Arguing with customers and defending obvious mistakes won’t do your brand any good, and you will probably lose whatever trust is left with your audience. Instead of choosing to die on that hill, we suggest taking a time out from the public limelight. You can view PR disasters as one of the most obvious signs it’s time to rebrand your business.

Of course, you should do your best to correct any mistakes and try to make amends. Put company-wide policies in place to ensure you won’t make the same mistake again, and use this as a learning experience. Additionally, you can use that time to revitalize your brand and come back strong. Using new branding to match your new company values can help you win back your customers.

5. Your target demographic has changed

As businesses grow and market conditions change, it’s perfectly normal that you will attract different customers. When this happens, it is possible that your brand doesn’t appeal to your new customer base. It would be best if you put in some effort and research into understanding and targeting your new audience once you know who your customers are. Use that insight to rebrand and promote your company successfully. You can apply the same strategy when you want to target a new type of customer with your marketing.

6. The products and services you offer have changed

Businesses will rarely offer the same products and services during the entire lifespan of the company. Old products and services commonly get discontinued, and new products are launched to take their place. Sometimes, a company can decide to go into a different industry branch. If your old branding was centered on products you no longer support, it’s probably time to rebrand your business. For example, the 3M company was initially into mining and was called the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company. When they gave up on mining and became a global conglomerate, they rebranded as 3M and stopped using mining in their name

7. You are going through a merger or acquisition

When going through a merger, most companies will opt to rebrand. However, there are a few considerations you need to take into account. How will the merger affect the branding, and if there are two existing brands, can you retain the individual identities of both? When rebranding due to a merger, you should consider how that will affect your customers.

Wrapping up the 7 signs it’s time to rebrand your business

There can be many reasons to rebrand, and you don’t need a particular excuse if you want to change your company’s identity. It is still a good idea to look for signs it’s time to rebrand your business since they can be potential warnings that your current branding isn’t performing well. Ultimately, you should continually monitor how users perceive your brand and take the necessary steps to ensure your company’s growth.