Why You Shouldn’t Attempt a Rebranding Strategy On Your Own

According to Inc.com, “2019 is the year of the rebrand.” That being said, rebranding your company shouldn’t be taken lightly. There’s a lot more that goes into it besides freshening up a logo. Your rebranding strategy needs to be deliberate and well thought-out. Otherwise, you’ll be headed for disaster.

Before you take the risk of switching up your company’s image, consider why you want to change it in the first place. While there are many good reasons for heading into the rebranding process, there are also bad ones. Be sure to give your rebrand some serious thought.

What is the purpose of branding?

But first, let’s take a look at why branding is so important in the first place.

• Creates trust
  When a company puts its best face forward all the time while delivering high-quality results, customers, employees, and shareholders pay attention. When there’s proof that a company keeps promises and maintains a dignified personality, consumers will feel better about giving up their money.
• Recognition
  Consistency across all platforms—physical and virtual—instills an image in people’s minds. While you don’t need the best logo in the world, you should still spend some time creating one that memorably exemplifies your company. People need to see your logo and immediately get the feeling of your brand and what it can do for them.
• Employee motivation
  Employees who clearly understand your brand’s objectives, strategy, and purpose will feel pride working there. This leads to increased energy, productivity, focus, and motivation. Building a strong brand is crucial for the well-being of all employees, no matter their job title.
• Protection from competition
  If you have a great product, competitors will want to copy you. They want to capitalize on your success by producing the same ideas. Having a strong brand can combat this. A rebranding strategy that offers a unique and original style will blow the competition away every time. It will be hard for them to keep up.
• Connection
  One of the things you have to think about when rebranding is how to create an emotional connection with your audience. Your brand needs to convey your ideals and values to people everywhere. When these are properly communicated, your audience will feel certain emotions that prompt them to buy and become customers for life.

Why would a company rebrand itself?

So now that you know, the importance of branding let’s take it a step further. Sometimes companies feel the need for a new rebranding strategy, even after so many years in the public eye. Here are some reasons why a company would want or need to rebrand:

• Keep up with the times
  Staying current and relevant is a big reason for rebranding. The competition might leave your business in the dust by using the latest technologies and messaging. It’s hard keeping up with this ever-changing world, but a company rebrand could be the perfect solution to bringing your company in front of modern customers.
• Stand out from the crowd
  Over time, you might find that the competition is too similar to you. It might be hard for customers to distinguish one company from another, especially in a saturated market. Company rebranding can solve this by rearranging the focus to better highlight strengths and unique selling points.
• Strengthen relationships
  One of the things to think about when rebranding is how to get in front of new audiences while retaining existing ones. Rebranding can help your company realign with customer values and expectations. Plus, you’ll most likely open the door for new viewers to experience what you have to offer.
• Foresight
  Having the foresight to see changes in your industry is essential if you don’t want to be left behind. However, maybe your current business model doesn’t have room for this kind of growth. Rebranding can help through a new mission statement, website, and even a new name.

Why you need help with your rebranding strategy

The overall reason for starting the rebranding process is to build a bigger and better company while showcasing what it can offer to customers in the best ways possible. If this sounds hard, you’re right. As a business owner, you probably don’t have all the necessary skills, knowledge, and experience to build a brand strategy by yourself.

Fortunately, some professionals specialize in branding and rebranding businesses. These companies, agencies, or individuals offer invaluable guidance throughout the journey. If you don’t bring on a rebranding professional, you might end up worse off than you were before rebranding. Here’s why it’s best to leave the rebranding to the professionals:

• You’re biased
  Internal marketing teams aren’t suited for the rebranding process because they’re too close to the project. What makes them the best for the company (passion, excitement, knowledge) also earns them the worst during a changeup. You need to bring in someone who has unbiased opinions and can see the bigger picture. Otherwise, your employees are in the bubble of the company, unable to see what the competition is doing. They also might not understand what makes the company so unique from competitors because they’re in the weeds. Bringing in outside guidance will infuse fresh ideas and perspectives on how to build the perfect brand.
• Leave it to the professionals
  Rebranding is a big deal and should be handled by experts. The more experience, the better in this regard. You wouldn’t let an intern file your company’s taxes, and rebranding in-house is the same idea. Company-rebranding professionals have the knowledge and skill set to develop your company to its fullest potential. They will listen to your goals, values, and messaging to create a successful rebranding strategy. They’ll understand what you want to convey to your audience while making sure it resonates. Rebranding professionals usually have expertise in your industry and will know its ins and outs. This means they see the competition, latest technology, and speak the language. It won’t take too long for them to get to know you.
• The details
  Usually, when you rebrand, image/messaging/logos should be changed on all media platforms. Therefore, it’s a good idea to choose an agency that can do it all at once. This includes web redesign, logo refresh, new messaging, and more. It will probably be cheaper to do it all at the same time, too. This ensures consistency across all of these areas where your audiences reside. Not only will rebranding professionals help you maintain consistency, but they’ll help you launch your new face to the world. They know the best tools and outlets for your industry to make sure you get the right eyeballs at the right time. This is essential when you want to promote your company’s rebrand.

A company rebrand is a delicate process and shouldn’t be taken lightly. After all, your brand needs to ooze your values, ideas, and goals while capturing the attention of audiences everywhere. This is not an easy task.

But when rebranding is done the right way, it can lead to so many more opportunities. That’s why you shouldn’t attempt a rebranding strategy on your own. Bring on a professional to take your business to the next level. They’ll know exactly what needs to be done to ensure a successful company rebrand of which you can be proud.

We’re experts in rebranding strategy consulting and graphic design. So, if you need help turning your rebrand into reality, contact us today!