Marketing: Is It Time To Update The Brand

In business marketing, there comes a point when the business needs to reboot its brand. But when is the right time for a rebrand? This post explores five times when you may want to consider giving your brand a makeover. 

Your brand looks amateurish, and your business is growing

DIY marketing can sometimes be enough when first launching a small company. However, as your company grows, you may find that this branding makes your company look less professional. 

This could be a great time to rebrand – including redesigning your logo or even coming up with new branding elements such as a color scheme and slogan. You can hire a professional logo designer to create a new logo. Compare the brand design portfolio of different designers to find a designer who is right for you. 

Your brand has developed negative associations.

Branding elements such as names, logos, slogans, and mascots can develop negative associations. A typical example is Mcdonald’s Ronald McDonald mascot, which they dropped in the 2010s as clowns started to develop growing associations with being creepy. 

Other companies have had to change marketing elements like logos and brand names that are no longer politically correct. Some companies even completely change their brand to get away from a scandal associated with their brand.

You want to target a new audience.

Are you thinking of refocusing your audience? Perhaps you want to make your product more premium and focus on more affluent customers, or your brand is focused heavily on men, and you want to start marketing to women. 

These could be good instances where it’s worth rebranding. Adopting a new logo, slogan, or even company name could help you appeal to your unique audience. Just make sure that you don’t alienate your existing audience (unless you feel that you’re attracting unwanted customers). 

Your brand is too similar to a more established competitor

If you discover that a much bigger and older competitor is using similar branding to you, it could be cause for concern. If this competitor finds your company and feels that your brand is too similar to theirs, they may file a lawsuit.

This is why it’s essential always to do your research when creating a brand. While you can take inspiration from other brands, you don’t want your brand to look and feel too similar. A unique brand will help you to stand out from competitors and will help you to avoid legal issues. Consider rebranding if your brand is too similar to a larger competitor. 

You’ve been using the same branding for over ten years

While you want customers to remain familiar with your brand, you don’t want your brand to become old and stale. Like the home decor, your brand will eventually need to be revamped to keep it current and fresh. Most experts recommend rebranding every seven to ten years. 

There may not be any need to transform your logo or slogan completely. However, there could be minor changes worth making to help bring it up to date. Graphic design professionals will be able to help you make the right tweaks.