Rebranding is the updating of a brand’s image. It consists of the renewal of some of its significant aspects , such as the logo, the message, the typography or even the name. When a brand seeks to modify the elements that identify it, it usually has specific objectives in mind. The most common objectives are to improve your image, approach a new market niche or manage a brand crisis.
The main objective of a rebranding is to change the perspective or opinion of consumers towards the company . A rebranding can also be carried out to expand into a new market niche and thus achieve new business opportunities. Surely, if you have started to think that your brand needs a change, it is because it really needs it. How do you know if it is the perfect time for a rebranding? What type of rebranding to carry out?
How to know if it’s time for a change in your brand image
A brand update can be accompanied by very noticeable changes, but also by others that are very subtle and barely perceptible in the eyes of consumers. Whatever they are, they will always be part of a new marketing strategy. When we carry out a rebranding, either because we have observed that the message has become obsolete, because a new competitor has appeared in the market or because we have changed the marketing plan, the business strategy must also be modified.
At the moment in which the target target changes, or the analysis of the competition has provided new data to be evaluated, the strategies may be affected and not give the same results if they are not updated . These are precisely the three analyzes that may lead you to want to make changes to your branding:
Social listening
A first step in finding out if our brand has the reputation we want is by listening to our consumers. Endless data, opinions, reviews and conversations between users are stored on the network. Some marketing agencies are able to detect conversations around a specific brand. Thus, listening to your audience talk about your brand and your competition, you can find out its strengths and weaknesses. At iootec, the digital marketing agency in Madrid that invests in innovative technology and its own methodology, they have managed to track the opinion of their clients’ consumers and adapt their rebranding to the current situation.
The study of the competition through SERP
Like the real and updated data on the opinion of your consumers, knowing the updated situation of the market is also important. One of the advantages of the online world is that it allows practically any company to start competing in a market. This leads the rest of the companies in the sector to design new plans and strategies to differentiate themselves and stand out. By studying your competition through SERP analysis, that is, of the competitors that are best placed in search engines, marketing experts can draw relevant conclusions that they will include in your rebranding.
The study of keywords
Any company or business that wants to launch into the online market must carry out a previous keyword study. This keyword research provides a list of words that are worth bidding on and that should be worked on to position the brand on the net. These words are changeable. Search volume, seasonality, competition and, therefore, positioning difficulty, vary over time. Continuous monitoring and analysis is key to understanding what words should appear in your message and what concerns your consumers.
Types of rebranding
As we mentioned before, not all brands need a complete makeover, nor does it have to be highly visible.
Proactive branding
Sometimes a company wants to maintain its essence, but the evolution of its products or services invites it to change the image or the message it offers. Proactive rebranding usually occurs at this time . In other words, it is the brand itself that decides to renew its image to adapt to current circumstances.
In this way, the company maintains its initial values or its brand philosophy, and adapts changes more related to aesthetics. This could be the case of some well-known companies such as Coca-Cola, which subtly change some elements of their image, but always maintaining their essence. It occurs when a new variety of this drink is launched on the market or when its packaging is modified, for example. Its message continues to be to enjoy a unique moment and savor life, and this is how its consumers continue to perceive it despite changes in its branding.
Reactive branding
There is another type of rebranding, called reactive branding , which consists of the brand’s response to external factors that are influencing it. This would be the case of a brand crisis or social listening from which we have drawn conclusions for branding.
We have also seen this type of rebranding in recognized companies when they have changed their name or when they have merged with another multinational. We can also see it in brands that have been affected by an image crisis in the area of fair trade, animal testing or brand values, for example. That is why many companies modify their image to add claims such as “Cruelty free”.
Rebranding focused on the success of your brand
When a brand becomes obsolete, it is usually because its audience evolves in accordance with trends. Therefore, a rebranding should never be based solely on the aesthetic change of its elements , but on a change in strategy to make the public fall in love again.
One of the mistakes some brands make is, once rebranding has been carried out and completed, to continue using the old brand image in some respects. A rebranding must imply a consistent change across all channels. A gradual transition is not recommended in most cases.
The best thing is to announce to your target audience of the change in the brand and stand firm in all your channels with this new image. The diffusion of the new brand image is a very relevant step in the rebranding process. Successfully planning and spreading brand rebranding is not an easy process.
You want to reach your current audience and, in turn, convince new potential clients of the benefits of your brand. You need a positioning and communication strategy. Analyze the channels, study creativity and actions to relaunch your brand. You must establish qualitative and quantitative objectives, both in the short, medium and long term.
Strategies to spread the rebranding of your business
Word of mouth: It is no secret that people trust very quickly what a friend or family member recommends. One way to spread the rebranding of your brand is by encouraging your current consumers to announce the changes to people close to them. You can, for example, incentivize the purchase by announcing a discount for bringing a friend to the store.
Social networks: Social networks are today the channel in which we spend the most time when we surf the internet. You must analyze and study the platforms that best suit your business and create a community of users where you share and announce all these changes. It is proven that more and more users decide to buy through social networks, so make it easy for them.
Collaborations: Trusting an influencer or a person who has influence in your sector on the internet is a good marketing strategy to relaunch your brand. In general, users trust the recommendations of a public figure even more. These collaborations are of different types, and it is vitally important that you study the briefing that you are going to deliver and the public that follows this person, to see if it agrees with that of your company.
Networking: Even in times of pandemic, networking rooms have been opened on the internet where you can share your new ideas with other brands in the sector or with possible suppliers and intermediaries. It is a way of making yourself known among your competition and your allies and that new business opportunities arise. Perhaps, over time, you can expand your market and add new features to your products or services that add value to your brand.
Email marketing: It is a strategy that, no matter how time passes, continues to work for brands. A large database of potential clients is key to this action. In addition, you will need creativity and copywriting to persuade the recipients of the message to buy your product or service.
SEO positioning : Appearing among the first results on the internet is always a successful strategy. It guarantees you better results and a higher number of clicks and visits to your website. Of course, this action must be accompanied by a strategy geared towards your final goals. Having a digital marketing agency can be the solution to all your doubts about brand rebranding. Choose the marketing services that best suit the needs of your company and start to make your audience fall in love on the internet.