We live in a world of rapid change. Media, technology, culture, and customers are constantly evolving and changing. And your brand should be evolving right along with them. If your brand story and visual identity become stagnant, then the familiar can begin to seem tired, routine, and less interesting to customers than the new kid brands on the block. But a rebrand can mean time and money, so how do you know if your brand is ready for an overhaul? Uber recently undertook its second rebrand in just under three years, but it did this to shake off corporate scandal. There are many other reasons you might want to take a fresh approach to your brand:
After a brand has been in market for a while, competitors start encroaching on key product advantages. Or the brand is a commodity and the only differentiator is the brand itself. GLG recently undertook a brand refresh for one of our food service clients. While the brand had developed the category in food service, over the past five years, its competitors had begun to use some of the same brand language, product benefits, and photography direction. The brand had lost what made it stand out as unique in the category. While the product was a commodity, culinary creativity, product innovation, and product versatility were key differentiators that had been lost in the brand messaging. We developed new brand positioning, including a new messaging framework, logo, and visual identity and all-new photography. With this refreshed brand, our client will launch a new brand that clearly differentiates itself from its competitors and is one the client can own and defend.
Many companies are in categories that are constantly and quickly evolving, and their customers are evolving right alongside them. This is happening in the wireless industry faster than in almost any other business. Over the past 11 years that GLG has worked with T-Mobile, the technology and cultural shifts in wireless have been profound. New technology, new product categories, and massive social changes have meant that the T-Mobile brand has had to change as quickly as the market. And yet, T-Mobile has never redesigned its logo or shifted away from its core magenta brand color. Even so, it has become a brand of constant evolution. At GLG, we helped to develop digital systems and practices and digital creative that allowed T-Mobile to constantly evolve without having to rebuild key systems. New messaging direction, photography, and typography styles mean that the company can continually evolve the brand look and feel while staying true to the magenta logo and the brand vision of being the Un-carrier.
Businesses today are facing new challenges from emerging technologies that are drastically disrupting traditional industries. Uber disrupted the taxi business, Spotify disrupted music streaming, Airbnb disrupted the hotel industry, and Quicken Loans disrupted the mortgage industry. Companies that exist in a legacy business model can use a strong brand to compete and thrive among these disruptive businesses. Our client Evergreen Home Loans recently completed a total brand redesign so it could better compete and grow. Evergreen knew that its amazing customer service, local expertise, and hands-on approach to home loans meant that it could win against the big banks and the online-only competitors. But the Evergreen brand didn’t communicate any of that. GLG developed new brand language, a new logo, and a new visual identity that showcased Evergreen’s strengths and positioned it as a company ready for the future. We also developed a new website that highlights the brand, and a new advertising campaign that goes head to head with online-only home loan companies. Evergreen Home Loans’ new brand means that the company can compete and grow in a disrupted industry.
There is no such thing as a static market. Your customers are constantly being bombarded with messages, technologies, and services. They have increasingly short attention spans. New demographics have different values and needs. But not constantly looking after and growing your brand can mean that your company can become irrelevant in the blink of an eye. Companies today should be constantly evaluating whether their brand is relevant for their customers and whether it is ready for a new outlook. A rebrand can be a large shift or a subtle transformation. But whatever that change is, think about how your brand can change to stay relevant and grow.
