Are you embarrassed to share your website address or hand out your business card?
You might need a rebrand…
Has your business model outgrown your name or visual identity?
You might need a rebrand…
Are you meeting resistance when trying to increase your prices?
Yep, you need a rebrand.
The Decision To Rebrand Is Serious. But So Are The Problems Caused By Branding That Misses The Mark.
Look, there are a ton of reasons you might want to rebrand. If it’s not one of the above, it might be one of these:
- You’re not standing out from your competition
- The business has grown and now demands more sophisticated branding
- Negative perceptions about your branding or naming are affecting business
- It seem harder than it should be to attract and hire talent
- Your target market has changed over time
- Your branding is tied to your geography and you’re looking to expand into new areas
- Your marketing campaigns are struggling
Let’s take a look at each of these and see how a rebrand can help solve these common challenges.
You’re embarrassed to share your website or hand out your business card.
This is a clear sign that your branding sucks. If you can’t even get excited about your branding, there’s a good reason.
When you have a brand that you’re proud of, that you know communicates your value and appeals to the right people, you’ll seek out every opportunity to share it!
And the more you get your brand out there, the more sales opportunities you’ll get.
Sometimes the opposite happens. I’ve seen several businesses where the owner loves their poorly created branding. It was usually designed by a relative or friend, or maybe they hired a freelancer and directed the project themselves…
I can spot the issues right away. But explaining the problems usually gets the response, “But it’s been working so far.”
Touché. But it’s probably working because that owner is getting out there and hustling, getting his brand out there and closing business. The business has success in spite of the branding — not supported by it.
Add a well-crafted brand to the mix of a hustling sales team and good products or services and you could see things really take off.
Your business model has outgrown your name or visual identity.
Just like people, businesses change.
Maybe your business launched as a budget option in the market and later you figured out how to move upmarket. S’mores For Less is no longer the fabulous business name it once was…
When your name and brand identity align with your business model, you eliminate miscommunication and missed opportunity.
You’re meeting resistance from customers when trying to increase your prices.
There’s always people willing to spend more for the types of products or services you offer.
But before they’re willing to pay your premium price, the story needs to make sense. They won’t trust that a stale or otherwise weak brand will deliver value that justifies a premium price.
Imagine Apple had the same pricey design-focused products but an outdated website and branding that doesn’t connect with their audience…
A lot of people wouldn’t have overpaid for phones or laptops that do pretty much the same as the competition’s option at half the price.
Fortunately for Apple, their brand is one of the strongest in the world. (And I have a collection of Apple devices to prove it.)
You’re not standing out from your competition.
If your brand doesn’t differentiate you in your market, you’re losing customers because of it.
Blending in is what most of your competitors are probably doing. There’s a bunch of “me too” brands out there, and if you don’t stand out, you’re just another one of many.
What makes you unique? What’s that “special sauce” that makes you better than anyone else at what you do?
Your branding should be shouting from the rooftops what it is that makes you the best option. If it doesn’t, your brand needs work.
Your business has grown and now demands more sophisticated branding.
We have to start somewhere. And most businesses start without paying much attention to their brand.
Nice looking logo? Check. Website? Check. Looks like we’re in business!
Even businesses that have achieved significant success may have done so in spite of their brand rather than supported by it.
If this describes your business, then it’s time to develop a brand strategy and execute it with intention.
It seems harder than it should be to attract and hire talent.
People want to work for brands that excite them.
If potential employees feel that your brand is in alignment with their values, they’re more likely to want to work for you. This is particularly true of top talent who have virtually unlimited employment options.
Your target market has changed over time.
Brands are designed to appeal to their target market. So if your target market has shifted, your brand probably needs a refresh.
And if the brand still works for the new market, you still may need to adjust your messaging to ensure you’re connecting in the right way.
Remember, just because something changed in your business doesn’t necessarily mean you need a rebrand or branding refresh. But it does mean you need to take a look at it and consider whether your branding still works and what adjustments should be made, if any.
Your branding is tied to your geography and you’re looking to expand into new areas.
Maybe your business started local or regional… and at the time it made sense to use the geography in your business name, or otherwise incorporated into your branding.
But when looking to expand into new markets, you want to consider how that geographic reference will be received.
If it turns out that it will be a detriment to your brand to continue with the geographically based branding in the new market, then it’s time to rebrand.
Keep in mind, many successful businesses have created sub-brands for use in different regional markets. If you have a recipe that works in one locale, it might be worth considering repeating that success in your new market.
For example, Portland Gold Mining Adventures could create the sub-brand Boise Gold Mining Adventures for their Idaho expansion. This would be particularly applicable if the business benefits by letting people know right up front that they are local.
On the other hand, it might make more sense to forego the geo identifier and change the name to S’more Gold Mining Adventures.
Your marketing campaigns are struggling.
There are numerous reasons your campaigns could be falling flat…
But one of those reasons is your brand. Maybe your brand messaging doesn’t resinate with your target audience. Or your visual identity gives potential customers pause — they’re not quite convinced you’re legit.
Consumers are so used to seeing well crafted brands due to the amount of time they spend online using websites of multi-billion dollar companies. When they see a brand that’s not well-crafted, they know something’s off, even if they don’t know why.
Well-crafted brands instantly build trust and credibility, which can greatly boost the ROI of your ad campaigns.
Which Category Are You In?
Get in touch for a free assessment. We’re happy to share with you our thoughts and see if we’re a good fit to help you solve your branding challenges.
If you’re not ready to talk yet, maybe you’ll be interested in some details about how much it costs to complete a branding project.