Every Four Years, Elect to Rebrand

To succeed, brands, like politicians, need name recognition, and they must inspire confidence, passion, loyalty. Companies have customers, not constituents, but consumers vote for Brand A over Brand B, or vice versa, every day when shopping for products or services, so your brand needs to register with new and repeat buyers alike. Your needs change, your views shift, too, so every four years evaluate the direction of your brand and either reset the course or simply veer slightly. Below are reasons your brand is a candidate for change: 

1 – Sorry, but your brand may be too bland
Rebranding can inflate flat sales by pumping vitality into your business. An injection of imagination — retooling your logo, your image — can be the shot of adrenaline that re-energizes your company.

2 – Your old brand no longer fits
Companies outgrow their brand — sometimes faster than kids outgrow their clothes. If you began making widgets but now you produce widgets, gadgets, whatchamacallits (and, coming soon: thingamajigs!), it’s time to introduce the brand-new you to a multitude of potential customers and clients.  

3 – You want to clean up in Aisle 3, too! Translation: You wish to expand your market territory
Yes, consumers love you on your home field of expertise, but away customers probably require a different pitch to step up to your product or service and abandon their local team of professionals. 

4 – Next customer, please
Rebranding can help restock your customer base, acquaint new neighbors, another generation with you and your company. It’s that thoughtful gesture, that friendly wave that expresses, “Hello, welcome, and I’m here when you need me.”

5 – Change has value
The way feeding pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters into a money machine converts germy coins into real cash, investing in rebranding can enrich your business. Replanting seeds in people’s minds every four years (or sooner, if necessary) can help your company and cash flow grow.

Rebranding can be as dramatic as a face-lift or as uncomplicated as a touch-up (still an effective enhancement), but remember: even minor embellishments should have purpose. The improvement can be as straightforward as a paint job — switching colors, altering collateral fonts, or modifying your logo. Most important, be on trend, and be certain to visually articulate the direction of your company or product to every customer or client. Or as the candidates say, “Stay on message!”