Businesses need to adapt to different marketing trends if they want to stay ahead in the fast-paced world. Rebranding helps companies find valuable opportunities that can change or refresh their company’s image, identity, and value, strengthening their position in the competitive landscape.

With the help of rebranding, businesses can respond to different changes in the current marketing trends and drive more sales. In this blog, we will learn the meaning of rebranding, why companies rebrand, its different types, and the critical factors driving rebranding decisions. 

What is rebranding?

The purpose of rebranding is to alter consumers’ general perceptions of an organization, product, or service, as well as the corporate rebranding image, icon, or famous tagline.

You can target new markets, adapt to current trends, or avoid compromising associations with the brand’s refreshed image. It is not simply the swapping of logos or names. It is the reforming of people’s perceptions about the company. It is also significant because it assists firms in being competitive within the business world.

It allows businesses to be responsive to changes in customer needs and trends in the market and technological field. A proper rebranding approach by a leading digital marketing company can help an organization achieve brand identity, improve overall customer satisfaction, and potentially boost sales figures.

Types of rebranding 

There are two main types of rebranding:

Partial rebranding: This demands modification in certain aspects of the brand, such as the brand name or symbol, among other attributes, while keeping the essence of the entire company. It is usually applied where a company requires an update of the image it portrays to the public without requiring a change of the whole image. 

Total rebranding: This can be a major change in which the company drops the name it has been using and replaces it with a new one and the products it offers in the market. A total rebranding is done if a company is in troubled times and planning to expand into a new market or completely overhaul its operations. This is more risky but can translate into an increased quantity sold if done appropriately.

Key Factors driving rebranding decisions

Several factors can drive a company’s decision to rebrand:

• Market trends: Changes in consumer preferences or industry trends may push a brand to refresh its identity.
• Competition: To stay ahead or differentiate from competitors, a company may rebrand to stand out in a crowded market.
• Mergers or acquisitions: It helps unify the new identity when two companies merge.
• Negative reputation: If a company suffers from negative public perception, redefining a brand offers a chance to start fresh.
• Innovation and growth: When a company grows or diversifies its product lines, rebranding a business helps to reflect the new offerings.

How to create a rebranding strategy?

Creating a rebranding marketing strategy will help you remake your brand image within the audience. Let us learn how you can create a strategy: 

Market research and analysis: Market research will allow you to analyze current trends in-depth and easily identify your target audience’s needs, demands, and requirements.

It is also important to analyze your competitors’ strengths and market positions. With the help of a rebranding consultant, businesses can design different surveys according to their organization’s needs and goals.

• Try to define the purpose of your research objectives, like knowing who your target audience is and doing competitor analysis. 
• Collect the data through different market trends surveys or interviews with customers. 
• Try to capture perceptions as well as the preferences. 
• Define and analyze your data and divide your audience into segments to create a competitor profile.

Defining new brand identity and values: Developing and creating a unique value proposition (UVP) that helps set your brand apart from competitors is vital. The UVP adds the brand’s tone of voice and visual identity, such as logo rebranding, color schemes, and font style.

Also, companies can work with the best graphic designers to develop a new logo for the organizations that can give it a new identity.

• Defining a new brand identity and value for rebranding includes different factors, such as auditing, identifying the core purpose, and learning more about the target audience.
• It is important to differentiate your brands with unique positioning and create a new identity for your brand through rebranding. 
• Try to communicate with these changes as it will allow you to interact with different stakeholders. 

Developing a rebranding plan: Developing a rebranding plan includes setting clear company goals and objectives and maintaining a proper budget and timeline.

It is crucial to identify the stakeholders and customers to develop a plan for communication between the employees, stakeholders, and customers.

• Developing a structured plan for rebranding requires you to set clear goals and objectives.
• Conduct in-depth research of the market, follow trends, and define your target audiences. 
• Try to outline your brand refreshed identity, which includes values and different visual elements, such as a logo.
• With a proper communication strategy, you can inform your target audience about the brand and capture the feedback to fulfill the needs and goals of the company.

Communication strategy for rebranding: The communication strategy for rebranding would be to develop a compelling narrative, articulate the vision, and change through engagement with employees to better equip and communicate change to your customers and other stakeholders outside.

• You need to identify the key messages that clearly reflect your brand value. 
• Audience segmentation can help you choose the right channels to reach the desired audience, such as social media, email marketing campaigns, press releases, and internal communication.
• Try to create a timeline for announcements and updates, ensuring consistent messaging.

Implementation and launch: The last and most critical step guarantees the revamping plan and timelines are truly executed. Ensure the new product identity is launched on all the websites, social media platforms, and advertising. 

• Try to finalize the brand’s new identity first.
• Schedule a launch date and create a comprehensive marketing plan with the help of channels like social media, email, and events.
• Monitoring and tracking the gathered feedback and adjusting is another crucial factor that can help you optimize the brand’s perception. 

Examples of successful rebranding

Let us go through some of the rebranding case studies, which are discussed below:

Apple

Apple is one of the most vivid rebranding campaign examples. The company rebranded itself from Apple Computer Inc. to Apple Inc. At the end of the nineties, Apple’s needs were considered critical, and the company itself did not dominate the market as it used to do earlier. Apple started the strategic process of repositioning itself from a company that mainly focused on computers to a company that embodied a lifestyle.

The design of new models of products like the iMac, iPhone, and iPad, updating the logo, and creating non-traditional advertisement appeals returned Apple to its former place in the sphere of high-tech technologies. The company built its personal brand message with simplicity, design, and user experience.

This digital marketing strategy of rebranding has benefited this company since Apple is among the most valuable and well-known brands globally today. The rebranding saved Apple, put it on the map, and made it the world’s leading technology company.

Coca-Cola 

Coca-Cola is another brand that has utilized the rebranding strategy correctly over the years. Coca-Cola has not altered its key offering, soft drinks, but has periodically reinvented its brand image.

At the start of the twenty-first century, the company decided to redesign the brand image and put the image on the labels. And release the “Taste the Feeling” campaign. The brand sought to evoke a positive feeling and determination in young people. Coca-Cola’s revamping has been effective, as it has created a link with new generations of consumers. And continues to be among the most popular and sustainable brands globally.

Airbnb

If we talk about a successful example of rebranding, then we can talk about Airbnb. When Airbnb was first introduced to the market, it was considered a great way to go backpacking. 

Airbnb’s other development was that in 2014. The company changed its logo to the ‘Bélo’ to promote belonging as one of its core missions. The company also updated its web page, application, advertising, and rebranding campaign based on creating impressive experiences and communication.

Key elements of a successful rebranding strategy

The main elements of a successful rebranding strategy include:

• Consistency in brand messaging.
• Engaging stakeholders and customers.
• Clear and transparent communication.
• Monitoring and adapting post-rebranding.

Ensuring the new brand identity is conveyed clearly to the audience on all platforms is important. Also, to build trust and drive more sales, you must connect with the stakeholders and customers for the different rebranding efforts.

Try to deliver precise and transparent communication between the company and the stakeholders or customers.

This will help you guarantee seamless transactions. Lastly, monitoring, tracking, and adapting post-revamping is crucial because this will help you measure the success rate and allow you to improve accordingly. 

What are the challenges in rebranding?

Potential customer confusion and backlash: The biggest challenge in redefining the brand is maintaining and managing the customer’s reaction.

So the process involves changes in the brand logo, font, etc, which may confuse the customer about the brand identity and values or minimize sales and revenue. 

High costs and resource allocation: Brands heavily invest in digital marketing services for market research and analysis as they want to develop a new brand identity.

However rebranding process is expensive as they will need to spend more time researching and developing a new brand image, designing a new logo and website, redesigning marketing materials, employ training on the new brand, and advertising to push the new brand.

Measuring the success of rebranding efforts: It is a complicated process; so you need to monitor and track brand awareness and recognition, how customers engage, and growth in sales and revenue. Setting clear goals, tracking key metrics and KPIs, as well as working on a revamping strategy is vital. 

The major importance of rebranding is that it provides crucial tools for becoming competitive, attracting new consumers, and solving problems.

Whether considering a partial or complete rebranding, top online marketing companies will help you to employ the right strategy and have a great opportunity for huge growth and success. 

Banyanbrain provides one of the most reliable digital marketing services, which can help your brand get a new identity through rebranding. Contact Banyanbrain for more services like Social Media Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, and pay-per-click advertising.

FAQs

What is the rebranding process?

A rebrand involves changing a company’s brand identity, including its name, logo, tagline, and even general image. Hence, it involves a thorough analysis of the brand’s status, market trends, and customers to create a new brand strategy aligned with the company’s goals and values.

Why is rebranding used?

Modifying a brand’s image, increasing recognition and competitiveness. It can also reposition a brand, enter new markets, or break away from negative associations.

What is the first step in rebranding?

The first step in this process is the well-known brand audit, which involves checking up on the existing brand and researching your company’s brand identity, target audience, market trends, and competitors. Thus, all areas for improvement and growth can be identified.