In order to discuss rebranding we need to first define ‘brand’.
Put simply, a brand is how a business differentiates itself from all other businesses, especially its competitors. The brand is its personality; and the way that personality is perceived may differ between stakeholders – the general public, customers, staff, media, shareholders, etc.
According to Wikipedia, a brand is “a collection of images and ideas representing an economic producer; more specifically, it refers to the descriptive verbal attributes and concrete symbols such as a name, logo, slogan, and design scheme that convey the essence of a company, product or service. Brand recognition and other reactions are created by the accumulation of experiences with the specific product or service, both directly relating to its use, and through the influence of advertising, design and media commentary”.
When a business goes through a rebranding process it is changing its identity – its personality – and therefore the way it wants stakeholders to perceive it. This may involve significant changes to areas including logo, tagline, jingle and business name, along with its marketing and public relations strategies.
Following a successful brand re-fresh in 2009 with the new tagline ‘Let’s make the right move’ Mortgage Choice shares these key points for businesses considering rebranding:
1. Ask why you are doing it.
Are you planning to rebrand for necessity or to stroke your own or someone else’s ego? Is it really what your stakeholders need from your business? Examples of positive reasons include: rebranding to reposition a company to take advantage of changing market conditions or because a business has stagnated and it is a way of kick-starting a brand.
2. Review what you are saying about yourselves as a business.
his needs to be reflective of the consumer experience: what franchisees offer is the ability to put consumers in a position to make clearer, well informed choices
3. Perform a comprehensive audit of all the factors that make up your brand.
It is more than the collateral, more than the physical attributes, more than your logo, your colours and your posters, TV or outdoor ads. Wyatt describes a brand as ‘the movie that plays in someone’s head whenever your brand name is mentioned’.
4. Include a review of your corporate culture.
It is about creating perceptions and about what all your stakeholders feel are the promises you make to them.
5. Be very clear about why you are doing it and what you are trying to achieve.
Rebranding can often be a costly exercise and you do not want to unnecessarily spend time, money, resources and effort on a strategy that is not fully thought out. Work out the strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats involved before going ahead.
6. Allow plenty of opportunity for people in the business to express their concerns about a rebranding strategy.
Discuss the whys, wheres and hows with everyone whose role is affected by the new direction and make time for follow up programs, to review timelines, etc.
7. Sell your rebranding strategy to all internal stakeholders in a way they need to hear it.
Make sure everyone involved in the business is aware of the new brand push, from the lowest ‘rung’ of staff to the managing director. Communicate it in a way that is suited to your audience i.e. webcasts, emails, phone calls, word documents, staff meetings, management conferences, state conferences, etc.
8. Ensure all brand deliverers are enthusiastic and engaged believers.
Particularly for service-based businesses, there is a real need to realise the brand is about the people delivering on a brand’s promises. Hence, there is a strong need for high engagement from all the internal stakeholders who communicate the brand, whether deliberately or unintentionally i.e. staff, franchisees, etc.
9. Use various forms of communication to communicate to external stakeholders.
The rebranding strategy needs to be filtered throughout all the avenues the business uses to send messages externally. Consider revamping areas such as the call centre contact method, print/radio/TV/online media coverage (advertising and editorial), consumer website and referral marketing materials.
10. Keep it going. Staying true to the desired brand is an ongoing effort.
Constantly reassess your business activities and plans to ensure you are continuing to reinforce the business’s personality… that movie in your stakeholders’ minds when they think of your brand.
Author Bio: Kristy Sheppard was a crucial team member in the recent rebranding of Mortgage Choice. For more information from Kristy, visit her online at www.mortgagechoice.com.au.
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