Every time I see a brand launch on social media or come across a beautiful brand on Pinterest I get that little thought in my head: “Dang, should I rebrand my business too?” Maybe you can relate to this as well? The shiny object syndrome is all too real with the constant influences from social media and Pinterest telling us we always need to have the most up to date everything.
Sure, new brands can be beautiful and exciting, and we all want the latest and greatest, right? But does that mean it’s actually a smart decision to rebrand your business every time you see a beautiful brand on social media? Probably not.
In this post, I’ll walk you through some of the times when it’s actually a good idea to rebrand your business and what you should consider before diving into a full rebrand!
What to consider before deciding to rebrand your business!
Brand recognition
One of the biggest things we want to consider before rebranding our business is the current brand recognition we have established for our brand. Depending on how long you have been in business or how recognizable your brand elements have become in your community or industry, there are several things you need to think about before heading into a brand overhaul.
The current brand recognition you have established might steer you in the direction of a brand refresh rather than a complete overhaul. In this case, you would keep some of the elements from your current brand, but elevate the brand by adjusting colors or specific items to appear refreshed!
Cost
Before deciding on a new brand, you’ll also want to consider the cost. Do you have the finances it takes to invest in a new brand for your business?
There is a great variety when it comes to pricing for your new brand or website, and you want to make sure you have the necessary funds to jump into a rebrand. If you are taking this next step in your business, it’s best if you’re able to pick your designer based on how well your personalities go together and their talent and not just based on the price of the service!
Time
You’ll also need to set aside time to successfully complete your brand update. Most designers will require you to complete some sort of homework or prep-work before diving into your design. This is how your designer will really get to know you, so it’s important that you actually set aside enough time to complete these without cutting corners!
You’ll also need to set aside time to provide feedback during the design process. For some designers, like myself, this process is only about 2-3 weeks long, while others work on a 8-10 weeks or longer timeline. Make sure you’re well aware of the timeline before diving into the project, so that you’re able to plan accordingly!
While the designer is the expert in this area, your feedback is crucial to create a brand that reflects your style, personality, and the new direction of your business.
So, now that we know what we need to consider before diving into a rebrand, let’s take a look at some of the reasons where a brand update may be in order!
You and your business have simply evolved!
This first one is pretty broad, so before you start thinking like “sure, I’ve grown and evolved, I do that every day” let me explain!
For a lot of us, when we’re first starting out in our business we have limited time and resources. We might get a logo off of Fiverr or maybe even make one ourselves in Canva. This DIY route is perfectly fine if you’re just starting out because it takes some time to get to know yourself as a business owner and realize what you need from your brand.
As time goes on, our businesses tend to evolve and grow. Maybe the DIY logo no longer represents the kind of clients you’d like to attract, or maybe you’ve gone through a lot in the past year that has made you look at business differently.
It can be a really good idea to refresh your brand and website every 3-4 years. Even if you don’t do a full rebrand, a brand refresh as we discussed earlier might be a great option to capture the continued evolvement of your business.
Change of Focus or niching down?
Early on in our business days many of us cast a wide net trying to attract any and all clients that are simply willing to pay for our services. As we grow, most of us come to realize that the riches are in the niches, and that doing a few things really well will go a long way in attracting our ideal clients.
If your brand was created with a large audience in mind, and you have later niched down or even switched focus in your business, it would be a great idea to rebrand your business.
For instance, if you started out as a general photographer, but are now focusing on wedding photography or senior photography, rebranding your business to cater to those markets specifically can do wonders for your business.
When we make sure that our brand and website speak clearly to our ideal client (and with this also our ideal niche), we are able to speak through the noise in a saturated market and capture the attention of those we want to attract.
Pretty cool, right?
Increasing pricing or entering a more luxury market?
So you’ve been in business for a hot minute, your target market is clear as day, but you’ve been playing around with increasing your prices.
Price increases or entering into a luxury market is a great time to rebrand or refresh your current brand.
Just like niching down may require a new or up leveled brand experience, entering into a new price point is similar.
Think about Walmart for example, you enter into Walmart expecting to pay Walmart prices. If you find a Nordstrom item hanging on one of the racks, you probably wouldn’t want to pay Nordstrom prices, right? This goes for your photography business as well.
As much as we don’t want them to, your clients will likely judge a book by its cover. It can be difficult for clients to tell high-end photography apart from entry-level, but they can easily spot whether or not a brand experience fits with the pricing.
So if you’re contemplating a price jump in your business, this would be the perfect time to invest in a new brand experience as well!
A full rebrand or just a brand refresh?
Throughout this article, I’ve mentioned both rebrand and brand refresh several times. Which one is the right choice for your business will depend on several factors, but let’s take a look at the differences:
Brand Refresh
Let’s think about Apple or Starbucks for a minute, their brands have not stayed the same since the beginning, but it’s easy to see the evolution of their brand over time. Head on over here for a look down the Starbucks logo memory lane.
With a brand refresh, several of the brand elements will remain but may receive some tweaks or rework to fit with the new approach. This might include things like adjusting the colors, finding new shades or tones for your current colors, modifying current brand elements, changing fonts, etc.
Like I mentioned earlier, a brand refresh is the perfect option if you’re looking to keep a lot of your current brand but still provide an elevated experience.
Rebrand
A rebrand is often the choice if your business is changing drastically. Compared to the brand refresh a full rebrand is a more drastic change that can totally be beneficial for your business if the timing is right.
If your business has grown a lot, or you have made some major changes in your business (maybe in a short amount of time), it can sometimes be wise to start fresh with a rebrand.
It can also be a great idea to do a full rebrand if you feel like you have simply found yourself or your clients more clearly, or your old brand was a DIY or brand kit concept that was not developed just for you and your clients!
As you can tell, there are a lot of variables involved in a rebrand for a business. While these are great points to consider when you’re playing around with the idea of a rebrand, the best place to start would be to contact some designers and see what they have to say.
A lot of designers offer complimentary discovery calls, so you can discuss with them and see what the best course of action would be for your brand and business!
Not sure where to find a designer? Well, you’re in luck, my friend. I offer brand and website development for creative entrepreneurs. If you’re ready to take your brand and website to the next level, get in touch today to reserve your spot!
Whew! In this post we talked about some of the things you need to consider before diving into a rebrand, when a rebrand might be in order, and how to choose between a rebrand and a refresh.
* this is an affiliate link, which means I may get some benefit at no extra cost to you!
