Your branding, reputation and sales go together like fish, chips and peas. When the fish is stale or unappealing, the rest probably gets thrown away too. That could mean casting your net out for a new perspective and a way to swim forwards as a company.
Branding re-evaluations are often a response to new opportunities or threats, mergers and acquisitions. Though it could be you’ve simply ‘outgrown’ your brand. (A polite way of saying it’s badly out of date!)
How do you know it’s time for something new? Strategic market research or simply plummeting sales figures provide important clues! Then, the question is, do you need rebranding? Or a brand refresh?
What’s the difference?
Creative Jam – as always – has the answers.
What’s involved with rebranding?
This is a complete reboot of your brand. It starts with digging down on what your organisation is currently ‘all about’. Who are you talking to? How can you engage with customers more effectively?
The best creative agency works in partnership with you to develop fresh, impactful and memorable branding. Including a new logo, as part of a vibrant new brand identity.
As the cost of rebranding probably includes a launch initiative, and new signage, packaging and digital marketing tools, it can be a major investment. However, sometimes it’s vital for survival or business growth.
One of the most dramatic examples of rebranding is Meta, the new identity for Facebook and Instagram’s parent company.
But did you notice that Burger King kept its name, but started from scratch with its corporate identity in 2021?
Their “new” logo is actually based on a logo design from 1994 with some modernisation applied, though we can’t help but notice that the font used looks identical to Dunkin’ Donuts new logo design.
Hot pharma company Pfizer also launched its new branding in 2021 in response to the huge change in its prominence, while Peugeot and Renault responded to a difficult market with their rebrand.
Sounds drastic; what’s a brand refresh?
Don’t cut your nose off to spite your face. That’s a traditional saying that means you don’t have to make wholesale changes when a few cosmetic improvements will do.
There may be aspects of your branding that work brilliantly and meet your business development needs. Keep them and look for small brand improvements that add value, such as a new corporate colour palette, tagline or font.
Is it possible to modernise an existing logo? Absolutely, and it’s a graphic design fix that can make a substantial difference to how your customers perceive you.
Slight changes to the Cadbury logo recently made it more versatile digitally, but also echoed the original founder’s signature to establish authenticity. Subtle but brilliant! The still relevant features of the company’s branding remain unchanged.
Another example of a strategic brand refresh comes from Mastercard. The changes were hardly noticeable to many people but ensured the company’s logo (with text removed) was sharper and clearer on small screens.
Putting a fresh face on it; Creative Jam!
Creating a new brand – or re-energising an existing one – depends on a creative agency that’s responsive and innovative. It also helps if they’re honest about what is working and what is ‘off’.
Creative Jam puts your business objectives at the core of our award-winning design and marketing services. It’s why our specialist branding help is as deliciously inviting as those fish, chips and peas we’ve been craving since we wrote the intro!
