How, why and when to rebrand your small business

Are you considering a rebrand of your business? Shayne Tilley, head of marketing at 99designs by Vista explains the ins and outs of rebranding, and shares some tips to successfully bring a new visual representation of your business to the world.

It’s good practice as a business owner to regularly take stock of your branding efforts. Your brand is the most powerful tool your business has for connecting with customers in meaningful ways. Therefore, it’s not surprising that as your business evolves, your branding should evolve alongside it, to ensure it is accurately and authentically communicating your business offering and values.

But given the central and critical role branding plays in growing a business, making changes to it can feel like a behemoth task, underpinned by all sorts of emotions. After all, your visual identity is the face of your business, and it can be hard to let go of something that has been foundational in building your reputation and dream as an entrepreneur.

If you’re wondering if a rebrand might be in order for your business, but you’re not sure where to start or if now is a good time, we’ve listed out some easy to follow steps and considerations to help you make an informed decision.

Why to rebrand, and when is the right time?

Knowing when and why to rebrand is the first hurdle where many business owners can get stuck.

The best way to make an accurate assessment is to ask yourself a few questions about where your business is and where you want to take it. Try to answer them in as much detail as possible, as this will be helpful for later on in the process.

Here are some questions for you and your team to consider:

• Are we entering a new market? What are the cultural nuances of this market?
• Are we looking to appeal to a new audience? Who are they? What do they need and value?
• Does our current branding feel outdated? Does it still represent our product?
• Are we blending in too much with our competition?
• Have we gone through a big company change like a merger or acquisition?
• Have our brand values or mission changed?
• Have any of our brand elements become problematic?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these, then rethinking your brand strategy could be a good next step – but the extent of your rebrand depends on how well your current branding is working for you.

Asking these questions will also help you determine whether a full rebrand is necessary, or whether a brand refresh will be sufficient. In some instances, once you’ve done an audit, you might find there are smaller changes you can make to your visual identity (for example through colour or something like new iconography) that can help lift your brand enough to add some freshness and refinement.

Five essential steps for rebranding a small business

Once you’ve reviewed your ‘why’ and ‘when’, there are some essential steps to take into account when it comes to how you implement changes and rebrand successfully.

You’ve likely seen some examples of bad branding and the impact it can have on a business’ reputation, so it’s worth investing the time and effort that your rebrand deserves.

1. Seek additional (or outside) input

A rebrand should not be done alone; seek the opinions of other stakeholders within your business to build a full picture. Feedback from departments like marketing, creative, PR and design is recommended as these are the teams and people who bring your brand to life everyday, and will have practical takes on what’s working and what’s not.

It can even help to have an outside perspective to avoid missing details or identify patterns that may be overlooked once you are immersed in the process.

With this collective brainpower, you’ll avoid branding blunders that could thwart your rebrand.

2. Evaluate what’s working and what’s not

Now you have an idea as to why you’re rebranding, it’s time to put your current brand assets under a microscope. Expanding on the questions you asked yourself earlier, map out all your brand elements, from your company name and logo to your colours and typography. Examine what’s working, what’s not – and explore why.

Part of this evaluation should also include looking at your existing brand personality and core values. Ask yourself: is our personality still fitting of who we are? What personality do we want our new branding to present?

Finally, make sure to leverage your sales and marketing data to ascertain what kinds of content your target audiences are receptive to, and how they are behaving and engaging with your brand. If you have a website, post on social media or do email marketing, you’ll have some data at your fingertips that could provide valuable insights.

3. Test your target audiences and analyse your competition

This rebrand needs to appeal to your target audience, so it’s vital you get their input. Consider how you want your new branding to make your audience feel when they interact with it. If you have the budget, try a survey or focus group. Otherwise, tap into your social media networks, existing customer base, or even friends and family (as long as they fall into the audience demographics you’re looking to reach).

And while you’re in research mode, why not have a look at what your competitors are doing? Perhaps you’ll see an opportunity to do something different, or maybe you’ll spot an idea that inspires you. It’d be a waste not to learn from those doing well in your field.

4. Get your hands dirty

Now it’s time to dive in. If a new logo is what you need, get it designed. If you’re doing a complete brand overhaul, consider working with a creative director, designer and copywriter to help bring your vision and mission to life in a full brand guide.

Make sure to reflect on all the research you’ve done so far to inform this rebrand, as this will be the foundation for all the changes you’re about to make.

5. Shout it from the rooftops

The evolution of your brand should be something you share proudly with the world. You’ve invested significant time and effort into the process, so share the new and improved you with your customers!

Tease hints of the rebrand on your social channels to build up the hype; and once you officially announce it, share some behind-the-scenes details. People will appreciate learning about your narrative. Helping to entice new customers and making existing customers feel a part of your brand journey and your story will in turn strengthen the emotional connections they have with your brand.

What’s important to remember with a rebrand is that you don’t need to change everything – just change what you need to.

Your brand is what you present to the world and how you solidify your reputation within it, so take the care and time to invest in what it looks like. Even minor changes can make all the difference in taking your business to the next level.

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