BRANDING - STRATEGY

Re-branding - 10 questions to ask before you start

Brands now find themselves in a constant state of evolution – the result of many factors including disruption from competitors old and new, better-informed customers with increasing expectations and markets with faster lifecycles.

The term ‘re-brand’ has various interpretations. Some use it to denote an evolution involving positioning, proposition and messaging changes, for others it may just mean a new look and feel, or logo – others may seek to cover all bases.

Regardless of your perspective, here are 10 questions that should be answered to the satisfaction of all stakeholders before a re-branding process is embarked upon. The questions may seem basic, but experience has taught us that reaching informed consensus is usually the biggest challenge of any re-branding project.

1. Why are we re-branding?

2. Does our current offering reflect the needs of our customer now and in the future?

3. Does the customer experience deliver the brands’ promise?

4. What qualities do customers currently associate with our brand?

5. Which parts of the business best represent our brand – and which don’t (and why not)?

6. Do all our employees truly understand the brand?

7. What aspects of our current brand must we retain and why?

8. What aspects of competitor brands have the greatest affinity with our audiences?

9. Will any re-brand have sufficient stakeholder support to be able infiltrate all aspects of the business e.g. customer experience, product development, organisational behaviour?

10. What will we use as a benchmark to judge if the re-brand has been a success?

These questions should be explored in detail and that will take time and effort. But it will be worth it - not least when you go to brief the agency and discover this exercise has saved them time and therefore you money.