In 1997, Apple was in an awful state. Steve Jobs, who was one of the founders of Apple was previously fired from his own company was brought on as a last hope of reviving the company. Once Steve Jobs returned as the interim CEO and he immediately did something that inspired not just Apple’s customers, but also the employees who’d forgotten what Apple meant. He launched the campaign ‘ Think Different .’ He had two core strategies in this campaign:
1. Make the best products in the world, and
2. Kill Apple’s products before someone else did with a new product
The results? It’s evident today. I'm sure you've heard of Apple and know clearly what the company makes and sells. Apple is worth over $1 trillion and still climbing. They produce some of the best products (arguably) and are known for great best customer service (genius bar!). Their iPod crushed Sony’s Walkman. But they didn’t stop there. In 2007, they introduced the iPhone, dubbed the “iPod killer”.
Steve Job: “Marketing is about values. It’s a complicated and noisy world, and
we’re not going to get a chance to get people to remember much about us. No company
is. So we have to be really clear about what we want them to know about us.”
Even great brands need investment and care if it’s going to retain relevance and vitality. In fact, the older the brand, the older the customers who connected with their mission are. Eventually, you’ll want to connect with the younger generation to increase LTV. It’s a constant reinvention and adaptation that keeps your brand relevant for ages.
Update Your Brand
Thinking of updating your brand can be overwhelming. As natural selection has proven over time, change always happens whether or not you like it. That’s the immutable law of the universe. Your brand has to either “ innovate or die. ” So the smartest decision is to move forward and make changes in order to thrive. When this moment comes, or when circumstances (such as the COVID-19 pandemic) make it necessary, what do you do? We will tell you what rebranding, refreshing your brand or updating your brand means, what you stand to gain from it, and how to go about it.
What Exactly is Rebranding or Updating Your Brand?
Apple’s logo speaks of premium quality every single time—and high cost, of course, but first, what is branding? Usually what would come to mind when you think of the word “brand” is the name,
colors, logo, etc., of a business. And that’s correct for the most part.
Branding is a technique of using easily identifiable symbols to market your business.These are symbols that once spotted in the market will make people think of your brand and what it stands for. Like a country’s flag.
Updating your brand is taking all these “easily identifiable symbols” and crafting them into a different story than they were telling before.
An important point to note: Brand refresh/update differs from rebranding. While refreshing your brand involves subtle changes in your pre-existing brand identity, rebranding can involve a total overhaul of your identity. It sounds like a bold business move to make, right?
It could change a lot of things. What if your customers don’t like it? What if this changes everything you stand for?
These are perfectly normal concerns. And the extent to which you want to change things is up to you. But when the need arises, adapting may be one of the smartest moves you’ll make. And taking that risk can prove highly beneficial. Blockbuster, Blackberry, and MySpace didn’t make these moves when it was time. For Blockbuster, they failed to update their brand and business model during the rise of on-demand video and Netflix. And Blockbuster met its demise.
Let Go of the Past — Think The Long Term Strategy
In the wake of climate change awareness, oil and gas companies were at the receiving end of heavy criticisms concerning the damage on the environment caused by their operations.
British Petroleum (BP), in 2020, decided to let go of their 70-year-old logo that depicted strength and adopt a new brand image showing their new focus on the environment: their helios logo that looks like a stylized sunflower. This is just one example of rebranding. Even though unfortunate events in 2010 (the Deepwater Horizon oil spill) later cast a shadow on their efforts, it is still a beautiful example.
McDonald’s, Apple, Burberry, and Target are other brands that were successful in their rebranding efforts too. Let’s check out some ways they benefitted.
Benefits of Rebranding
There are some reasons you’ll want to (or have to) rebrand, such as
● Your business strategy/model changing
● Changing your market or the demographic of customers you appeal to
● Recent tragedy involving your business
● Public opinion about your brand
● New competitors on the turf
They can be blessings in disguise. Because the most effective rebranding strategy can lead to:
1. Standing Out
If, as a pet company, you have the same look and feel as all the other pet companies in your area, you’ll look like just another pet company. Like a part of a huge franchise. Work on your brand to set yourself apart from the competition so you're more memorable to the audience.
2. Modernizing Your Brand Identity
Change is constant, that’s a cliche at this point. What worked as a beautiful website design in 1999 for most people wouldn’t work today. You should always stay on top of upgrades so your brand doesn’t feel like that old stuff we knew from our childhood that’s fading into obscurity.
3. Expanding to a Wider Customer Base
Imagine yours is a car brand beloved by middle-aged moms. Rebranding to include storytelling and features that appeal to younger women too will expand your customer base.
4. Making a Better Impression on the Public
Whatever the reason might be to rebrand or update an existing brand image, if you tell a magnificent business story around your new brand identity, the public will love your brand. Your new brand persona should be an authentic reflection of how you intend to do business all-round.
5. Boosting Your Search Engine Optimization
It’s possible to mess up your SEO when changing your brand image. With the proper help, you won’t ruin your SEO when setting up your brand identity for maximum benefits. In fact, a great rebranding or brand refresh will boost your SEO.
Move Forward into the Future
For many industries in the world, this is a turnaround period. Many brands will change forever, some emerging stronger while others will sadly be overtaken by their competitors. Effective brand management should be one of the major concerns of forward-thinking enterprises. If you need help in strengthening your brand image, updating your existing brand, or a simple refresh, contact us at info@brandandbranders.com