Design is all about problem solving. The problems your company faced when it first launched, versus the ones it faces today is probably completely different. If it’s not, well then you’re winning and you can stop reading right here and go celebrate. Have a cool day.
Trends: Yay or Nay?
While design trends are useful to reference and very fun to look at and incorporate into your own designs, it’s never a good idea to base your entire corporate identity on a trend. Trends change and you will be left in the dust feeling sad, frustrated and irrelevant.
Timeless is Key
Big brands like Apple, Shell and Coca-Cola have continuously tweaked their identities slightly over the years to be more relevant to the current market, but they always remain timeless. While conducting your own rebrand you should always take this into consideration. Most business owners want their business’ to grow and expand over the years, and your brand needs to be able to do the same. You don’t want to be completely changing your branding every 2 – 63 years to keep up with the times as this is a sure-fire way to lose consumers’ trust.
When to Rebrand
For the most part your brand is not about who you are as a person; sure sometimes it is but that’s the exception, not the rule. Just like how you wouldn’t map out your marketing plan around a personal whim, a rebrand should also be based on tangible evidence (and maybe a bit of emotion, it IS art after all). A brand is in essence a user experience and you should aim to treat it as such.
So here it is, a few telltale signs that it’s time to rebrand;
- You’re embarrassed to show your business card or your website to prospective clients
- Your brand doesn’t stand out from its competitors
- Your branding is so complicated that no two designers are able to create cohesive work that fits the brand standards
- Your business has model changed
- Your branding is now considered offensive
- You’re trying to appeal to a new audience without much success
- Talent in your field isn’t interested in working with your brand
Whether you think a complete rebrand is needed, or maybe just a tweak here and there it’s good to get a jump on things and just go for it. If you’re in an agency environment (much like we are) it’s easy to push your own brand aside to focus on your clients, but your brand is your calling card. It’s the first interaction your clients have with you and that’s why it’s important to treat yourself like a client. Lots of aspects in business are scary and complicated, but branding won’t be if you have the right team behind you! (that’s us, we’re the right team).
Get in touch for all your rebrand and design needs today!