Is a full rebrand always the answer, or should companies aim for more of a strategic evolution? Assessing what to update and what to replace is a careful balance, especially for businesses with history at stake. Here’s how to get it right.
At ASK US FOR IDEAS, we’ve had hundreds of brands ask us: which agency should I hire to rebrand my business? And we’ve met hundreds more looking for guidance on whether a top-to-toe rebrand is the answer, or if they need more of a gentle massage of their existing identity.
So how should a brand make the decision between revolution and evolution?
FIRST ESTABLISH WHERE YOU’RE AT
There are some clear situations where a full, all-hands-on-deck rebrand is likely going to be the answer – for example, companies that have built an audience with a minimum viable brand; companies going through significant change; or brands that need to build a relationship with a new audience. As Greg Matson, Partner and Head of Branding at agency Combo, puts it:
“Those are the three biggest drivers: a younger business that has proof of concept, great product and is ready to invest in their brand; a bigger-size brand that has a great brand and business but is channel-shifting or scaling which requires change; or enterprise, legacy, iconic brands that have lost their way, need to reconnect and aren’t sure how to do it.”
“Thoughtful evolution through positioning and expression can create something that feels revolutionary, but doesn’t throw everything out the window.”
Eileen Eastburn, CEO, Chandelier Creative
Whichever one of these genres a business falls into, however, any branding project has to start with an honest assessment. “It’s not just jumping into a rebrand because it’s an expectation,” says Eileen Eastburn, CEO at Chandelier Creative. “Ask why a brand exists and who it should be for today. Be thoughtful about that ownable position and how it should be expressed: what are the things that have equity? What are the things that aren’t working anymore?
“I think that thoughtful evolution through positioning and expression can create something that feels revolutionary, but doesn’t throw everything out the window.”
REMEMBER THE PSYCHOLOGY OF MEMORY
Even in situations where a full rebrand is on the table, companies need to tread carefully. Recent history is littered with controversial and often flat-out disastrous rebrands, many of them disparaged because they broke with whatever made the brand loved to begin with. While ‘rebrand’ might suggest a fully fledged out-with-the-old and in-with-the-new, many agencies advocate for a more considered approach.
“Why would you start from scratch?” says Matson. “The game we play isn’t about convincing someone to buy something; it’s about getting people to remember you when they want to buy something.
“The idea of throwing away all of the memories you’ve built, and saying, ‘that isn’t important anymore’, is a recipe for disaster,” he continues. “I’m squarely in the evolve camp. Always take from the past, and make it feel relevant and fresh.”
“There’s an overarching philosophy of showing up in people’s minds, and the psychology of memory – which is about repetition and consistency,” agrees Eastburn. “I think that is more important to marketing than newness is.
“Sometimes, we come in and we’re like: this needs to go away. But once you dig in, it actually doesn’t; there are things that have equity. And it’s really about taking what works and combining it with updates on trends and culture, and what will resonate with the consumer set they want to bring in.”
USE AN AGENCY FOR THEIR FRESH PERSPECTIVE
Understanding where this equity lies is where an agency comes in. They provide critical fresh perspective that identifies what’s working, what isn’t, and where there’s room to push at the boundaries.
“The agency has that really valuable outsider point of view,” says Eastburn. “They can say to the brand: look, this is what’s great. This is the stuff you need to hang onto. And they can work together with the insider point of view of the people at the brand, who know what’s great about it historically. You’re bringing in an agency because they’re experts, and they are literally fresh eyes on your brand.”
“Clients are so busy,” says Matson. “And interestingly, there’s often no-one internally that’s really focused on the high-level, theoretical brand. People are focused on sales and performance and product, and so what’s great about an outside perspective is that they can spend time thinking about the stuff a client doesn’t have time to. They bring perspective from other experiences.”
AND THEN, EVOLVE
Arguably, any level of rebrand is evolution rather than revolution. Today’s brands face a punishing trend cycle, as well as rapid advancement in tech and how audiences interact, leaving many of them wondering if they need to be rebranding more frequently. Plenty of businesses that might have previously rebranded every 20 years are now considering every five to 10 years as standard – something that’s a major undertaking in time and budget.
But perhaps companies could think about branding as more of a process of constant gentle evolution – rather than regular, wholesale change. Yes they need to respond to technological changes, and waves in culture and changing behaviour, but that might not mean throwing out the old logo and starting anew.
“A successful brand today has layers within their marketing but it doesn't all have to be matching luggage. It must all come from one thought about the brand and how it should be expressed.”
Eileen Eastburn, CEO, Chandelier Creative
It’s something that’s reflected in the rise of the ‘brand platform’ – a creative expression that’s rooted in a brand’s existing identity, but is an evolution of that expression. Or, as Eastburn summarises it:
“A brand platform serves as a north star, big brand idea from which campaigns, product launches and other tactics fall. It’s a refreshed way to express the brand without going too deep on the identity. It stems from an idea, but it’s strategy and story brought together to come up with an idea that spreads across all of the touch points.”
That means less fiddling with the visual identity, and more using photography and colour, or even messaging and content, to reconnect with consumers, rather than having to reinvent the brand.
LAYERS, NOT MATCHING LUGGAGE
“A successful brand today has layers within their marketing but it doesn't all have to be matching luggage,” adds Eastburn. “But it must all come from one thought about the brand and how it should be expressed.”
“Maybe it’s a different audience, maybe it’s a different ethos we rally behind, but from the highest level, it’s about doing it with the brand assets,” says Matson. “We use this limited set of tools over and over: whether it’s sound, colour, a cinematic point of view, a word, or whatever it is. And you find different ways to tell stories using these same things.
“Advertising bulges out of the brand in a slightly different way each time, but it should always feel like the same brand.”
We’ve helped hundreds of businesses find the right agencies to carry out full rebrands, as well as strategic repositioning projects. If you’re looking for an agency, let us help.
Images shown, from top: Rhode branding by Chandelier Creative; The Nue Co rebrand by Combo; Common Goal brand refresh by Barkas; Hotel Ulysses branding by Chandelier Creative.
