How To Change a Brand After Company Formation

For a re-brand to be successful, it must not only be understood by its existing market, it must also provide a solution to the issues that forced a company to embrace a re-branding initiative in the first place. Effective re-branding should extend well beyond a change of logo and corporate stationery; it should offer consumers a new promise and commitment from a company and address previous issues in product, customer service or outdated communication.

However, for many companies, instead of using re-branding as platform to redress the reasons behind customer loss and disaffection, they adopt the short-sighted strategy of only re-designing their visual representation. One example of this is the attempt of re-branding Royal Mail. Conscious of increasingly negative perceptions of the brand as a result of poor customer service and the emergence of digital communication, the so called ‘snail mail’ decided it was time to re-brand its services. However, instead of concentrating on the reasons why customers were having negative brand experiences, all the re-brand achieved was a change of name and a body of disillusioned employees and customers. All in all the Royal Mail paid a huge amount of money to annoy employees, and they reverted back to their previous incarnation a couple of years later.

If you are considering re-branding your business, it is vital that, internally, all levels of your company are committed to its execution. In this post, we give some tips on how to get your house in order.

The impact on employees
In the current economic context there are a lot of opportunities available for the employees. For many businesses, from the start of company formation, one of the main challenges is recruiting and retaining good people. Therefore, in theory if a company updates its image and – through a re-brand – remains relevant and market leading, it will become a more attractive proposition for talented people.

Getting your house in order
The success of a re-branding initiative rises and falls on its execution, and again we are reminded, that the people you employ are your company’s brand. Obviously, an effective marketing strategy can inform your consumers that your company is changing and let them know what to expect. However, if when they engage with the re-brand they have a negative brand experience, due to inconsistency and poor service, the entire initiative has failed.

In conclusion, rebranding is not about a new name, logo or identity. It is about articulating a change in the promise, personality and fundamental values of a corporation.