Is it Time for a Rebrand? 5 brand questions to ask!
Is it Time for a Rebrand? 5 brand questions to ask!
Think fast! What is Apple’s brand? What about Volvo’s? Or Coke’s? Chances are, at the mention of any of those brand names, their logos immediately flashed before your eyes. But a half-eaten apple or circle with an arrow isn’t what describes the company’s brand – yet it is part of the brand.
So what is “brand?” If you search for this answer on the Internet, you’ll get as many different answers as there are brands in the world. But if you look back at the historic root of the concept, one picture comes to mind.
Cattle ranchers – driving hot irons into their cows to make sure everyone else knew, “this one’s mine.” Today, logos might be the modern-day branding iron to help customers identify your brand, but your overall brand encompasses much more than a color scheme, a logo, or a punchy tagline. At Vessel, we believe your brand answers three primary questions:
- Who are you?
- What do you do?
- How does that connect with your right-fit customer?
By now you might be wondering why a brand is so important, or you might be wondering if your company needs its own rebrand. After many years in branding, and walking alongside our clients in the process of branding, rebranding, and then building a marketing strategy informed by that brand – we have a few questions (and answers!) that might help you determine where your brand needs stand.
1. How do I know if I need a rebrand?
Put simply, a brand is the story we tell prospective customers about our companies. What’s the story behind who you are? Try this exercise to explore where a rebrand might take you:
- Identify three pivotal moments in the course of your business ownership.
- Describe who your company would be if it were a person.
- Do a quick scan of your website. Is it immediately clear who you are, what you do, and why you do it?
The answers to those questions are some of the pivotal elements we identify to help form your brand strategy and positioning (i.e. who your company is). Are these answers clearly infused in your advertising and marketing materials? What about through the sales pitches your sales team undertakes? How about across your website? If the answer is no, it might be time to think about a rebrand.
2. What’s the ROI in building brand equity?
A strong brand is crucial to the long-term return on investment for your company. Shopify describes brand equity as “a marketing term that describes a brand’s value.” The higher your brand’s brand equity, the more likely your customer is to pay more for your product, remain a loyal customer, and even advocate for your company within their own networks. Strong brand equity breeds trust. Think of your brand as the spokesperson for your company. If that “person” is trustworthy, reliable, likable, and understandable, it’s more likely that your customers will remain loyal to your company.
3. Can our team easily articulate who we are and what we stand for?
One major perk to having a strong brand: it serves as a unifying tool for your whole team. As your company grows, you won’t be able to be part of every conversation that your employees have on behalf of your company. But with a strong brand and clear positioning of who you are, every employee will be able to articulate clearly, succinctly, and consistently who you are and what you offer.
In addition to that, your brand positioning serves as a helpful decision-making matrix for your company’s leadership. Decisions – around finances, marketing, product development, hiring, and more – can all be guided by your brand. For example, if your brand is one that values authenticity, your team might develop a hiring process that has authenticity at its core. Your brand is your North Star when it comes to moving your company forward.
4. Does my brand help my ideal customers discover me?
Every company has a story, but not every company knows how to tell it. If you (or your team) would struggle to tell your story, then chances are your prospective customers don’t know it either. If they don’t know who you are and why you do what you do, it will be hard for them to feel motivated to work with you. Not to mention, your customers are inundated with marketing and sales offerings from companies all around the world nowadays. To set yourself apart from the competition, you have to be completely sure of what makes you unique and invaluable to your clients.
5. Is this something I can do on my own?
While some companies might have the ability to self-evaluate and identify the main points in their company’s story and personality, it’s often easier for a third-party observer to listen and help you determine who you are. At Vessel, we know the first step to any strong rebrand is listening. We spend an extensive amount of time on the listening portion of your brand strategy in our development and discovery phase.
A third party can also simultaneously build your brand strategy and positioning into a marketing strategy to get the message of who you are to market faster.
And of course, a third-party brand and marketing agency can actually increase the capacity of your team. While you focus on what you do best – running your company, manufacturing your product, leading your team – we focus on what we do best: reaching your right-fit customers with the message of who you are and why they should work with you.
Want to learn more?
If you are looking for a partner to help you discover the right brand, we invite you to learn more about our process and/or review some of our case studies. We'd love to hear more about your brand and help you discover the next best step.
