Companies rebrand all the time. Even big corporations like Dunkin Donuts make significant changes, updating their brand to fit modern times. It’s not for everyone, as it can be costly to start your brand from scratch. It can also be confusing when your loyal customers see you in a far different tone than what they’ve known you for.
You may not need total rebranding, but you need something to refresh. An update can do wonders and help you gain that much-needed edge above the competition. Getting creative with what you have right now is the more affordable option that yields great rewards. Here are five ways to refresh your brand:
1. Calibrate Your Message
One of the factors that contribute to building a brand is consistency. Your voice needs to be consistent in all channels you use. Whether it is your advertising, social media pages, website, and products, they must all reflect your brand’s values. The consistent tone helps create a loyal customer base. You want to avoid confusing the people that have a positive image of your brand.
To that end, you’d want to create standards to keep things consistent. Brand style guides help inform your team of how and when to use the elements of your brand. Inform them of all aspects from the logo, colors, fonts, photography, and more. You’ll find some guides online as used by services such as Uber and Skype.
2. Learn From Your Competition
Over time, you’ll develop competitors that find their niche in the market. They occupy a unique space that helps them succeed alongside you. By looking at what other companies are doing, you can get an idea of why they’re achieving so much success at the moment. You don’t need to copy them, but see how they display their brand through different channels.
You can even discover that some of these companies are copying from you. When they’re doing so, they cut a portion of the market you once dominated. You may need to change to shake things up and attract new prospects to your brand.
3. Improve Your Visual Identity
You don’t need to start your scratch and remove what your brand has worked for so far. Instead, look at things you can update with your current image. Improvement is a move that can give your brand that much-needed refreshment. Here are some aspects you can change with your visuals:
- Colors: Try changing it up by incorporating your secondary color as the primary for your new look. Alternatively, you can look at other colors that work with your current colors and change things up.
- Photos: Are the photos you’re using to evoke the mood you want your audience to have? Do some research on what others are using to get a sense of the direction you can take.
- Font: Switching font style or adding an accent is a subtle change that works wonders.
4. Update Your Mission And Core Values
Are your company’s core values still relevant to what your company represents today? Does it still have nuances that are no longer accepted by today’s standards? You may find that the world has changed and is no longer receptive to your old mission and core values. Alternatively, you may find that the audience you succeeded with in the past now looks at different values, moving their focus away from you.
5. Update Everything
Carefully evaluate your content and items with your brand refresher. You may need to switch up merchandise and packaging. Another way is that you change the way you put out content from emails to social media posts. You’ll need to update them in the spirit of staying consistent.
Switch Things Up
Refreshing your brand can be a way to revitalize it without needing to break the bank. Small changes can help your current see you anew, igniting their passion once more. Remember that the secret to a successful update is to maintain that consistency throughout all channels. Large corporations are having success with it, and you can too.
Need help refreshing your website branding? Request a proposal or if you’d like for me to hear your beautiful voice, schedule a discovery call today!