Why do companies, organizations or individual professionals rebrand? Is it really necessary, and why is so much attention paid to considerations such as fonts and colors? The Ledger asked two national rebranding experts to explain.
Here’s what they had to say:
David Leis, president, Avantt Consulting, Hartford, Connecticut
“From my perspective, what drives successful rebranding is a change in strategic direction of the company where there are substantive changes that need to be communicated to the market. Rebranding becomes a critical element in communicating the change to your current customers and your market.
“Successful rebranding in my experience is the outer manifestation of the deeper reality of fundamental strategic changes in the organization. Even without the rebranding the changes throughout the organization would be felt by the customers and the market. Rebranding simply enhances communicating the changes.
“The visuals that go along with that change in strategic direction then become critical in communicating the fresh approach to products, services, markets, etc.
“A picture is always worth a thousand words, so the visuals must play into the change and match the new communications that go along with the rebranding.”
Jenay Sellars, director of marketing, Brandfolder, Boulder, Colorado
“There are many reasons companies or schools might wish to undergo a rebrand. Sometimes it’s to refresh the brands look and feel to make it better reflect the ideals, usability, and values or experience the brand stands for. Other times it can be to ensure relevancy or to make sure they look and feel as fresh as the product or service behind it.
“From the colors and fonts chosen to the refreshed iconography, there are lots of psychological factors that influence a rebrand. Certain colors can persuade your audience to feel certain things about you.
“For example, blue evokes feelings of trust and loyalty while red evokes feelings of power and strength. Even typefaces can influence how a consumer feels about your brand.”
Sellars has advice for those interested in embarking on a rebranding campaign.
“[To ensure a successful rebranding campaign] prepare your audience for change, create a buzz about your rebrand, and tease it on your website and other channels.
“Measure brand engagement before and after, gather feedback, and ask your employees and customers to articulate your new brand values back to you – this will help you understand if your efforts resonated.”
-- Linda Bryant