Is rebranding worth the investment? The benefits might go much further than just ROI
Rebranding is one of the most significant changes a business can undergo. It represents a major shift in how a company presents itself and how the audience will perceive it from that point forward.
A rebrand can be massively successful, reinvigorating a company and bringing in new generations of customers. However, this can also backfire if it is not carefully planned and executed. Business leaders are often wary of making a large investment if they don’t see a rapid turnover, but ROI shouldn’t be the only factor to consider when making the decision to rebrand.
The New Coke case
Those old enough to remember Coca-Cola’s rebranding to “New Coke” in the ’80s know its reputation as a cautionary tale on rebranding. In their rebranding effort, they not only changed their logo, their packaging, and their messaging, they also reformulated the soft drink itself. This led to severe consumer backlash, and ultimately benefited their main competitors, Pepsi.
This story has a reputation as being a warning against rebranding, but the story did not end at New Coke. After their consumer backlash, Coca-Cola rebranded once again to “Coca-Cola Classic”, embracing both their vintage image and changing their messaging to reflect their brand as an inseparable part of American culture. We don’t need to tell you if that second rebranding was successful; Coca-Cola is the single most recognized brand in the entire world.
So, why rebrand?
Rebranding can have a very large ripple effect that leads to increased brand awareness, increased sales, increased customer loyalty and market share, and even reduced marketing expenses over time. Some business leaders might look at rebranding from a purely ROI perspective, but ROI should not be the leading trigger for a rebranding effort. The New Coke case is an example of why looking to create a rapid ROI lead to a short-sighted rebrand attempt that was ultimately a failure.
If you are a business leader looking to rebrand, you should ask yourself some questions about your company to ensure your rebrand campaign is justified. The first question is, why are you considering this change? Some valid triggers for rebranding include a change in leadership, a change in revenue targets, a merger or purchase, or a product/service launch. Decreasing sales, increasing competition, and a need to refresh an outdated image are also valid triggers to consider a rebrand.
What does rebranding solve?
It’s important to note that rebranding is not an end-all, cure-all solution to a business’ problems. Putting too much faith in an image change can lead to flawed expectations of the results and problems a rebrand can solve. A rebrand can go a long way in supporting a sales team with an aggressive multi-faceted marketing campaign that spans across many channels. But the rebrand itself won’t close sales for your team. So, what specific issues can a rebrand solve?
- Consolidating a confusing and disorganized sense of messaging from the brand (e.g., a company with changing directives and verticals)
- Differentiating a brand from its competitors
- Improving and updating messaging for a well-established brand
- Supporting the marketing and sales team in its efforts to create brand awareness
- Helping employees gain a better sense of purpose, vision, and company goals
- Improving emotional investment in your brand from both customers and employees
As a business leader, you should then ask yourself what you can expect your business to achieve if you can solve these problems. For example, if rebranding can consolidate your messaging and make it easier for your marketing team to create brand awareness, it will, in turn, be easier for your sales team to pitch your brand to leads. This is how rebranding justifies its ROI, but the largest benefit of rebranding is often an overlooked one.
Rebranding forces reassessment
Beyond the changes that a rebrand brings to corporate image and messaging and the monetary benefit, rebranding forces a process that makes you assess your business from every angle. The rebranding process will force your company to look both at what it does right and what it’s doing wrong. Simply bringing a rebrand to the table will trigger some tough discussions that can ultimately bring change to the organization across many different branches.
Leading by example
Here at CXGlobals, we have done branding and re-branding work for many of our customers. We believe in our process, and we believe that change is constant. So we are proud to announce that CXGlobals is becoming CXGS. We are glad to welcome 2020 by refreshing our corporate branding as we continue to grow and evolve. Changes have already started, and we should be fully rebranded by the first weeks of December.
To all of our loyal clients and partners, thank you for your support throughout the years! We will continue to provide our service at the very highest of our standards!
