Is Re-Branding Worth the Risk?

Changing your company name, logo design, tagline, or colors — even adding a social media personality (looking at you, Mr. Peanut) can be a high-wire act full of pitfalls. It challenges your customers’ comfort level. You may lose credibility and recognition in the marketplace. Is the cost and effort worth the ROI? How do you know when it’s a good idea to re-brand?

Has your market changed?

If you’re looking to attract a different market – for example, looking to do B2B vs. B2C – that’s a good reason to do a deep dive into a re-brand. A corporate market demands a sophisticated design and a recognizable corporate look and feel; you can re-brand to make you look bigger.

Have your services or products changed drastically?

If you’re adding vastly different products or services, think about spinning off an entirely new company instead of rebranding the old one. Don’t mess with the success you have already established.

Is your existing brand looking stale or old?

You may have gotten complaints that your aging ornate logo doesn’t reproduce well online. Maybe new customers don’t understand its appearance at all. Consider a brand refresh instead: Tweak your logo to be simpler and cleaner, while keeping the colors and flavor of your brand. Update your tagline to reflect any new messaging.

How much are you willing to lose?

Branding is expensive, plus onboarding a new look requires marketing campaigns: social media, ads, website changes, and direct communications with your existing customers. Are you willing to risk losing a certain number of existing customers? The good news: Typically, companies who rebrand suffer a temporary loss of customers, then experience a rebound as the new brand gets traction.