Know-How Exchange : Branding

Recent graduate here, I hope my answers are useful for the "textbook" answers they are :)

Rebranding success largely depends on the weakness or strength of your brand. Generally, rebranding is a a bit more of a risk for a company with a large, loyal following. On the other hand, it gives you a chance to get perspective, look at the big picture, and all the elements involved/attached to your company, and establish a BETTER brand, that better reflects your company values and resonates with your audience.

Pros-
- You can appeal to/tap into a different audience. Giving you a chance to broaden, narrow, or "shift" your appeal.
- You can refresh your image. Revisit your mission statement, company goals, audience, potential new target markets, and infuse those ideas/appeals into a new brand look, feel, and message.
- Depending on the type of company you are, it shows your audience you are open to changing with the times. And can change in the future to better serve their needs.

Cons-
- Those loyal consumers will wonder if your company is under new management, and may worry that your company is unstable.
- Consumers who are moderately aware of your brand may not make the connection, and think you are a new brand entirely.
- Rebranding is hard. You will need to realign every element in your company, from graphics, to sales people, to front line customer service (assuming all those apply to your company). As you already know, it's much more than just changing a logo. Your company message, it's tone, mission statement, and many other elements need to be considered, and perhaps changed as you move forward. Communication within the company is KEY, be sure all parties in the company are considered, or better yet, involved in the process of establishing a new identity or brand.

I just saw this Wiki- it might be useful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebranding

Good luck with whatever you decide! And if you get a second, please respond to my Corporate Blog -- Big Box Retailer post :)

You have two excellent answers before mine. I have only a couple of things to add.

First, you should know that rebranding or even repositioning creates suspicion. Human beings are sceptical creatures and look at every change with suspicion. Thus, never get into a rebranding exercise unless you are confident that you can afford to reach out and explain your motives to your stakeholders. Otherwise the whole thing can blow up in your face for no fault of yours, even if you do a great job of rebranding.

The other one is that rebranding implies (even if it is not intended) abandoning everything you have, which also implies abandoning the values and ethics you have worked with. Brand enhancement and other forms of tweaking are often a better solution, keeping the connection between past and future clearly visible.

Sure hope this helps. All the best!