Nowadays, rebranding is becoming increasingly common. Although business owners usually have varying motives for exploring new opportunities, refreshing a company’s internal and external components can prove beneficial. In the 21st century, technological advancements mean that consumers are now exposed to more organisations than ever before through numerous digital channels. As such, businesses now have a more extensive audience base to explore and target.
However, rebranding isn’t just a tool to explore new digital markets. Along with the demographic expansion, adopting a new-look approach can occur in response to growth, management alterations, or simply because the existing product is outdated. Before making wholesale changes, it’s pivotal to understand the best way to go about rebranding. So, here are several things that you need to know if you’re contemplating a business rebrand.
Perfect Your Website’s Portfolio Template
One of the best places to start during the rebranding process is to consider the future direction of your website. Within the digital era, a business’ website speaks volumes about its brand. In turn, this impacts consumer perceptions. Upon establishing a reason for the refresh, altering a company’s web-based profile allows business owners to bring their forward-thinking vision to life. Having a clear brand identity is of utmost importance because a recognisable brand has the foundations to succeed.
Irrespective of the business’ size, perfecting brand identity promotes on-offer products and services while showcasing core values and piquing consumer interests. That said, mastering the visual aspect of a company’s online profile is easier said than done. Because of that, SMEs can turn to website templates in search of an efficient rebrand process. At Wix, a leading cloud-based development platform, the company offers an array of high-quality, personalised website-building tools. Their current portfolio website templates include various designs for all types of businesses, including consultancy, data, fitness, marketing, photography, and many more. Default designs are editable, allowing owners to bring the vision of their new brand to life without compromising professionalism.
You Shouldn’t Overlook Competitive Analysis
As touched on above, there are many reasons why businesses may seek to explore new avenues. According to Grand View Research, the e-commerce market was worth $9.09 trillion in 2019. Between 2020 and 2027, the industry was forecast to develop at a compound annual growth rate of 14.7 per cent. With the market likely to grow further, it speaks volumes about the importance of having an online presence and bringing something different to the table.
If you’re seeking to take your business in a new direction, the likelihood is that other organisations will already operate within that space. As such, this is why those thinking about a rebrand should complete a competitive analysis prior to making sweeping changes. Brandwatch defines competitive analysis as the process of categorising and evaluating competitors. By doing this, it allows business owners to weigh existing companies’ strengths against their weaknesses.
By gaining in-depth knowledge of competitor businesses, it paints a better picture of what gaps are available to explore. While there are various tools to assist with the analysis, organisations can conduct a basic search through search engines. Nowadays, searches on Google deliver a “people also search for” feature, which showcases a handful of similar businesses.
Consider Renaming Your Company
Whether you’re running a business from home or an office environment, rebranding fundamentals are the same. However, the size of your business may impact your willingness to rename during the refresh process. World-renowned companies, for example, are unlikely to consider such a switch because they’ve already worked to create a global audience base. However, it may be more imperative for SMEs to reinvent themselves.
Crowdspring writes that some business names aren’t adaptable enough to cope with the rebranding process. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that your business could outgrow its initial title. As touched on above, expansion is part and parcel of business growth, meaning that creating and marketing new products is likely.
However, it’s worth considering whether this is a necessity. Because consumers already have a relationship with your brand, heading in a different direction could somewhat complicate matters. That said, if you’re moving into a more competitive market space, a business name needs to stand out from rival companies and grab consumers’ attention. The last thing a business owner wants is to have a top-class product but suffer from having a generic, uninspiring name.
There’s No Need to Rush Into a Decision
Rebranding isn’t something to take lightly. However, e-commerce’s growth indicates that it’s unquestionably worth considering. Refreshing a business’ operations has its short-term drawbacks, but it also opens the door to a whole new market. In most cases, the rewards outweigh the risks, and companies receive a sought-after boost to reach new audiences within an ever-changing world. That said, don’t wait until you fall behind your competitors before making a change.
