The tell-tale signs your brand needs a refresh

A brand refresh is a great way to realign your changing business to maximise engagement with potential customers. We list our top reasons to shake up your style, that justify the one-off time and costs that come with a brand design overhaul. 

Your brand design is the first thing consumers connect with, making it the figurehead of your marketing. So, what are the tell-tale signs that a refresh is right for your brand?

Your brand looks dated

Even the most iconic, household name brands invest in the occasional refresh – even when it’s just as small as a font tweak! The most successful brands evolve with the times, constantly changing to reflect their customers, new business messaging and modern cultural touchpoints. By bringing your branding up to date, you show your customers that you are always relevant and sharp to the times, which can help to increase consumer confidence.

Similarly, when you modernise an outdated brand, you are giving your marketing a boost above the competition and putting you back in the spotlight of your sector! From simple considerations, such as colours and fonts are something that can allow your brand to stand out as point of difference against an industry standard. By rebranding with a fresh and bold new look, you can set yourself apart – but only if it works for your target market. For example, if your product or service is aimed at an older demographic, a total overhaul with an ultra-modern style may be jarring and confuse their understanding of your brand (as well as their familiarity!). 

If you decide that your brand is falling short and you’re certain you want to move forward with a refresh, be sure to consider any features of a new brand design that may become dated, to safeguard your investment for as long as possible.

People don’t know what you do

If your brand isn’t clear, concise and attractive, I’m afraid to say you’re falling at the very first hurdle! A good brand should showcase your business’ expertise and strength within its industry, instantly. The quality of your branding reflects the quality of your products/services – so bear that in mind when considering the costs.

Make sure your messaging, logos and taglines all clearly convey what you can do for the customer. Tone of voice, images and colour can equally be used to communicate your brand values in a digestible, visual style.

It no longer reflects your services

As your business grows and evolves, so does your brand’s need to match it. If your logo and branding does not instantly show what your business currently offers, a refresh may be on the menu.

Your main objective is to shout out your recognisable style and services; to highlight your expertise or niche in your industry. In a business that prides itself on innovation? Refreshing your long-suffering brand design is an effective way to reflect your transformation and solidify your repositioning within the marketplace!

How can you boost your branding even further? A clear and overarching promise to your customers can help to define your values – especially if it covers your business’ goals for the future. For example, Lidl’s had a brand refresh in 2017 to demonstrate themselves as a quality supermarket. Their distinctive, new tagline ‘Big on quality, Lidl on price’ puts a hard promise on value (while still sounding playful!).

It no longer reflects your market position

It’s important to emphasise your growth and achievements – they are a huge part of your strength! If your market position has changed and your business has grown, use your branding to shout it from the rooftops (or billboards, rather…). Similarly, if you have downsized your business and become a little nimbler, realigning your branding to be transparent with your customers could help to demonstrate a streamlined touch to your service.

As experienced web designers, we know how appealing it can be for some of our clients to think going big is beautiful –  but smaller branding elements can sometimes make the winning formula, and the same can be said for your business.

You are not attracting the right staff

Giving an accurate representation of your business is particularly important for recruitment. Your website branding is much like a shop facia and, to get the right candidates through the door and excited about your company, refreshing your branding may be your key to success. If the messaging is inconsistent, or the logo infantile and off-mark, you’ll soon struggle to get potential employees to take you seriously.

Use your brand’s tone of voice to echo the culture and values of your business. These are all deciding factors in a candidate’s decision to engage with a company.

You are not attracting the right customers

Recalibrating your brand to attract your ideal customer base (rather than a general spread of non-conversions) is where your marketing strategy can work hardest. For example, if your website is stuck in the past, you only stand to gain customers from a stagnant pool – despite the wider reach your digital presence could achieve!

If you feel your service level and offering has evolved – but your brand doesn’t convey that – you lose out on your ideal future customer. The audience you dream of landing are only going to take notice if your brand successfully reflects them and their interests.

Your brand is a direct indication of your investment into your own business, something which customers both respect and expect, so invest well to realise the biggest return!

It doesn’t work well across multiple formats

Consistency is key with most things in business, and branding is no exception. Your brand design needs to work across all platforms and formats for best results. After all, defining your voice and style is one challenge, but ensuring it’s coherent and works both digitally and physically is the final cherry on top of your digital marketing strategy.

Your branding is one of your business’ most important marketing tools, so continue to analyse and refresh as your business changes. By ensuring it is a true reflection of your business at its very best you stand to gain customers, talent and admiration from your customers.

Eonic.digital offers digital strategy, web design and development, marketing and hosting support to brands that aim to make a difference. Contact us to find out more.

The tell-tale signs your brand needs a refresh
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Lead design, UX/CX, UID & brand development