It\u2019s hard to find a marketplace that isn\u2019t crowded anymore, so you have to try to stand out from the competition and be remembered by customers. Our intention was to create a \u2018face\u2019 for the company so that people would remember us – and \u2018Dave the Badger\u2019 was born. He was a friendly cartoon character who added humour and personality to our brand in what could be considered a purely functional marketplace of printer cartridges.<\/p>\n 2.<\/strong>\u00a0Embrace Failure and Learn from it.<\/strong><\/p>\n Dave didn\u2019t last, but it was a vital learning curve. He wasn\u2019t important to our customers and in pouring our energies into creating him, we lost sight of what the customers wanted: excellent service, fast delivery and, of course, the best possible prices.<\/p>\n \u00a03.<\/strong>Operate by your Core Values.<\/strong><\/p>\n Our brand still has personality, but now it shines from the inside out. Our in-house culture is structured around a series of core values that can be summed up in one line: make it easy for the customer. These values permeate all we do, so that means the entire team is united and decision making is easy.<\/p>\n 4.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Know the Goal of your Branding.<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s important to consider the end goal when using a support tool – such as PR – to boost your brand. Your branding should extend service reach and drive sales. A lot of companies invest in securing profile coverage of the guys at the top, but this doesn\u2019t do a lot for your brand if your customers are the general public.<\/p>\n 5.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Don\u2019t Force It.<\/strong><\/p>\n You don\u2019t need to conjure up a personality for your brand, even if it\u2019s in an unsexy retail market. It might be important if your brand is aspirational and it needs to fit into a particular lifestyle you want to promote. If your company provides what customers need, rather than want, then prices and service are more important than personality.<\/p>\n 1. Understand the Reason for the Rebrand<\/strong><\/p>\n Whether you are rebranding due to an acquisition or whether it\u2019s just time for a change, you need to be clear about why<\/span> <\/strong>you are rebranding and what you aim to get out of it. A rebrand without purpose or direction can do more harm than good.<\/p>\n 2. Planning<\/strong><\/p>\n Planning is key. A rebrand is a massive task to undertake, even for the smallest of companies, and without meticulous planning it can very quickly go wrong. Ensure you prioritise the workload and provide timescales to be adhered to.<\/p>\n \u00a03.\u00a0<\/strong>Embrace Change<\/strong><\/p>\n One of the hardest parts of a rebrand is the changes being made, especially if you are an established company. A rebrand brings about many changes; it\u2019s not just the logo and brand colours that change (although this is usually the biggest change).\u00a0 Allow the creative team some freedom. Provide them with a detailed brief based on your vision, but allow them the freedom to do what they do best; you may be surprised by the results they produce when given artistic license.<\/p>\n 4. Create Brand Ambassadors within Your Organisation<\/strong><\/p>\n A rebrand has a tendency to focus on the external stakeholders of a company (and rightfully so, they are one of the main reasons your company exists). But you also have to think about those inside your company. Your internal stakeholders can be your biggest brand advocates\u2019, especially when generating new business. Make sure they are on board, and that they understand why you are rebranding and the direction the company is going.<\/p>\n 5. Communication<\/strong><\/p>\n Ensure you are communicating with the correct people regularly. Lead the discussion, especially when it comes to your existing customers. Make sure they don\u2019t discover your new look themselves; spread the word through newsletters, social media accounts and blog posts.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1. Ask why.<\/strong><\/p>\n First off, ask yourself – why are we rebranding? Are you a new start up? Is it to reposition your brand alongside competitors? Or has your business developed, new staff? New services? Confirming this is the first step to ensuring that the rebrand is fantastic!<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0Look from a customer\u2019s perspective.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Look in depth at your target audience. Who are they, what do they like and what are their views? This will help you to decipher who you\u2019re targeting, what message you want to portray and your business values and beliefs. Colours, font styles and strap lines can determine how your brand is perceived by the customer.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0Consider the brand experience as a whole.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Think about the whole experience of your brand, from the moment you pick up the phone to the minute the freshly printed brochure lands on your potential customer\u2019s desks.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0Consistency is key!<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Inconsistent branding and marketing material can look sloppy and unprofessional, make sure you have a consistent flow from one piece of marketing material to the next. If you\u2019re unsure, ask your designer for a set of brand guidelines to ensure there is a go to guide for how to use your brand.<\/p>\n 5.<\/strong>\u00a0Promote, inform and impress.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>Your brand has been lovingly crafted and you now have beautifully designed marketing, freshly printed literature and a new website, but now what? Think outside the box and look for ways to promote your brand, like with a handwritten letter, a launch party and PR articles to inform existing customers and impress potential new ones!<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Thanks to all our contributors for their valuable advice. For more expert tips be sure to follow us on Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In today\u2019s edition of \u2018Tips from the Experts\u2019, we asked three business professionals to share their top 5 tips on how to effectively rebrand a business.\u00a0Rebranding is not a new concept. But why do companies take on this often mammoth task? And what\u2019s in it for them?\u00a0Businesses may decide to rebrand their business for a number of reasons; from rebranding due to an acquisition or the introduction of a new product or service, to reinventing the company\u2019s identity and messaging in response to significant changes within the business or to better stand out in the market.\u00a0Whatever the reason, it\u2019s important to manage the rebranding process effectively and communicate your new identity to your stakeholders and customers in a clear and consistent way.\u00a0Here\u2019s what a few industry experts have to say about the process of rebranding. Ian Cowley, Managing Director at cartridgesave.co.uk 1. Try New Things. It\u2019s hard to find a marketplace that isn\u2019t crowded anymore, so you have to try to stand out from the competition and be remembered by customers. Our intention was to create a \u2018face\u2019 for the company so that people would remember us – and \u2018Dave the Badger\u2019 was born. He was a friendly cartoon character who added humour and personality to our brand in what could be considered a purely functional marketplace of printer cartridges. 2.\u00a0Embrace Failure and Learn from it. Dave didn\u2019t last, but it was a vital learning curve. He wasn\u2019t important to our customers and in pouring our energies into creating him, we lost sight of what the customers wanted: excellent service, fast delivery and, of course, the best possible prices. \u00a03.Operate by your Core Values. Our brand still has personality, but now it shines from the inside out. Our in-house culture is structured around a series of core values that can be summed up in one line: make it easy for the customer. These values permeate all we do, so that means the entire team is united and decision making is easy. 4.\u00a0Know the Goal of your Branding. It\u2019s important to consider the end goal when using a support tool – such as PR – to boost your brand. Your branding should extend service reach and drive sales. A lot of companies invest in securing profile coverage of the guys at the top, but this doesn\u2019t do a lot for your brand if your customers are the general public. 5.\u00a0Don\u2019t Force It. You don\u2019t need to conjure up a personality for your brand, even if it\u2019s in an unsexy retail market. It might be important if your brand is aspirational and it needs to fit into a particular lifestyle you want to promote. If your company provides what customers need, rather than want, then prices and service are more important than personality. Chris Lishman, Marketing Executive at CIA Fire & Security Ltd. 1. Understand the Reason for the Rebrand Whether you are rebranding due to an acquisition or whether it\u2019s just time for a change, you need to be clear about why you are rebranding and what you aim to get out of it. A rebrand without purpose or direction can do more harm than good. 2. Planning Planning is key. A rebrand is a massive task to undertake, even for the smallest of companies, and without meticulous planning it can very quickly go wrong. Ensure you prioritise the workload and provide timescales to be adhered to. \u00a03.\u00a0Embrace Change One of the hardest parts of a rebrand is the changes being made, especially if you are an established company. A rebrand brings about many changes; it\u2019s not just the logo and brand colours that change (although this is usually the biggest change).\u00a0 Allow the creative team some freedom. Provide them with a detailed brief based on your vision, but allow them the freedom to do what they do best; you may be surprised by the results they produce when given artistic license. 4. Create Brand Ambassadors within Your Organisation A rebrand has a tendency to focus on the external stakeholders of a company (and rightfully so, they are one of the main reasons your company exists). But you also have to think about those inside your company. Your internal stakeholders can be your biggest brand advocates\u2019, especially when generating new business. Make sure they are on board, and that they understand why you are rebranding and the direction the company is going. 5. Communication Ensure you are communicating with the correct people regularly. Lead the discussion, especially when it comes to your existing customers. Make sure they don\u2019t discover your new look themselves; spread the word through newsletters, social media accounts and blog posts. Katie Leedham, Designer and Director at creative-roar 1. Ask why. First off, ask yourself – why are we rebranding? Are you a new start up? Is it to reposition your brand alongside competitors? Or has your business developed, new staff? New services? Confirming this is the first step to ensuring that the rebrand is fantastic! 2.\u00a0Look from a customer\u2019s perspective. \u00a0Look in depth at your target audience. Who are they, what do they like and what are their views? This will help you to decipher who you\u2019re targeting, what message you want to portray and your business values and beliefs. Colours, font styles and strap lines can determine how your brand is perceived by the customer. 3.\u00a0Consider the brand experience as a whole. \u00a0Think about the whole experience of your brand, from the moment you pick up the phone to the minute the freshly printed brochure lands on your potential customer\u2019s desks. 4.\u00a0Consistency is key! \u00a0Inconsistent branding and marketing material can look sloppy and unprofessional, make sure you have a consistent flow from one piece of marketing material to the next. If you\u2019re unsure, ask your designer for a set of brand guidelines to ensure there is a go to guide for how to use your brand. 5.\u00a0Promote, inform and impress. \u00a0Your brand has been lovingly crafted and you now have beautifully designed marketing,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8316,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,217],"tags":[93],"class_list":["post-2012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-growth","category-expert-tips","tag-tips-from-the-experts-2"],"yoast_head":"\n
\n![\"ian-cowley-768x768\"](\"http:\/\/uk.instantoffices.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Ian-Cowley-768x768-300x300.jpg\")
1. Try New Things.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/h2>\n
Chris Lishman, Marketing Executive at <\/strong>CIA Fire & Security Ltd.<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n
![\"Chris\"](\"http:\/\/uk.instantoffices.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Chris.jpg\")
<\/p>\nKatie Leedham, Designer and Director at creative-roar<\/a><\/em><\/h2>\n
![\"Katie\"](\"http:\/\/uk.instantoffices.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Katie.jpg\")
<\/p>\n