How do you want to be a different person in 2017?

Guess what? You’re rebranding! Not only does rebranding apply to people, it also applies to businesses. Rebranding for businesses means that not only will you be associating your brand or business with a new name, logo, or type of experience, but you are also changing the customer connection. For instance, if you think of rebranding as a resolution, it’s a way to change what you’re currently doing to make yourself or your business into a new and improved version. Rebranding must be effective, catchy, and relational in order to achieve its goals. We hope you consider these resolutions if you’re venturing into the daring world of rebranding:

Let’s Make A Change!

We’ve now established that rebranding is similar to making New Year’s resolutions: they are something that you want to change because you took this year, evaluated, and decided you wanted a different outcome next year. Is your reason for redoing your brand to change an old idea, attract a certain type of followers, or create a new customer identity? Regardless of the reason, these resolutions are pushing your company in a new direction.

This new direction requires qualitative input about the current status of your business. Involve as many people as possible in the brainstorming process: the company’s board/leadership, the employees, and the in person/online experts that deal with rebranding in your line of work.

Here’s an idea: create a focus group with each type of participating in the process, then create a larger focus group with people from different areas of the company. Have them write their own aspirations for the company, then compare and compile into a creative format to present all of the ideas.

Let’s Create A Purpose!

Once you’ve put all of the creative brainpower together and come up with a fabulous result, you have to make sure that your brand has a reason for moving in a new direction. Do you want to redo the name and logo or make a connection between the old and new design? When creating your own technique for rebranding, you need to decide what is important to keep and what is important to discard. Just like your New Year’s resolutions, you look back at the previous year and pick out your roses and thorns (positives and negatives).

Remember, this process is up to you. Not everyone is going to jump on board with the rebranding idea, and you might have encountered some dissent in the brainstorming process. Your decision should be based on a combination of the group as a whole with the most effective ideas coming to fruition.

Here’s an idea: write a purpose plan or mission statement. You now have many different opinions, so condense those into a few sentences or a paragraph that exactly states your goals for the next year. Resolution number two is all about using your innovation to spark excitement in others.

Let’s Start The Process!

So for the actual process: do you have colors or images for your business, do you want to keep or change them, or do you want to make something brand new? Once you’ve considered all ideas and articulated a direction, this is the time to do some visual research.

What brands do you admire? What mission statements speak to you? You want to connect the visual presence of your brand with the intellectual presence of your business. Find two or three businesses that you think do this really well, and research the meaning behind their branding. These days, websites and social media are all the rage, so make sure that you are creating this new brand with a visual appeal that translates through all icons and platforms.

Here’s an idea: in addition to your personal research, ask your customers what stands out to them about your current brand. What do you want them to see in your new one? Have a discussion with a few about the new ideas and see what they will now associate with your new ideas.

Let’s Make A Timeline!

Rebranding is a big project to accomplish, so you want to prioritize and allow a significant amount of time in your daily schedule to plan, as if it were another project on your business agenda. You also want to make sure that you’re streamlining all aspects of the process including promotional materials, online influence, and paper goods like business cards. These are the fun rewards of rebranding!

Here’s an idea: if you’re after a total rebrand, which means you’ll need to redo your website, social media, and business cards, try to accomplish the logo project first. Since your logo is the most attractive and shared aspect of your brand, you want it to speak to your customers. One of the most fun and time-consuming parts of the process is the logo, but it’s the immediate way that your business gains recognition.

Let’s Present The Product!

Woohoo! We’re so proud of you for finishing your brainstorming, purpose, research, and logo. What’s the plan now? Well, here comes the implementation part. As with resolutions, this can be a very personal accomplishment. You’ve poured your heart and soul into your work, and now it’s time to show it off!

Do you want to throw a launch party, do a brand reveal online, or keep the secret until your next big project? So many options to consider, but this part really depends on your company type and what will be most effective for your customers. Once the rebrand is live, you also want to confirm that all employees and connections with company have the same information. If you need to, you can create a rebranding guide to disseminate to anyone who needs the update.

Here’s an idea: if your business is in person with a storefront, host a launch party and invite family, friends, and customers to experience the rebrand up close. If your business is strictly online, post some teasers on social media to heighten the suspense.

Congratulations! You did it!

You’ve successfully rebranded! If you’d like to discuss any of these options with us, we’d be happy to help. We love to guide and create with you in this venture, and we hope that your rebranding experience is a successful resolution.

What’s in a name? Brand recognition, admiration, and connection. That’s why companies like Apple, Google, and Starbucks click so easily in our minds: they have names that are simple, easy, and immediate. Most of these companies, though, didn’t start out with the names that we know and love. We’ll explore how branding can grow a business in this post:

BackRub to Google

Ever heard of a search engine called BackRub? We haven’t either. Ever heard of a search engine called Google? Everyone has. Most people don’t know that the two are one in the same. In 1995 at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, Larry Page and Sergey Brin had a meeting of the minds. A year later, in 1996, they collaborated on a search engine called BackRub for Stanford students, but it ended up crashing the servers because it was too large.

Then came September 15, 1997. The two registered Google.com as an official domain, and the rest is history. Larry and Sergey wanted to create a way that people could organize and search information forever, and this is our first plan of attack any time we have a question to answer or a problem to solve.

Even if you didn’t know the origin of the Google name or its process, it’s a household fix. Anything you ever want to find out exists on the search engine, and we are so glad for that. Any aspirations to create an online giant? Take your branding inspiration from Larry and Sergey.

Blue Ribbon Sports to Nike

Have an idea to change the name for your company? Just do it. Nike wins the blue ribbon for one of the most normal-sounding names of all of the first misnomers of these giant businesses. Blue Ribbon Sports was founded in 1964, but not for the reasons that Nike exists today. Onitsuka Tiger, a Japanese shoemaker, used Blue Ribbon Sports as a distributor.

The Nike as we know it became official in 1971. The name Nike comes from the Greek goddess of victory. The genius who coined the Nike moniker was the first employee, Jeff Johnson. Thanks, Jeff, for a catchy and simplistic name, also known by the “swoosh.”

Whether it’s Nike, the swoosh, or the motto, Nike’s integrity remains the same. We love that a company can use its branding powers for good and create a great brand simultaneously. The Greek goddess of victory is certainly smiling down on Nike.

Qwikster to Netflix

Netflix is quick, and so was Qwikster. The admittedly strange name of Qwikster began the empire of streaming video service and even DVD mailing, which was a terrible disaster. It cost too much money, so it only lasted a few weeks.

In 2011, everything changed. Netflix became what we know today: the always-there, endlessly-enjoyable video service where everything on TV lives forever. You can find those childhood gems, those irresistible TV shows, and those obscure documentaries for your viewing pleasure.

What is the branding legacy of Netflix? Will it continue to monopolize the world of video streaming? What would we do without it? It’s magical that we can access that amount of information instantaneously.

Brad’s Drink to Pepsi-Cola

Who is the mysterious Brad? Caleb Bradham, a North Carolina native, was a drugstore pharmacy apprentice with an idea. Bradham’s Drug Store, his pride and joy, became the birthplace of what we know as Pepsi-Cola in 1893. Its original name was “Brad’s Drink,” after the man himself.

August 28, 1898 saw the emergence of the name, “Pepsi-Cola.” Just four short years later, the company was created and even trademarked the Pepsi name. As with most of these businesses, the combination of letters means nothing without the impressive qualities of the brand behind it.

The constant debate of Pepsi vs. Coke is one that will never end, but we applaud Pepsi for its innovation, its branding, and its commitment to humble beginnings. You can still visit the site of Bradham’s Drug Store to see where everything started. Thanks to Caleb Bradham, there is now a soda revolution.

Tangerines and Tangible Strategies

Want to know how we created Tangible Strategies? Check out this Instagram feature on our awesome boss, Anthony. He explains the creative decisions behind Tangible Strategies, the bright tangerine logo, and the memory factor behind names and logos.

Not only do we love the creative process and brainstorming about these fun things, but we’d love to help you too. Here is even more about the new direction our business is taking and our excitement for the journey.

You Name It, We Will Help!

Brand names matter. Whether it’s short and sweet or it evokes the feeling of the brand, the name is important. What did we learn from these brands? Most of these are not words that are in our normal vocabulary, but they stick with us, show us to the brand, and identify the way we associate with the brands on a day-to-day- basis. Do you want to change your business name? We can help!

The Daunting Elevator Speech

When you were graduating from college, heading out into the professional world, someone along the way probably told you to work on your “elevator pitch,” that is, exactly what you would say given thirty seconds to convince someone that they should hire you. They probably recommended you think of your strengths, your unique qualities that differentiated you from the crowd, what you could bring to that specific business or industry.

When you went out on your own and started a business, or joined a team, you most likely heard the same advice. Create, perfect, hone your elevator pitch in order to convince potential clients why they should choose you above your competition. Highlight what makes you different, why you’re the better choice. Convince them. Sell them. Make it impossible for them to say no.

Reality check: that’s a tall order. Especially because prospective clients, or bosses, or investors, or employees, don’t come in one-size-fits-all. So you probably need about 100 elevator pitches, each specifically honed and crafted for the individual to make them feel special, unique, not like you’re reciting a speech from rote memory. Which, let’s be honest, if you have to memorize 100 of them, you probably are doing exactly that.

So what do you do? How do you fix it? If you encounter someone you’d love to sell on your product, whether that’s your business or yourself, how do you make sure you have the fine points down and not sound like a less enthusiastic version of C3PO?

Identify Your Selling Point

Your guidance counselors and mentors weren’t wrong. You do need to spend some time identifying what makes you different. Do you have the best product on the market? The lowest price? The quickest turnaround? What makes you unique; helps you stand apart from your competition? Maybe you staff exclusively graduates from certain degree programs, so you guarantee the quality of work. Perhaps you only buy and source materials locally, so you can provide fresh, organic product while still supporting the local economy. Whatever your differentiations, make a list of the top few. Those will become the crux of your elevator speech.

Practice Public Speaking

Those with a fear of public speaking, I apologize; there’s no substitution for ease in front of a crowd of strangers. As much as it sounds like you’re checking a requirement off your list for graduation, public speaking is a skill which has no match. If you can stand up in front of a crowd of people and feel at ease, comfortable talking, you’ll be much more likely to feel at ease when talking to a potential client, investor, etc.

Imagine you’re at a networking event, but you’re standing in the corner. You make small talk with the few strangers who venture towards you, but you’re closed off from the majority of the room. Even in your brief conversations, you stay away from “political” topics like what you do and why you’re the best. The reality is, you’re probably not going to make any new clients or business contacts.

Now, imagine you’re at the same networking event, standing in the same corner. Instead of making brief small talk, you actively engage the first person who approaches you. Using your public speaking skills to read your audience, you ease into a conversation about what they do, then use your list of selling points to hammer home to them why they should hire you. After casually ending the conversation, you move around the room engaging in the same way with others. At the end of the event, you’ve probably met several contacts and potential clients.

Public speaking courses or clubs teach you not only to be at ease with an audience, but also to think on your feet. If you’re forced to study a topic, learn a speech, speak without notes, you’ll develop the skill set to adapt should something veer off script. The more familiar you are with a topic, the more you’ll be able to speak to it casually and easily, without the need for notes or a script. And what topic do you know better than you and your business? Practicing public speaking will help you confidently deliver your selling points to any audience, be it one person or twenty. If you need to hone your skills, look up groups or clubs in your area.

Hone Your Pitch

Now, I’m not saying you need a scripted, thirty-second pitch. But sit down and think about how you’d want to be sold if you were the customer or client. Think about how you talk to people. Are you better at the hard sell, pushing a person immediately to the sale? Maybe you prefer to sit down and understand a person’s needs before you sell him or her on your product or skill. Even in industries that seem customer-driven, you need a honed pitch. You might have a million-dollar contract walk in the door, but if you can’t convince them that you’re the best one for the job, you can kiss that contract goodbye. Practice your pitch on friends, family, and trusted colleagues that you can rely on to provide constructive feedback.

Leave Them Wanting More

Elevator pitches are designed to be short. Even the most genuine interest will wane after a certain period of time. Keep your pitch short and sweet, finishing with a call to action rather than spitting information and running away. You want to pique their interest in a way that encourages them to proceed with you but that doesn’t feel like an information dump. Unless you’re walking them through a contract, keep your pitch succinct.

 

The takeaway: If you need a little bit of guidance on strategy and overall communication, contact us to schedule a consulting session. We’d love to meet you, learn your story, and guide you along the way to conveying that story to those you meet.