When To Know When It's Time To Re-Brand.

Re-branding. It's a term that you hear a lot these days. When you hear the term in relation to changing one's logo, this is an incorrect use of the term. Changing the logo won't re-brand anything. If you understand that your brand is essentially your reputation and is the result of every touch point in your company. If you’re merely change your logo without addressing the core issues for the re-brand then changing the logo changes nothing.

To help you determine if re-branding is for you, let's look at some brand viruses and see what we can do for them:

• Prospective customers don't know what we do.
Over time, you become known for doing so much for people that they have trouble putting their finger on your one big specialty. This results in your becoming a commodity. If they could focus on one great thing about you, they are more apt to knock on your door for that one compelling thing. The differentiator is your door opener.

• Your image is dated.
Your noticing that your customers are getting older and older. The younger skew doesn't even have you on their radar. Your logo looks as if it were designed in the sixties or seventies, and you are supposed to be a progressive company. Updating your logo and corporate palette freshens up a tired image.

• Sales are flat, and the sales staff are not motivated as much.
Chances are that they have no compelling story to tell. Going to market with a unique positioning strategy making you the leader in something, or the only distributor of something reinvigorates the sales staff. They have a focus and are embolden to drive the message home, especially if the positioning strategy is a powerful one.

• Advertising isn't effective as expected.
Many B2B advertising is simply all about the wrong person. Grab a trade magazine and you will notice the advertisers bragging about themselves. They show a picture of their building, tell a great story of how successful they are in your field, and show pictures of work similar to yours that they've done. What they (or you) are not doing is explaining how you can take their pain away. Your goal should be to remove the barrier that keeps them awake at night. It shouldn't be about you; it should be about them.

• You're a little out of touch.
Remember when you started your business, you used to attend all the Chamber functions and networking events, but over time you fell away from it? Well as younger businesses came on stream, your brand fell off the screen with each generation. It's time to reconnect with your business community. Get out there and share your knowledge. One thing great about graying hair - it represents wisdom.

Over all re-branding your company should involve an overall strategy that juices every stakeholder in the company. It is a wonderful opportunity to start over and position the company for growth in the emerging economy.