Tips for Mastering Your Rebrand

Rebranding your design business can be fun and exciting, especially if it’s long overdue. Although a world of new opportunity awaits, starting over from scratch is not always the easiest thing to do. No matter your reasons for making a change, rebranding requires careful planning and consideration. As you begin creating your game plan, here are some of the basics to consider throughout this process:

Set a Target

Narrowing down who you want your brand to appeal to is a great way to begin a rebranding campaign. Targeting those in a certain generation, area, income range, or design niche will give others a strong idea of who your clients are and what kind of work you do. Setting a target can guide the rest of your rebranding, and make it easier to think about what words, styles, or kinds of spaces (residential, commercial, etc.) you want associated with your brand.

Find Your Niche or Refine Your Style

Figuring out what kind of design styles or elements you want to dedicate your practice to working within will help you move forward with a firmer idea of who and what your brand is. Doubling down on the specialties that set you apart will let you control some of the impression your brand has. This speciality might lie in how closely you work with clients, what kind of approaches you utilize throughout your design process, or how efficiently you get projects completed, etc. Whatever your speciality, make sure it shines in your branding.

Go Beyond Logos

Branding does have a lot to do with the visual language of your practice, and keeping it cohesive and appropriate for your company certainly goes a long way. But branding has much more to do with the air of exclusivity, or accessibility, or even charm around your work. It is what separates brands like Nike from brands like Gucci. They both sell sneakers, but their targets are vastly different, and because of this so is their branding. Once you set your target, allow your logos, typefaces, and color palette to all help your brand reach that target, do not rely just on visual language alone.

Consistency & Communication

Keeping your typefaces uniform, your images all at a high quality, and your products or services reliable will all help cement your rebrand. If you have rebranded successfully, consumers and clients will be able to understand what your new branding says about your company, discussing it and treating it as such. 

This might also be a point to reach out to past clients and consumers, notifying them of the changes and why you made those decisions. Sharing the advantages of your rebranding campaign will not only keep your past clients in the loop of where your work is headed, but is a sign that you value them as a business partner and want to share why your practice is moving in a new direction.

Own Your New Brand

Whatever your new branding entails, it is up to you to own it and embrace the change. This may mean turning down projects you previously would have accepted, or searching for opportunities to show what your company’s work is now geared towards. Updating your website, social media accounts, and Dering Hall profile will show your new approach to the world. Using your rebrand to highlight your strengths as well as the advantages to your new style will communicate to your audience that this is a step forward.

Final Thoughts

Rebranding might mean a total overhaul on your entire company. But if you are going to do it, do it right. Distilling the essence of your brand and sharing that image or idea with the world will give your practice the aura you want. Be it more grounded, playful, or sophisticated, your rebrand will set your company down the course you want to explore.