Businesses often face times of crisis. The competition is fierce, and you might see yourself losing customers. In times like these, there are a few things you can do to fight the loss. One of the more effective strategies is to rebrand your small business.
A brand is your company’s face to the world. It can be useful and limiting at the same time. For example, some people don’t trust a company they don’t know. This can be an obstacle to your business getting new customers. If you want a wider reach or to start over in the market, then rebranding might work. Here is how you can make it happen for your company:
Examine Your Current Brand
A rebrand cannot happen unless you know what your current brand identity is. Sit down with your team and ask yourself what makes your business recognizable on the market. This starts with examining your customer base. Determine who uses your service or buys from you.
For example, your company might sell mainly to young professionals. That is one part of your brand identity, and you should think of whether you want to retain that or to change your target demographic. Other things that you should evaluate are what the strengths of your business are and how people view your company.
If your brand has a solid reputation for doing good work and responding well to customers, then that is the sort of branding you want to keep when you rebrand. You might also find negative impressions of your business. Rebranding can help remove them and give your business a fresh start.
Creating Your New Brand
The next step is where you start planning for the new face of your company. You might consider a shortcut. For example, if you have a landscaping business, you can buy a lawn care franchise so that you can completely retool and change your operations. While this can be very effective, it does have you giving up control of your new brand. But if you want a solid name behind you, a franchise can be a big help and boost your customer intake from the widespread familiarity alone.
But if you want full control of your new brand, then you should be ready to do a lot of work. While the initial step is to mainly choose a new name and register a domain for a new website, there is more to do. You need to come up with new logos, business plan, and even update your original branded products.
This is not something you do overnight. Have your people work on the issues, assigning each of them a particular area that they need to work on. You should have everything ready before you officially change your brand.
Notify Your Current Customers
While you are busy considering changing your brand, you shouldn’t forget your current set of customers. Rebranding can be confusing for them since they might suddenly be looking for your business and don’t find it. It also makes customers who receive regular services like pest control or cleaning services worry since they might think you disappeared.
The moment you decide on a rebrand, you should reach out and communicate with your existing customer base. You can even involve them with the rebranding process. For example, you can ask them about what you should be kept for the new version of your company and what they like about the current brand.
This can enable you to calibrate your unique brand so that you can retain them. This involvement can be a significant PR bonus for your new brand as customers like it when a company is open about its operations.
Besides their involvement, you should also be ready to answer customers’ questions and concerns. Many of them will worry about their favorite products or services. Change is scary to people, and they will need some reassurance. Despite the upcoming rebranding, you should aim to deliver high levels of service so that customers will stay with you.
Build Hype
The great thing about a rebrand is the way it can draw in new customers. Use this to your advantage by building up your new brand. Announce it early and have people anticipate it. Similar to how people have Christmas countdowns, drawing attention to your new brand can be a great PR move. This can bring new customers that were drawn in by the marketing.
A rebrand is a fresh start for your company. Do it right, and it will feel like new life is invigorating your company.
