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You can roll into your new brand slowly, or do it all at once. It’s between pragmatism and resources. There is no right or wrong way of rolling it out. Do make sure to have a plan.
Your brand launch is an important event. People usually spend six months to a year planning their weddings, so treat your brand the same way. Your rollout should begin in the very early stages of your branding process.
— SYED BALKHI
Stakeholder Buy-in
Launch your brand internally first, with your primary stakeholders (who should have been involved in the process already) and by socializing with your staff and employees. Explain the reasons of rebranding (use this guide!) and encourage participation in the rollout and feedback. Having team members and staff on your side is a huge bonus.
Press
Consider alerting the press with a press release or an announcement in your industry’s trade publication(s). This isn’t the most necessary step, but if you have a prominent presence in your trade, you’ll want to announce it. Tell your PR agency to embargo the news until you’re ready to announce to your staff and then customers, and determine the appropriate time.
Plan an Event
Consider adding an event to rally behind. Launch events drive excitement, lots of eyeballs, and has sticking power. Develop brand ambassadors or influencers who will help carry the flag and raise awareness. This not only makes the brand approachable and friendly, but allows people to see the brand in action, coming alive all at once.
Guidelines to Follow
One of the most useful, practical, and succinct deliverables during a rebrand is the production of the Brand Guidelines, which include your logo and graphic standards as well as tone and voice documents, among other sections to help you facilitate the brand. Following these guidelines internally, and giving them to partners and vendors externally — perhaps with a walk-through of them — provides a standard going forward.
Stay Committed
It can seem daunting, the level of complexity and the amount of work involved in a launch. Stay the course. Don’t deviate, and it’ll pay off.
Measuring Your Rebrand Effectiveness
At the end of the day, what's the point of a rebrand? And how can you tell if it's addressing the problems that caused you to do it in the first place?
It’s more important to turn the question on its head and look at it in terms of loss. What will it cost your business if you don’t re-brand? Neglecting your brand costs you money – the ROI is your positive reputation.
— ROBERT BLOXHAM
Measuring Effectiveness
Because rebranding is a tool to help achieve a goal, it’s difficult to ascertain its performance. Think about a hammer. A hammer is a tool — it’s not an outcome. You measure how it’s used and the outcome of that experience. The better you can measure the problem, the better you can measure the outcome of the solution.
B-to-B companies with brands that are perceived as strong generate a higher EBIT margin than others. In 2012, strong brands outperformed weak brands by 20%.
— FORBES.COM
Key Performance Indicators and Metrics
There are a few groups of metrics in which to look when measuring the efficacy of your rebrand: Perception Metrics which may include awareness drivers such as web traffic, recognition, followers, or impressions; Performance Metrics are less abstract, you can see lift in sales, leads, referrals, repeat purchases, or LTV; and Financial Metrics that include market share, revenue, profit (EBIT/EBITDA), margin, CPA, and brand valuation. Each particular group of metrics serves a purpose, or a department. Work with your heads of marketing and finance to determine which metrics you’re most interested, and what one particular metric will be your brand’s “North Star.” That is, the guiding metric to determine the ultimate success of your rebrand and business.
Understanding Returns
According to Forbes, consistent brand presentation increases revenue by up to 23% compared to brands that don’t. Creating a strategy, with a playbook to guide employee and partners (brand guidelines), you’ll ensure this consistency over time.
The Longtail
Meaningful brands encourage brand loyalty, employee retention, longevity, strategic partners, and referrals. That kind of return you can’t buy — but you can invest in. You’ll naturally gain brand advocates. All of this accelerates the growth of your business.
Keep Reading: Choosing an Agency for a Rebrand
