By Simon Cooke
Rebranding is always something that business’s look to do at some point in their lifetime, but why should they do it? What benefits will it bring to a business?
It’s a well-known fact that some people do not like change, whether it be to their daily routine, change in the way something looks or how things generally work.
Most recently we have seen Instagram overhaul their old logo and introduce a fresh new interface for users to enjoy. There has been an obvious backlash to the new look but let’s be honest, it was about time that Instagram switched up their platform and general look.
With more than 400 million people sharing photos each month, plus around 80 million individual photo uploads every single day, it was an obvious choice for Instagram to get an updated look as they look to continue their rapid global growth.
However, rebranding can also go wrong and cause some major unwanted backlash. One of the most recent rebrands that didn’t go to plan for me personally has to be when Vincent Tan, the owner of Cardiff City FC, decided to change the club’s primary colour and logo from their longstanding blue to red and incorporate the Welsh dragon in the badge instead of the bluebird as they have been known as since the club’s formation over 100 years ago. The fans hated it but Mr Tan did this for the good of the club with international expansion at the centre of his strategy. He wanted to create a global brand rather than just a Premier League club in Cardiff. January 9th was when it all came to an end with Vincent Tan and the board announcing the reversal of the rebrand. This for me is a classic case of a rebrand gone wrong, with a new owner trying to help a club internationally but destroying its’ real roots.
Rebranding should be driven by the needs of a business and not because somebody feels like they would like to see some changes for the sake of it. It could be something as simple as a new strap line for the business, or a new logo, but not always a complete overhaul of the way the business portrays itself.
Whilst I am all for rebranding, there has to be a need for a need for a new look, new strapline or new interface design. All these things have to come from a deeper desire of what the business needs, not what one or two people would like to see.
Change for the sake of change is often discouraged. But taking a fresh look at how a business showcases itself to the world and its customers at a time when growth is desired, or the market has moved on and evolved, is a natural part of a businesses lifecycle.
