Questions to Ask Before Starting a Rebrand
We live in the age of the rebrand. Many companies have made great strides in their respective industries by revamping their logos, websites, physical assets, and more. Other legacy brands, such as Mountain Dew, have found favor with consumers when they switch back to a retro version of their logo.
However, for every successful rebrand, there are hundreds of instances where it falls short or sets the business back. In these cases, completing other marketing tasks and strategies may be more prudent than embarking on an entire rebrand.
Check out our checklist of the crucial marketing moves (and questions) to complete and answer before you decide to undertake a complete company rebrand.
Redesign Your Website
Your website is often the first place customers interact with your brand. Before rebranding, ensure your website is modern, user-friendly, and reflects your current messaging and services.
A clean, updated website can solve many problems that trigger thoughts of a rebrand. Consider updating the layout, optimizing for mobile, refreshing your copy, and improving calls to action. This alone can give your brand a boost without changing your entire identity.
Ensure Continuity Across Physical and Digital Spaces
Brand inconsistency can confuse customers and dilute your presence. Do your business cards, brochures, trade show materials, vehicle wraps, signage, and packaging all use the same logo, fonts, colors, and voice as your digital assets?
Even if your visual identity feels dated, bringing consistency to all touchpoints might solve your brand challenges without requiring a total overhaul. Consistency builds trust, which is more valuable than novelty.
Check Competitors or Other Businesses with Similar Branding
Before rebranding, research competitors and other companies—both in and outside your industry—that might have a similar look or feel. Are customers confusing your business with someone else? Is your logo too close to a well-known brand?
Conversely, you may discover that your current branding helps you stand out in a crowded field. This step will either reinforce your need to differentiate or show you the value of what you already have.
Check the Pipeline/Lead Funnel
A dip in business or engagement might not mean your brand needs to change, but it could signal problems elsewhere.
Look at your lead generation pipeline. Are you getting traffic but not conversions? Are prospects dropping off before they reach a call with your sales team? You might have a messaging or sales process issue, not a branding issue.
Fixing gaps in your funnel might deliver better results than an expensive rebrand.
Audit Design Choices and Brand Guide
Before deciding your current brand is broken, closely examine how it's being used. Do you even have a brand guide? Are your employees and vendors following it?
Inconsistent or poorly applied existing design elements can make your brand appear messy or amateurish. Review your typefaces, spacing, iconography, and image styles.
Clean, consistent use of these elements—guided by a clear brand guide—can often elevate an image without changing an identity.
Check Your Brand's Current Colors
It's common for brands to accumulate too many colors over time—on packaging, social posts, web graphics, and internal presentations. Too many colors can make your brand feel scattered and unpolished.
Try simplifying your color palette to a primary and secondary set of brand-approved colors. A simplified, cohesive palette can refresh your brand's appearance and make your marketing assets more visually appealing without needing a rebrand.
Check Logo Placement on Products
Sometimes a brand can feel weak simply because the logo is used ineffectively. Is your logo hard to read on your products or packaging? Is it being stretched, cropped, or improperly scaled? Has it lost visual impact due to poor placement or cluttered design?
These issues can often be resolved by enforcing logo usage rules and reformatting existing assets. Better logo use may improve recognition and polish your brand's image.
Ask For Customer Feedback (Surveys or Focus Groups)
Your customers are the best judge of how well your brand is working. Before initiating a rebrand, conduct surveys or organize a focus group.
Ask how your audience perceives your business, what visuals they associate with you, and what emotions your brand evokes. Sometimes you'll find the perception is better than you thought. Other times, you'll gain crucial insight into what must change.
Either way, it's smart to base your branding decisions on honest feedback, not just internal assumptions.
Work With Cole-Dalton Marketing Services
A rebrand is a bold move, and when done well, it can spark excitement and renewed engagement.
It's also a significant investment—and one that can backfire if done without careful consideration. Completing these foundational marketing tasks first helps clarify whether a rebrand is truly necessary or if simple updates and consistency can achieve your goals.
Building a brand is far from easy. If you're feeling overwhelmed after reading these tips, get in touch with our team at Cole-Dalton Marketing Services.
We have helped small to medium-sized businesses build and maintain their online presence and accomplish marketing goals. Contact us today to get started!
