Is a brand simply a name or logo? No! It is so much more than that, and it is really important that it accurately represents who you are. A brand is not one specific thing, but rather a person’s perception or feeling about a product, a service, a company or an individual person. Your brand is reflected in tangible things such as your logo, your website, and your color scheme, as well as intangible concepts like your company culture and customer experience. You should think of your brand as an ever-evolving way to distinguish yourself from your competition and portray the values and purpose of your company – and as your business grows and develops, so should your brand.
Your brand can have a powerful impact on the success of your business, so it is important to keep it fresh! This post will lay out the 7 most effective things you can do to refresh your brand.
Reflect Your Brand Purpose
WHY do you do what you do? This is what your brand purpose conveys. And it is not about making money – this is about the humanistic reason your company exists and it should provide the foundation that everything else is built on. Truly defining your purpose will keep your brand presence engaging, magnetic and solid. Dove is a great example of a brand with purpose, as it uses its messaging to promote confidence and improve the self-esteem of girls around the world.
Refine Your Voice
The personality of your brand comes through in the words you use when addressing your target audience. Any time website copy is updated, an ad is launched or social media content is posted, your voice is being communicated and it can determine how customers perceive you. Refining your voice can provide consistency in your messaging every time you put something out into the world. Think about how you want to connect with your audience and make sure your voice matches what you want to convey, and keep your messaging simple and connective.
Shift Your Positioning
Your brand positioning shows how your brand is different from your competition and helps people understand what you are trying to accomplish with your business. If you want to be known as the leader in your market, you must make sure that your brand positioning supports that idea. Being well-positioned will make it much easier to develop more business as you distinguish yourself from others in your field. One effective way to accomplish this is by creating fresh, engaging blog content and brand messaging that establishes you as the go-to expert.
Refresh Your Images
First impressions are so important, and if your brand photos are a mess you might not get a second chance. Great photos are a necessity when it comes to conveying the personality of your brand, and they can make a big impact on your visual voice. This is not the time to rely on low-resolution cell phone photos that might not match the message you are trying to send. An annual visit to a photographer who specializes in brand photography will keep your look true and up-to-date. Don’t risk devaluing your brand by using lesser quality photos just to save a few dollars.
Make Subtle Changes to Your Logo
Generating an entirely new logo may not be the way to go if you have an established brand identity, but subtle changes can be made over time in order to refresh your look. Think of Starbucks as an example – the company has modified its logo multiple times since it was founded, by changing the color, the picture, and even removing the company name, all while maintaining its core company values.
Expand Your Brand Color Palette
If you have been using the same colors to represent your brand since you started, it might be time to change it up a little. Again, moderation is key here and you don’t want to sacrifice your brand identity by changing your colors too often. But adding in a new accent color or expanding on your current hues can bring a new awareness to your brand.
Simplify Your Site
Your website design says a lot about your brand, and one that is poorly designed can hurt! If you get a potential client to visit your website, you don’t want to lose them because they are overwhelmed with information or there is so much clutter that they can’t figure out where to click. People will NOT work that hard to learn more about you, as there are too many other choices available and they will wind up leaving your site with a negative impression of your business and your brand. You need to keep your navigation clean and simple so prospective clients know who you are, what you offer and how it will benefit them, without having to work for it.
We have come to the end of our list of the 7 Strategies to Refresh Your Brand. They are easy enough to start implementing right away and powerful enough to help your business realize its full potential! To learn more about creating a profitable personal brand, be sure to purchase a copy of my book “The Total Package, 5 Keys to a Profitable Personal Brand.” And if you are interested in personally working with me, I’d be happy to meet with you!