If you’ve had a brand that has gone without an update for several years, or even decades, or if your business has gone through a significant transformation, you might consider website rebranding. But what exactly does website rebranding mean and what is the best way to implement this new strategy?
What Is Website Rebranding?
Rebranding your website can take a few different forms, but it always has the same objective. Your business’s brand is a sum total of the elements of its identity. It includes your logo, your business’s name, the colors and fonts associated with your business, and even the tone you use when writing. If you need to change this brand, you’ll need to make changes to everything associated with that brand – possibly including the layout of your website and the assets throughout your webpages.
Good and Bad Reasons to Rebrand a Website
Why would you rebrand a website like this?
The bottom line motivation is to make a website more popular, ultimately attracting more traffic and earning more conversions. But there are some good reasons and bad reasons to rebrand a website.
For example, these things may motivate you to rebrand your website in a positive direction:
· A change in ownership or structure. Your company may have undergone a change in ownership or a change in the structure. For example, you might have merged with another company or you might have acquired a new company that changes the way your business works entirely. If you undergo a significant transformation like this, it only makes sense that your brand would need to evolve.
· A new target audience. You may also want to update your branding if you have a new target audience serving as your primary demographic. Much of the image and feel of your brand should be designed to appeal to a specific target audience – so if that target audience changes, your brand must change as well.
· A new vision, mission, or value system. You should also consider revising your brand in the face of deeper directional changes within your business. If you’ve developed a new vision, a new mission, or a different set of values, it follows that you should update your brand.
· Totally obsolete branding. Brands don’t always age well. Some brands capitalize on the legacy of their old traditional branding. But if your branding looks dated or if it seems obsolete, it may be time to bring it into the new era.
However, rebranding your website because of these motivations could lead you to bad decisions and may be totally unnecessary:
· New difficulties. Just because your business is having a hard time doesn’t mean you should go through a total rebranding effort. A temporary slump in sales or a PR disaster should not be enough motivation to completely overhaul your brand and website.
· Competitive threats. What if a new competitor rebrands their company and website? There shouldn’t be enough motivation for you to follow suit.
· New leadership. Someone else stepping into the leadership position can be a transformative event for the business, but this isn’t necessarily so. A new leader, by itself, is not justification to rebrand.
· Boredom. Also, don’t consider rebranding just because you’re bored or because you haven’t done anything with the brand in a while.
An Overhaul or a Refresh?
If you do decide to rebrand your website, you’ll face an important decision: do you attempt to totally overhaul the brand or simply give it a refresh? Refreshing the brand can mean revisiting some of the old assets and updating them to look more modern, or changing certain elements of the brand, like the fonts associated with it. A total overhaul may include more dramatic transformations, such as changing the name of the business or inventing a new logo from scratch.
Your choice here should be dependent on your goals and the extent of your transformation.
Important Tips for Website Rebranding
If you’re going to rebrand successfully, make sure you observe the following tips:
· Work with professionals. Hire a team that knows what they’re doing.
· Retain the legacy of your old brand (if appropriate). Try to retain your old audience by incorporating old elements into your new brand.
· Keep your old links and SEO value. Maximize your historical SEO value with the help of 301 redirects and other technical changes.
· Plan ahead. Don’t try to rebrand overnight.
· Make the announcement. When you pull the trigger on your new website, spread the word; this is a great opportunity to reconnect with your audience and reach some new people along the way.
Rebranding isn’t going to guarantee your website will become successful. It’s also not going to breathe life into a dying business unless there are other positive changes accompanying it. Exercise your website rebranding with caution and make sure you have a good plan in place before moving forward.
