Times are changing. Give your brand the rebranding it deserves.

Rebranding

When the company evolves but the branding doesn’t

Companies are busy every day optimizing their offering in order to gain market share. Branding is the expression of the result of these efforts; it makes performance and USP visible and tangible. Keeping an eye on strategy, portfolio and brand in equal measure is not always successful – often to the detriment of branding. At some point, you realize that the brand has literally outgrown its brand design. This in turn is not only very unsatisfying for the people behind the brand, but also leads to unnecessary cognitive dissonance among customers and partners, in the team and among talents.

We support you in constructively challenging your brand identity and translating your brand strategy into a rebranding. This ensures that your performance and values are represented appropriately – in the market, for your target groups.

The rebranding process: from repositioning to a new design

Brand management therefore involves constantly reviewing strategy and positioning – and challenging the appearance accordingly in a timely manner. To ensure that your rebranding does not become a purely cosmetic measure, but a visual expression of further development, we consider all relevant external and internal influences in our brand process. What are the drivers for a new or revised look? Have the corporate strategy, culture and target groups changed? How does the brand want to position itself in the market in the future? On this basis, the existing brand design is reviewed in the brand audit. The result can lead to a brand update, a partial rebranding or a new brand.

  • Rebranding benuta

    Brand Design Update

    Generally, the brand design still meets the requirements of the brand. For a contemporary look, elements are optimized in a minimally invasive way, e.g. a fine-tuning of the logo or the color palette.

  • Rebranding DCSO

    Brand Redesign

    Certain elements of the design are changed while other elements are retained. For example, if the portfolio is expanded while the brand core remains the same, this can be a new color spectrum or a new image style, while the logo and key visuals remain unchanged.

  • Rebranding SimplyDelivery zu SIDES

    Full Rebrand

    This is where the brand is given a complete overhaul. A new brand design and messaging is developed from the strategic realignment to reflect values, target audiences and offerings. A full rebrand can also mean a new brand name.

Brand make over in three steps

  • Briefing

    You give us insight into your goals for the brand.

  • Brand Design

    Based on your briefing and brand strategy we develop your brand design.

  • Brand Relaunch

    You position yourselves clearly in the competition.

Brands that work with us

„For two years in a row, Helder’s naming and design perfectly translated the themes of sustainability and responsibility into the ASC & MSC Brand Awareness campaign. This has significantly increased consumer confidence in our seals and brand awareness.“

Manuel Maillard
Marketing Manager, MSC

„Together with Helder, we developed a design that makes complex services and products understandable, accessible and desirable.

Nathalie Thomsen
Marketing Managerin, DCSO

„In our projects together, Helder has consistently inspired us with her highly creative input.“

Clemens Reisbeck
head of communications, werter

„Every brand element in Helder’s design system intelligently signals our core competency of coding.“

Wulf Rowek
CEO, entity

„With Helder, we have not only developed a brand, but also an attitude towards life. Together we created a value strategy and based on it a brand design that I can identify with 100%.“

Nina Hansen
CEO, Lourie

When is it time for a rebranding?

Reasons for a rebranding can be very different in nature. We have identified typical scenarios when a rebranding makes sense or is even necessary.

Rebranding instead of a provisional solution

Once the start-up phase, in which a lot is still being tried and tested, is over, it’s time to tidy up. Initial start-up images often have a provisional character, because resources are not yet sufficient to think holistically about the brand design and the strategy and offering are still evolving. Design elements often grow organically and at some point you realize that the flyer uses a different logo than the website or sometimes uses round buttons and sometimes rectangular buttons. A consistent design overhaul helps reinforce the professionalism of the company.

Rebranding SIDES aufgrund von neuen Produkten und Services

Rebranding due to new products and services

When a brand’s offering expands or changes significantly, rebranding is an effective way to communicate innovation and reach new, defined audiences to whom the new products or services are targeted. A good rebranding signals transformation, facilitates transition, draws positive attention to the brand, and is a way to get the brand talked about once again.

Rebranding SIDES aufgrund von neuen Produkten und Services

Rebranding due to internationalization

Different countries, different customs. If a company expands into new markets and thus into other cultures, its brand identity should be put to the test. Different political circumstances or social norms may require an adjustment of the branding in terms of color or design or even the name.

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with a Brand Strategy Audit

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Rebranding after personnel changes

Significant personnel changes at the management level of a company often go hand in hand with a change in strategy. In order to communicate this effectively to the outside world, it makes sense to renew the image accordingly – be it evolutionary or radical. In the course of its repositioning under Tina Müller, Douglas, for example, got rid of its established image, especially its logo, after almost 50 years.

Rebranding Douglas nach personellen Veränderungen

Rebranding after structural changes

Depending on the brand architecture strategy, mergers and acquisitions require interventions in the brand identity. New members bring their own corporate philosophy, new employees and customers, and their own image into the brand family, which must be integrated strategically, culturally, and visually.

Rebranding

Rebranding due to social changes

People want something to happen: Social changes influence markets, lifestyles and needs, and thus of course also brands. A trend can quickly become yesterday’s news, and in its place other aspects come into sharper focus, which become relevant for brands, keyword: sustainability. The acceptance and relevance of a brand depends to a large extent on the extent to which they recognize the zeitgeist and how they respond to it. What happens when companies ignore the signs of the times in brand strategy and branding can be seen in the examples of Nokia, BlackBerry or Victoria’s Secret.

Rebranding example: Audi

The iconic four rings were created in 1932, when the DKW, Horch, Wanderer and Audi brands merged, which was to be symbolized by the logo.

Audi Rebranding

The move away from chrome to two-dimensionality reflects the digital transformation in the automotive industry.The brand thus claims “Vorsprung” for itself – so strongly that the rings also manage without a word mark.

Recognizes the signs of the times

“Looking old,” in the literal or figurative sense, is something no one wants – and rightly so. For brands, be they B2C, B2B or B2B2C, branding on the cutting edge is essential for survival. If zeitgeist and aesthetics do not go hand in hand, the brand will appear outdated and thus less attractive and trustworthy. An outdated visual identity allows stakeholders to draw corresponding conclusions about a company’s competitiveness and attitude.

A contemporary, strategic brand design contributes to corporate success:

  • signals innovative strength
  • attracts customers, partners and talents
  • makes employees proud to be part of your team

Rebranding in 3 steps

  • Briefing

    You give us insight into your goals for the brand.

  • Brand Design

    Based on your briefing and brand strategy we develop your brand design.

  • Brand Relaunch

    You position yourselves clearly in the competition.

Rebranding FAQ

  • What is rebranding?

    Rebranding includes a series of measures with which the perception of a brand is controlled in a targeted manner. These can be of a strategic and design nature and range from a new logo to a new brand design to a new name.

  • Why do a rebranding?

    Frequent reasons are internal, personnel or structural changes, e.g. the expansion of the service portfolio, the expansion into other markets or the acquisition of new target groups as well as the modernization of the brand image in order to meet social changes and thus remain competitive.

  • How does rebranding work?

    Rebranding means reviewing the brand holistically with a view to realignment. This means evaluating which elements of the strategy and the design will pay off for the future brand and which will not – and aligning them accordingly.

  • What do you need to consider when rebranding?

    Rebranding is not about making quick cosmetic changes just to meet a trend. Rebranding should always correspond with the strategic realignment of the brand.

  • When does a rebranding make sense?

    Rebranding makes sense when the brand no longer reflects the company’s performance and culture. The aim of a rebranding is to maintain and increase the trust and desirability of the brand among relevant target groups.

  • How much does rebranding cost?

    The costs of rebranding always depend on the scope. The brand audit is a suitable introduction to the process: it provides information about the necessary measures and helps to plan the scope accordingly.

  • How long does a rebranding take?

    4–8 weeks, depending on the project scope.




    Ansprechpartner Helder Design

    Dr. Birgit Joest

    STRATEGY DIRECTOR

    030 403 664 76

    b.joest@helder.design