How does your potential rebrand fuel growth, financial performance, and efficiency; ultimately positioning your company for long-term success in a dynamic market?
Your brand is more than just a logo and tagline. It’s your reputation, your voice and your promise to customers. A strong brand identity can help you:
Evolution or Revolution? Choosing the Right Rebranding Approach
Not all rebrands are created equal. Some companies may only need a light refresh of their visual identity, while others may need a complete overhaul. The best approach for your company will depend on several factors, such as:
See part one in our series: Mergers & Acquisitions (Part 1): 5 Strategic Approaches to Branding to get a better understanding of which route is best for your business.
Your brand is important to how you’re company is perceived, but how it's managed – relative to your entire customer experience – is critically important.
Before you start rebranding, it’s important to take a step back and ask yourself some key questions:
Many management executives are too busy to properly manage a rebrand without expert help, with considerable day-to-day responsibilities leaving little space in their diaries. The financial cost implications of the rebrand will be their priority, so establish detailed cost parameters with their input.
Once you have a clear understanding of your brand, you can start developing your creative brief. This document will provide your branding agency with all the information they need to create a new brand identity for your company. The five key steps in developing your creative brief are:
When you’re working with a branding agency, it’s important to provide them with a list of all your branded assets. This includes things like your logo, website, marketing materials, packaging, and uniforms.
With physical site surveys, online self-surveys and desktop research, these assets can be easily provided to your brand agency from the very start. It gives them a clear picture of the nature and extent of your brand touchpoints so that they can be more specific with what to quote for and subsequently create. This can save a lot of embarrassment and prevent having to request extra budget later on in the process.
Identifying every aspect of your current brand identity can be the most complex task of a rebrand. Due to the sheer volume and geographic reach of branded assets, many companies wisely choose a phased rollout. This allows for ongoing progress monitoring and fine-tuning. Fortunately, experienced brand implementation partners excel at orchestrating rebranding initiatives. Equipped with expertise in strategic planning, financial management, vendor relations, and reporting tools, they ensure timely, budget-conscious delivery of consistent, high-quality branded assets throughout the process.
Identifying every aspect of your current brand identity can be the most complex task of a rebrand.
Once your new brand identity is created, it’s time to start implementing it. This can be a complex process, so it’s important to employ a brand implementation partner. A good brand implementation partner can help you:
Your brand implementation partner should work with your designers and internal resources to remove the stress of detailed operational project management and ensure that all your brand touchpoint assets transition as planned. Both physical and digital elements need consideration – building signage, wayfinding, workplace environments, fleet, workwear, administration templates, marketing collateral and online resources all need appropriate solutions to help decentralized company resources manage the governance process with clear direction and autonomy.
Seamless connections between all stages are essential. From brand strategy to brand engineering and brand implementation, each phase requires specific talent, expertise and experience in strategic, analytical, and tactical skills.
'Seamless connections between all stages are essential. From brand strategy to brand engineering and brand implementation, each phase requires specific talent, expertise and experience in strategic, analytical, and tactical skills.'
A successful rebrand can be a powerful tool for growth. By following these tips, you can ensure that your company emerges from the post-pandemic world stronger than ever.
Our team of rebrand specialists is on hand to help with your post-M&A rebrand, from strategy through to implementation. Contact us for an initial no-obligation chat.
Outside of an organization’s people, few other assets can make such a strong—or poor—impression than its fleet.
Over my career, I’ve been fortunate to be a part of many large fleet branding projects. Most of these projects involved the following elements:
Certainly, many other factors can come into play. Most of the large jobs I’ve experienced contained these six characteristics.
Whenever my team assesses a potential project, the first question we typically ask is the following: What is the deadline? Of course, that question is followed by a litany of others. The deadline dictates the timeline, and the timeline dictates the tasks.
Two of the biggest pitfalls are rarely discussed as openly as they should be:
If the existing branding is old, or substandard, removal can easily be more time-consuming than subsequent installation. Ask any certified installer about removing old, inexpensive graphics. It can be next to impossible and can blow out a schedule ad infinitum.
'Whenever my team assesses a potential project, the first question we typically ask is the following: What is the deadline?'
When examining installation facilities, many standard questions apply:
You get the picture. The greatest of these concerns usually revolves around climate control. Most graphics cannot be installed above or below a certain temperature. Too cold and the adhesive won’t adhere. Too hot, and the vinyl stretches and becomes gummy.
The budget can be addressed through a variety of approaches. Limiting the number of suppliers allows for economies of scale. Specifying the proper materials, and optimizing the yield, is key. Utilizing existing assets, such as garages or covered spaces, saves on-site or equipment rental. Nearly every facet of the project can ultimately impact the budget.
While I’ve touched on some major issues, perhaps the most critical factor revolves around the age-old activity virtually every organization strives to improve: communication. Let’s assume for a moment you’re the Director of Brand for an organization with 4,200 trucks and vans spread about Louisiana, Texas and New Mexico. Your brand agency has worked with you and your team to perfect a suite of new designs that will be rolled out to your existing fleet.
You’ve made the wise choice to work with GLIMMA on your comprehensive project. GLIMMA has worked with you on specifications and has chosen the vendors. You, your team, GLIMMA, and the vendors have had numerous planning calls as the kickoff day draws closer. Everyone is ready. All of the planning, the creative juices, and the late nights will soon yield gorgeous new branding across your fleet.
However, when the fieldwork begins, so do the problems. Garage managers rebel, citing various maintenance conflicts. Drivers don’t deliver their vehicles on time and, when they do, they’ve not gotten their vehicles washed. The vendor’s installers complain that the garages are too cold, or don’t have enough lighting. The problems can go on and on.
Much of this can be prevented by strong communication, throughout your organization. Include the drivers of the vehicles. Include the garage managers. Include maintenance. No, they don’t have to be on every team call, but by including them, giving them a voice, and listening to their suggestions, they will help you during the project’s most crucial phase: execution.
Finally, when the job is done, maintaining the graphics properly is the key to extending the life of the fleet’s branding. There are simple steps that can be performed to optimize the life and vibrancy of fleet graphics.
Digital is transforming the way we work in fleet brand management. We often work with our clients on one-off fleet livery rebrands, but this soon turns into a longer-term partnership, as we equip them with the tools they need to keep a full grasp on the status and maintenance requirements of their fleet.
'We often work with our clients on one-off fleet livery rebrands, but this soon turns into a longer-term partnership, as we equip them with the tools they need to keep a full grasp on the status and maintenance requirements of their fleet.'
I’ve barely scratched the surface of the many facets of a fleet branding project. That noted, few things get me more excited than working with a client on a far-reaching, audacious project that others wouldn’t dare attempt.
There’s nothing quite so exhilarating than to stand before a team of capable people, look them in the eye and say, “We pulled this off!”
If you are considering a Fleet rebrand or refresh, or are looking for a longer-term Fleet branding management solution, then I’d be delighted to help with free advice to get you started.
Our team has global experience, working with clients such as FedEx, Verizon, AT&T, Heineken, C&A, DPD, Alitalia and Gate Gourmet, to name a few. Check out our Fleet Branding page to find out more.
