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Rebranding can refresh tired corporate image
By Jamie Herzlich | TRIBUNE NEWSPAPERS: Special to Newsday
March 17, 2008

When Xerox lost its message in the marketplace, the company rebranded itself in an effort to let people know it was more than copiers.

There are times in a company’s life when rebranding is necessary to refresh the company image and better position itself in consumers’ minds, experts say.

“The single biggest reason for rebranding is to stay current with how the market perceives you,” said Karl Barnhart of CoreBrand, a brand consulting firm in Manhattan.

He said rebranding also comes into play after a merger or acquisition, introduction of new products or services, or after the company image has been tainted.

But, he said, the decision to rebrand should not be made lightly because “it’s expensive and it’s time-consuming.”

A total rebrand — a new name or a new logo, for example — is rarely needed, he said, and typically a company needs only updating or refreshing.

At the beginning of the year, Xerox, based in Norwalk, Conn., unveiled a new logo with its name in lowercase red letters alongside a sphere-shaped symbol sketched with lines that link to form an X, meant to represent the company’s connections to its customers, partners and industry.

You need to ask if your business has changed dramatically and if you’re living with a brand that’s outdated, said Barbara Findlay Schenck, a Portland, Ore.-based business consultant and co-author of “Branding for Dummies.”

Also consider whether you’ve introduced product lines that alter your role, she said, or whether your logo and other identifying elements are outdated.

The former was true of Xerox, which has introduced 100 products over the past three years but was still largely perceived as a copier company.

“You need to know you’re making the change for a reason,” said Eva LaMere, executive vice president at Austin & Williams, a Hauppauge, N.Y.-based advertising and marketing agency.

Start by doing some research internally. Ask key stakeholders how they perceive the firm, what challenges it faces and where it excels and falls short, she said.

Once you assess the findings, LaMere said, create an “internal positioning” statement of three to four sentences that sums up who and what you are. This statement will become the reference point for the entire rebrand, LaMere explained.

“Ask yourself what are you really good at that makes you better than most organizations in your category, and build your identity and branding around communicating that,” said Bill Chiaravalle of Brand Navigation, a Sisters, Ore., consulting firm and co-author of “Branding for Dummies.”

Make sure your staff understands that message and communicates it.

You might consider forming a branding committee to oversee the effort. That’s what Melville, N.Y., accounting firm Holtz Rubenstein Reminick did for its $160,000 effort.

Tired of its outdated logo and imagery, which dated to 1975, the firm launched a rebrand in 2003, said marketing communications director Flo Federman.

The result was a fresh red and orange logo with a tagline, plus new marketing materials and an updated Web site.

“Business has never been better,” said Federman. “The rebrand bolstered not only our appearance, but our reputation in the business community.”

Heck, that alone is worth a little nip and tuck.