Rebranding an organization is a critical undertaking in the lifecycle of a business. Even when a company has developed a strong brand, there may still come a time when a rebrand is necessary to achieve several objectives, including to keep growing, expand product lines, tap into new consumer segments or refresh an outdated brand identity.
Developing a brand is a complex process. Executing a rebrand is even more challenging. You need branding expertise, creative capabilities and experience with rebranding projects. To overcome the challenges of a rebranding initiative and produce a successful outcome, you should consider hiring a branding agency. While most agencies don’t specifically market themselves as “rebranding agencies,” many rebranding companies have extensive experience in rebranding projects and offer comprehensive rebranding services.
To help make your quest for an agency easier, we’ve created this checklist to guide your search for the perfect rebranding partner. Use the questions to narrow down your search and choose the best agency to manage your rebrand.
Learn the Basics About Their Business
When searching for an agency for your business, there are fundamental questions to ask upfront. This first round of questions will help you quickly eliminate agencies and whittle down your list to a few top contenders. Your goal here is to see if the agency is a basic fit for your project based on experience, capabilities and costs.
Ask these essential first-round questions right up front:
- Do they have thorough knowledge of sales and marketing platforms like HubSpot?
- How long have the agency and its founders been in business?
- What is their primary area of expertise?
- What industries have they worked in?
- What is their track record of success?
- What is their fee structure and billing process?
- Will you be considered a major or small client among the agency’s accounts?
- Do they have client testimonials to support their reputation?
Look for a Rebranding Agency with Rebranding Experience
This should be a leading criterion in your search for a digital agency. The brand strategy agency you choose to rebrand your organization must have previous rebranding experience, because executing a successful rebranding program takes skills that are more specialized than just creating a new brand whole cloth.
For example, rebranding requires being highly sensitive to the history of an existing brand and customers’ attachment to it. Protecting or enhancing brand equity during the rebranding process is crucial. You don’t want an agency who thinks they need to start from scratch, eliminate all resemblance to your existing brand and create a totally new brand identity.
To strengthen this rebranding experience objective, ask these questions:
- Do they have success stories of their work on other rebranding projects?
- If so, do the case studies demonstrate the type of rebranding project you’re looking for?
- Has the agency created any thought leadership around the topic of rebranding?
Explore Each Agency's Culture and Brand Identity
There are many kinds of digital and branding agencies available in the marketplace. To choose the right one for your rebranding project you need to go deep to fully understand critical issues, such as how they work with clients and how they achieve their clients’ goals. It’s better to know as much as you can upfront to help avoid downstream surprises that negatively impact your rebranding project.
One critical question to ask the agency is about their process. If they don’t have a rebranding process in place that should be viewed as a red flag. If they have a process in place, ask them to walk you through it step-by-step so you fully understand and know what to expect on your rebranding journey. Some agencies specialize in corporate branding, focusing on defining a company's mission, vision, values, and culture.
Here are a variety of questions you can ask to get to vet a branding agency and get to know them better:
- What is your approach for executing a rebranding initiative?
- How will your methodology help our organization meet our objectives?
- How will you measure results?
Meet the Rebranding Team You’ll Be Working With
Typically, a creative agency that handles rebranding projects from end-to-end employs a variety of branding experts, such as designers, content writers, producers, strategists, developers and project managers. They will be the people you work directly throughout the rebranding process. As a result, you want to be sure there is a strong personality fit. Having a good fit will help improve communications and lay down a solid foundation for dealing with any challenges when they arise.
To help assess the fit between your team and an agency’s team, meet the team members and see how they interact with each other and how the agency team interacts with your team. Dive deeper with these questions:
- How long has each member of the team worked for the agency?
- How much direct communication do they provide during the project?
- What is their preferred style of communication with clients?
- How will they present ideas to your team?
- How will they incorporate your feedback into the work they do for you?
Make Sure the Agency Has Time for Every Stage of Your Rebranding Project
Digital agencies will want you as a new customer and will enthusiastically pursue your project. But you need to make sure they have the time available to do it right at every stage of the process. Taking on a branding project, particularly a rebrand, involves a long-running process to get it right — from research to analysis. Ensure the agency offers a range of marketing services alongside rebranding to cover all aspects of your brand's needs.
Because your brand will be the most important project for your organization and your investment must have a high return, explore the agency’s commitment to the whole journey with these questions:
- How deep will they research your current brand, including the market perception?
- How much time will they spend developing the new brand strategy components?
- What elements will they produce during the new brand identity building phase?
- What are their action steps during the activation stage when the new brand is launched into the marketplace?
- How will they analyze the response and communicate the results back to your team?
Managing rebranding efforts is crucial to ensure alignment with your brand strategy. Finding the right rebranding agency partner can be a challenge, but well worth the effort. Not only can an experienced agency help make your rebranding project run smoother and deliver ideal results, but also it can deliver the highest return on your investment. If you’re considering a rebrand in your future, we hope this checklist provides you with a solid starting point in your search for your perfect rebranding agency partner.
Marketing Campaigns, Strategy, Consulting & Reporting: Kuno Can Help with It All
Whether you’re looking to dial up your current marketing efforts with campaigns, want to improve your demand gen efforts, or are having headaches with your current agency, the Kuno Creative marketing agency can help. Our consultants, design, content and HubSpot implementation experts have experience throughout the company lifecycle to help you wherever you are. It is crucial to ensure that your marketing efforts resonate with your target audience to drive growth and success.
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