Is it time to refresh your branded content marketing? If your marketing strategy feels stagnant, it may be time to look at the big picture and refresh your brand. A brand refresh helps your business stay relevant and exciting. It can attract new customers, re-engage your existing customer base, and help grow your business.

But just like any aspect of marketing, a brand refresh can be risky. If your refresh is poorly executed, it can alienate your audience, muddle your messaging, and cause you to lose ground to your competition. So don’t let your brand refresh backfire! Here are some important Do’s and Don’ts for updating your branded content marketing:

What Does it Mean to Refresh Your Brand?

Before we dive in, let’s take a quick look at what it means to refresh your brand – and the important difference between a brand refresh and a rebrand. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably, but they have subtle yet significant distinctions.

Brand Refresh

Imagine your brand was a house. A refresh would be like putting up new wallpaper, rearranging your furniture, and maybe changing the light fixtures. You’re not altering the very foundation of your brand, you’re just updating it. 

Brand refreshes generally focus on stylistic elements, such as:

• Logos
• Fonts
• Color palettes
• Packaging labels
• New website or app designs

They may also include changes to your company’s slogan or the “voice” of your brand. For example, you might alter the tone of your email newsletter, social media posts, blogs, or other branded communication to feel more casual in tone.

Rebrand

Whereas a brand refresh is primarily aesthetic or superficial, a rebrand is in-depth and often involves altering the fundamentals of your brand identity. It’s like knocking down the walls in your house or adding a second story. 

Rebrands typically affect elements like:

• Marketplace positioning
• Mission statements
• Core values
• Branding guidelines
• Target audience

For example, let’s say your company sells laptops and laptop accessories. If you realize accessories generate the most profit and decide to stop selling laptops, you’d benefit from a rebrand. 

Branded Content Marketing Do’s

Once you decide to refresh your brand, follow these guidelines to help ensure your success:

DO: Analyze Your Current Performance

First, look at your brand’s current performance. Consider key performance indicators (KPI) such as conversion rates, leads, average purchase value, returning versus new customers, or other metrics that are relevant to your company. Other considerations may include:

• Top selling products
• Social media performance
• Changes to your customer demographic

Analyzing this data can help you draw conclusions about your current branding. Then, you can identify areas for improvement or strategic changes. For example, if you notice that new ecommerce customers are clustered in a specific region, you can refine your brand’s voice to reflect region-specific slang or include more local references in your social media.

DO: Research Your Industry & Competitors

In addition to your internal performance metrics, it’s important to research industry trends and competitors in your space. Are other companies in your industry using thin serif fonts in their branding? Do they all have blue logos? You might consider refreshing your brand to stand out with bold sans serif fonts and red logos instead.

DO: Get Input from Your Team (or Consultants)

Don’t go it alone. When refreshing your brand, talk to your team for ideas and opinions. Even individuals who aren’t in creative roles can offer valuable insight. For example, your sales team might have great suggestions for improving the design layout of your checkout page. 

A brand refresh is also an excellent time to work with consultants, especially if you don’t have designers or in-house content creators. Plus, consultants bring fresh eyes to your brand. They can offer ideas and concepts from an outsider’s perspective, which can breathe new life into your company.

DO: Test Your Ideas

As your brand refresh unfolds, you’ll feel excited to launch – but don’t get ahead of yourself! Test your refresh before it goes live. It’s always best to prepare multiple variations of your new marketing assets and see how they perform with a sample audience. 

There are several effective ways to test your branded content marketing:

• Focus groups
• A/B testing 
• Virtual surveys
• Internal feedback from employees not involved in the branding

DO: Roll Out Changes Slowly

Be strategic with your schedule for rolling out your refreshed brand elements. Make sure your sales team and distributors are informed about the upcoming changes, especially if you’re altering product labels or packaging. If you’re refreshing your website or app, notify your IT department and your customer service team so they can be on alert for any potential glitches to the customer purchase experience.

Then, introduce your new or refreshed elements slowly. For example, you might start with changing the fonts and colors on your website before launching a new layout. This will give your customers an opportunity to adjust to the changes and reduce confusion. If you’re introducing a new logo or slogan, consider accompanying it with a social media post or a blog announcing the change. 

Branded Content Marketing Don’ts

So now that you know what to do for a successful brand refresh, what should you avoid? Here are some points to keep in mind to minimize the potential risks of a refresh:

DON’T: Do a Complete 180

Remember, a brand refresh is about evolving your brand’s identity. Your changes should honor your brand’s history and feel like a natural next step, not a radical departure. If you completely overhaul your branding, you may alienate your current customer base and lose authority. Changing too much, too quickly can also confuse customers.

DON’T: Chase Trends

It’s tempting to capitalize on the latest fad, but your brand refresh should be evergreen. After all, trends come and go. While you may see a temporary boost when you ride the wave of popularity, these results don’t last. 

Chasing trends can also make your brand feel inauthentic and inconsistent. Instead, focus on a brand refresh that gives you staying power. Use timeless design elements that feel modern and align with your company’s vision.

DON’T: Ignore Customer Feedback

Listen to your customers. If you’ve adequately tested your refreshed elements before launching them, you probably won’t get pushback on your changes. However, if you receive excessive complaints – especially complaints about the functionality of your website or app – make sure you address them swiftly. 

Branding with Bloom

Ready for a refresh but still not sure where to start? Contact Bloom Ads. Our in-house creative team can help your brand evolve to the next level of success.