Strategizing and Redesigning Your Brand is more Than Just Changing It

Simplicity is about keeping things designed in a way that has the consumer not having to second-guess what you’re trying to convey. If your brand or logo leaves people scratching their head, it may be time for a redesign. Be forewarned, a bad redesign is just as bad as no redesign. Learn from larger companies about what works and what doesn’t, as a way to balance your options.

We’re going to take a closer look at three large brands:

· Verizon

· Chobani Yogurt

· Capital One

Two of these companies misfired when it came to rebranding, while one hit it out of the park. Can you guess which one? Let’s see what we can find.

Why Make a Change at All?

While some people find inspiration as a need to change their branding, others are adapting to reputation issues, growth and/or mergers, among other avenues such as changing directions. When you’re a small or medium brand, it may seem like it’s not a big deal to make a change, but you’d be mistaken if you haven’t thoroughly thought the process through.

Branding offers you immediate recognizability, as well as subliminal messaging. We’re not talking creepy spin the album backwards messaging, but rather color, shape, and typography choices. What does the color red make you think of? Bold, urgence, and being energetic, right? While blue is often seen as a color of trust or having a calming influence.

Three important aspects to brand’s graphic design:

· Color

· Shape

· Typography

Is Change Always Good?

Now, about those earlier businesses we mentioned: Verizon, Chobani Yogurt, and Capital One.

Verizon took the path of keeping a similar logo to what they had previously and streamlining it into a cleaner design with a smaller check mark which they moved to a new location in the design. Boring. They opted for familiarity, which is great, but on the other hand, what’s the purpose of the rebrand at all? It does nothing new or different. Why not leave it as it was?

· Design for the sake of design isn’t a necessity and can confuse your client base, wondering what’s different.

Capital One added a red swoosh. Were they aiming to add an air of energy to attract a younger generation? Did it change how you saw Capital One? Did it tell you anything about the company or the reason for the change? Did it redefine the company? No. It simply “freshened” up their familiar logo. Again, change for change.

· They had the means and potential to shoot for the stars and ended up leaving most people yawning in response.

When Change Makes an Impact

Now, let’s look at what Chobani did to freshen up their logo, and why we see it as a win. Chobani’s Greek Yogurt was gaining popularity, along with the rest of the market share. People were sitting up and paying attention to this healthier version of yogurt that they knew and enjoyed. While Chobani’s original logo had a squared simple black logo, with little personality, they saw an opportunity to be recognized with a fresh new look.

What did they do?

First, they switched up their logo to a shade of green, which people associate with being natural, earthy, and healthy. This was a win in itself. We subconsciously have thoughts and opinions when we see colors, and this subtle change spoke to their target consumer.

They also opted for a friendly, easy-going font that shook the stiffness out of their original design. Using a chunkier font with more curves, it created a welcome appeal to their customers. They went from having a corporate stodgy design to one that families could respond to in a way that made them feel good about buying Chobani’s product.

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Now, that’s a win.