Elon’s ‘X’ - iconic rebrand or design disaster?

To rebrand or not to rebrand, that is the question. And for Elon Musk that was a simple question to answer, as he chose to completely change one of the world’s most iconic and well-known brands, Twitter.

Musk said the idea of changing the logo to “X” was to “embody the imperfections in us all that make us unique.” Profound.?

Oh, Elon. At least you know how to get us all talking. Let’s be clear, he’s calling it a rebrand, we call it an ident change. We’re still to see the full scale of a rebrand, but apparently the new ‘X’ ident was designed by a fan. The old, “my girlfriend’s son’s, best friend’s, dog has done graphic design A level, he can knock us up a logo for free”. Bye, bye brand equity.?

If there is anyone out there toying with the idea of replicating Elon’s sham, I mean plan, please listen closely!

The why?

A name change, a brand refresh or a rebrand should not be undertaken on a whim, and certainly not an egotistical whim. It’s easy to throw around the phrase rebrand, without really considering why your company might need one and the impact it can have on sales, brand awareness and shares.?

Your brand should always reflect your company’s vision, mission and values so if you feel like these no longer align, it could be the right time to rebrand.?

It’s a significant decision and should be addressed strategically to ensure the retention of brand equity. It’s a multifaceted process and should be handled with care and with a full strategy. Done right, it can be a game changer for a brand. And done like Elon, well, I’m sure the markets will show us the outcome.

The how?

It’s vital to get your rebrand spot on. Too small of a change will go unnoticed and deliver no impact, while straying too far away from your core brand (like Elon) can cause you to alienate customers and see a drop in sales. Elon’s take over of Twitter has seen a drop of $2.1 billion in sales revenue, with major brands such as Volkwagen pausing their ad spend on the site1. At this pivotal time for the platform, a rebrand seems like an odd strategic decision. But we’re used to odd from Elon, aren’t we?

There’s a popular misconception when it comes to rebranding that this just involves tweaking or changing your logo, which is only a fraction of the work undertaken to deliver a successful rebrand. There are significant stages of a rebrand including discovery, research, developing insights, building the brand strategy and crafting the proposition, positioning and narrative. All of these stages must, I repeat, must be done before any creative can start, and by people who know the value of each stage of the process, otherwise you will produce a shiny new logo with no connection to your brand and no relevance to your target audience.?

There is a lot to consider from a partial or full rebrand, to changing your company name and ident to reviewing brand voice, tone and messaging. Without expertise, a clear strategy and carefully planned roll out, a rebrand can fall completely flat, dwindle your budget and consume your time, not to mention impact negatively on your bottom line.?

From McDonalds to Burberry, there are many examples of successful rebrands which? revitalise a company and what they all have in common is strategic vision and properly thought out processes - we’re not sure Elon’s plan would make the cut!

McDonald’s is no stranger to reinventing itself to stay relevant to consumers worldwide. Over a decade ago, the brand’s reputation was rooted in unhealthy choices and unwelcoming restaurants, making it less popular, especially across Europe. The brand had to reevaluate its values, proposition and messaging to compete in a crowded market that was in the midst of a health revolution.?

McDonald’s knuckled down and created a phenomenal new brand strategy. Their brand refresh saw them adapting the widely recognised ‘golden arches’ and positioning them on a new green background to reflect the company’s new healthier menu options. But unlike Elon, McDonald’s didn’t just stop at the ident. Hell no, they did this properly. The restaurants themselves were revamped to become more modern, cleaner and family friendly. Their entire proposition shifted, expanding their product offering to meet the needs of an evolved audience looking for fast, healthy food, as well as still catering for us burger and fries fans. McDonald’s didn’t want to lose loyal customers but they knew they needed to attract new fans too. So McDonald’s switched up its narrative to meet the evolving customer profile. Like our pals over at Mattel with Barbie, they leaned into cultural appropriation and refreshed not only their ident but their proposition, their products, positioning and messaging and they did so to great effect. Since then, McDonald’s has gone from strength to strength with an annual average growth forecast of 4%2.

There are millions of examples of branding done right. And you don’t need McDonald’s budgets or global reach to nail a rebrand. Here at Jam we’ve helped many clients navigate brand launches, refreshes and complete rebrands to great success, and at a fraction of McDonald’s budgets. Follow the process with a team who knows exactly what they’re doing (hi Jammers!) and you can avoid an Elon-esque drama and reap the rewards of a succinct brand strategy.