The Evolution Of A Brand

Rethink Your Identity

Brands are powerful, but what happens when your identity becomes intertwined with one? That was my story in 2006.

In 2006, I was working with one of the biggest brands in the world- a company consistently ranked one of the top ten most valuable brands globally. It was my dream job, dream company and I had become a representative of the brand. I took the ambassador role extremely seriously. My pride in my value from being associated with the brand led to conversations like this,?“Well, I work for one of the biggest global brands in the world. That’s who I work for.” As if the brand established my value and that’s all there was to me. I had completely entwined myself with the brand. When I was included in a major lay-off in 2007, I began to realize the importance of anchoring myself to my own brand—one that could rejuvenate my identity and guide me forward.

Refresh Your Vision

Determined to pick myself up, I researched how to build a brand that would endure, and delved into the analysis and guidance that marketing guru Tom Peters provided. In a 1997 article in Fast Company, The Brand Called You, he suggested that a brand should be easy enough to understand to fit on a bumper sticker. This sounded simple enough to me, and it made sense. But how?

I reflected deeply on what made me uniquely valuable—what I stood for and what I could offer. This reflection allowed me to rethink who I was, refresh my vision, and ultimately create my brand, Rejuvenate Marketing. My value lies in my ability to quickly assess from an outsider’s perspective, identify internal gaps, and drive innovation. Rejuvenate captured my purpose perfectly: to renew ideas, rethink strategies, and refresh approaches to marketing. I settled on my tagline: rethink, refresh, renew. Rethink your strategy, refresh your plan and renew your connection. At that time, rejuvenate was unique and not being promoted with anything, so I had a first to market advantage of launching a new concept of this brand. It was a great combo, because this word was alongside a very dependable word, marketing. Of note, the word rejuvenate was everywhere only one year later!

From Clients to Employers

I hired an artist to create my brand look and feel. I knew color was important to me, and I had an idea of how my brand should feel. I launched my rejuvenated brand, eager to share its refreshed vision and renewed purpose with my clients with a corny but fun social media post “Jingle Jingle, Jenn’s Hanging Up A Shingle!” I secured clients easily at first, because I was fortunate enough to have partners I worked with who were at a loss when my role was eliminated. There was a need to rethink traditional approaches and refresh how marketing challenges were addressed. I kept busy with clients and jumped into entrepreneurial ventures, when I was snapped up to do some more rejuvenation work as an employee. I welcomed the healthcare benefits and security that came alongside the salary.?

Over time, I began to notice a pattern in my career. Every role I would step into was to rejuvenate, reposition or refresh a brand that faced challenges, whether it was introducing a new aspect of the brand (ie: products, services or people) or literally redefining the look and message of the brand. Rejuvenate Marketing was in complete alignment with me!

Renew Your Path

I was laid off three more times from 2009 - 2016. Each layoff forced me to return to my brand, and each time it reaffirmed its value. Rejuvenate Marketing renewed my sense of purpose and refreshed my career path during uncertain times. I acquired incredible value lessons about myself, about business, and about who I wanted to be. Four times, I went from startup equity promises, to zero income, to landing stable jobs with all of the perks. I came to accept that my brand was more important than any title I would ever receive. A company would never define my brand again. I was my brand. Always.?

Rejuvenate Your Brand

My final layoff was in 2016, from yet another globally recognized brand (yet another dream job). I decided to change my brand. I hadn’t adapted it for years. I was going to relaunch myself again with a refreshed brand. I redesigned my brand, and I immediately didn’t like it. I didn’t feel it genuinely represented who I was becoming. But I was pregnant in my first trimester at the time, and other priorities were my focus. It was good enough, I’d get to it eventually. My new brand was to become a stay at home mom. My heart was fully aligned with that vision.?

When my daughter was close to three years old, I started working on projects and began to develop brands for other ventures while working with new clients. I worked in the business of Rejuvenate Marketing. While I refreshed it with a new website and renewed messaging, I avoided doing anything with the brand, unsure of my vision.

Recently, I was inspired to rethink and refresh my brand, allowing its core identity to rejuvenate and evolve. A concept was brewing in my mind for some time and secretly pursuing me. I had to be ready to reshape this original brand. I got to work in a matter of a few days, I was thrilled with the result. Of course, I tapped into my board of advisors to sanity check my direction. The evolution of my brand did not dramatically take away from anything original. It rejuvenated the foundation, strengthened the vision, and renewed its relevance. Everything from the message, to the colors and look and feel, reflects the vision I built in 2007.?

The Brand Anchor

Branding as a topic goes through hot phases. We are in the middle of a phase now. Just search the word “brand refresh” and you will find many examples of companies refreshing their brands. The availability of software and easy to use technology at our fingertips daily, makes it more tempting to dive into the process. I engage in many conversations about branding and why it is important and why it matters. There’s no denying brand is essential and it matters. However, what is more crucial is that you realize your brand matters the most.? You are the anchor, the agent, and the driving force behind your brand’s ability to rejuvenate and evolve. This should extend into thinking about how you represent, present, and carry your brand- both digitally and personally.

I’ve watched with interest, many brands evolve and change over time. Each brand evolution is a point in time decision, based on research that indicates it’s time to change. But when you are a small to medium business, this is called your gut. You, as a business owner, must love your brand and what it represents and how it reflects your vision and values. If your brand doesn’t inspire you, it’s time to rethink your goals, refresh your strategy, and renew your connection to its purpose.

Rethink, Refresh, Renew

I enjoy and welcome discussions on branding. While I am not a creative developer, I have clear creative vision and ideas that are undeniable when I’m working on projects that align with my brand. I have branded just about everything in my life- it’s my default way of thinking.

It is absolutely ok to rethink your brand! We all evolve as people, in our careers: in who we are, in who we align with and who we spend our time with.? Why wouldn’t our brands rejuvenate to reflect who we are becoming and refresh how we present ourselves to the world?

What you do defines who you become. How will you rethink, refresh, and rejuvenate your brand to reflect who you aspire to be?

View this quick insight into my "rethink, refresh, renew" of my brand, Rejuvenate Marketing.

For helpful insight and rethinking your brand, I'd love to connect with you to discuss.

Ready to strengthen your brand's positioning and drive impactful growth? Contact Rejuvenate Marketing for a free consultation, where we'll assess your current marketing strategy and explore how a well-crafted positioning statement can elevate your business. Visit www.rejuvenatemarketing.com or call us at 415.699.0040 to get started on a strategy tailored to your goals.