Exploring the Physical and Psychological Dimensions of Rebranding

·??????Rebranding must be both a physical and psychological exercise

·??????It must communicate the new brand essence and meaning creatively and credibly.

·??????Rebranding must be driven by employees, who must demonstrate both the ethos and logos of the exercise.

·??????Physical aspect of rebranding is visible and tangible and essentially boost a brand’s visibility whereas the psychological is abstract and intangible and boost an organization’s credibility.

Rebranding is a major part of a brand’s lifecycle. At a certain stage in the lifetime of a brand, rebranding becomes necessary and inevitable at reviving and rejuvenating the brand essence, equity, personality, positions and sometimes expand the reach and audience perception about the brand.

Rebranding can constitute either a simple issue of changing the name and colours of a brand or a complex issue like changing the ownership of a company. These two are not mutually exclusive though. ?For instance, BNI, Bureau of National Intelligence, was rebranded into NIB, National Intelligence Bureau. In this instance, the former name was merely rearranged with the view to reinforcing a key aspect of the agency’s function. ?Beyond the change in the name, the purpose of this rebranding was also to mitigate against some of the terrifying imagery that had come to be associated with the erstwhile name. For instance, a Statement accompanying this change noted in part: ‘‘The NIB will reinforce its focus on activities skewed towards intelligence-oriented tasks only.’’

?In business cycles, it is common to see rebranding arising from acquisition, takeover or merger. For instance, the consolidation of various collapsed universal banks into Consolidated bank led to the rebranding of these banks. Once completed, the logo, colours and slogans of each of these companies had to make way for the new brand.

Practically, rebranding can help to reinforce the values of a product or service brand. In some instances, the process is critical to revive a market for a brand that is losing its market shares and position. It can also serve as an expansionist strategy to target new actionable, yet uncharted, market. Rebranding shows that an organization is open to changes and responsive to new trends and opportunities in the market. Sometimes, it is fatal not to rebrand. The Nokia story is for all of us to take a clue from.

Physically, rebranding takes the form of changes in the brand identity of a company. This may include but not limited to logo, slogan, typography, and brand colours. In some instances, the new brand position or essence is physically communicated through the use of established brand ambassadors. The goodwill and physical attributes of these celebrity brands are expected to rub off on the brand. The physical, unlike the psychological, component of rebranding is highly visible and tangible. It can find expression in a new logo, colours, designs and any other visual cues. Symbols and signs used in communicating a new physical composition and position in rebranding must have meaning in themselves. The physical dimension of rebranding must be intentional to a point where it is not reduced to a mere creative exercise. Organizations in highly competitive business terrain, where differentiation and brand identity are critical for success, can’t afford not to go hard on the physical dimension of their rebranding. Usually, physical rebranding is aimed at the external target audience, including clients, investors, regulators, suppliers, media and the general public. These individuals must recognize changes in the physical appeals of a brand to aid their choice and purchasing. Recently, Melcom, one of Ghana’s largest retailers, has also rebranded with a renewed expansionist efforts across the country. ?In the process, Melcom introduced a new corporate logo, which is a stark different from the red oval wrapping of the calligraphically written Melcom to the universal location sign used in the virtual space in red, blue and white colours. Without a doubt this has heaved a new lease of life to the erstwhile brand. Essentially, the physical dimension of a brand must boost a company’s brand visibility.

Psychologically, the purpose of rebranding is to get the various stakeholders of the brand to accept either a new or reinforced meaning, perception and imagery of an existing brand. Businesses that are not strong in brand identity marketing usually focus on driving the psychological dimension of rebranding. Like the BNI cases, the real success of the processes is judged by a shift in perception that people had prior to the rebranding. For the psychological dimension of rebranding to be successful, employees, who are organizations first brand ambassadors, must inculcate and imbibe the essence and ethos of the rebranding. Employees must be trained to lead the psychological aspect of the rebranding. Changing a logo without changing an employee’s logos (view and perception), will amount to nothing. Beyond employees, organizations must invest in public relations and sustainability efforts that reinforce the changes that the physical dimensions of their rebranding communicate. ?For instance, as part of their psychological rebranding, Melcom, whose mantra now reads: ‘’Health, Wellness and Happiness,’’ launched its first state-of-the-art gym and spa, adding a psychological credence to the brand’s new position. Essentially, the psychological dimension of rebranding must boost an organization’s credibility.

Left to me, the psychological aspect of the rebranding must be given enough attention and focus. This is because it is the most complex to execute and implement, as it involves change in perceptions, opinion and behaviour. Again, being able to ingrain the new brand essence into the subconsciousness of employees and all other stakeholders, through sustained psychological rebranding, will be essential in helping brands to achieve their rebranding goals.

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Conclusion

Rebranding is an organization’s way of communicating complex corporate changes, in terms of new investment, strategic direction and consumer targets. While the processes can be simple and complex depending on its scope, it is critical that organizations are intentional about the timing, essence and purpose for the rebranding. Reducing the entire process to a creative exercise, without a sustained plan to ingrain the meaning and essence of the rebranding in the minds of stakeholders, may not achieve much. A good mix of physical and psychological emphasis is critical if the rebranding is to be successful. At the least, organizations must not just focus on changing the physical dimensions of their brand in this exercise. They must have genuine reasons, beyond profitability, to want to rebrand. I am looking forward to seeing an organization in Ghana will embark on a rebranding merely because of their quest to reposition as a sustainable business. That will be the loudest vote for efforts at building sustainable businesses.

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Boateng Osarfo Samuel (BOS)

Writer/Researcher/ Lead Consultant for Preset Media and SkobaPublic Relations

0541842198

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