Monthly edit (special edition ??)

Our monthly bumper edition of Power Up In Brief is all about how to launch a new brand, which is the journey we have been taking over the past few months. And, I’m going to start by sharing our brand story.?

From The Part-Time CMO to the Scale Up Collective

Like so many businesses, our brand had evolved over time. I was doing consultancy work as The Part-Time CMO and running the Scale Up tech marketing hub alongside this.?

Two things happened as we evolved:

1. The team structure changed as we grew from a company of one to a team of five, plus our extended team of experts (SEO, web development, copy, branding, email marketing to name a few!). We are now a collective.?

2. We re-structured our services under the Scale Up Collective brand:

? Advisory: Startups need trusted strategy and direction but don't need a full-time CMO.

Lucy & Vanessa, as part-time CMOs, deliver objective-based workshops, ongoing advisory and marketing team mentoring.

? Done for you: Drive traction and prove market fit before you commit to an in-house team.

This is 360 growth marketing. Building your go-to-market strategy, informed by multi-layered user research. We can then seamlessly work alongside your business as a plug-in and play team.

? Do-it-yourself: Bootstrapped startups need marketing strategy without the price tag.

Scale Up continues to evolve and will soon include self-guided programme options, continuation of our quarterly, live cohorts and an alumni network.

So, the time was right to rebrand. And we’ll talk about the role of timing throughout this newsletter.?

After creating our original branding on Canva, this time around we invested in working with a designer, and we chose Hadrien Chatelet, creative director at The Wern. We still rate Canva - it’s a brilliant design tool for templates and documents - but we loved the creative process through working with a real pro. We think Hadrien has captured our brand personality perfectly and we hope you love the new look and feel too.?

We’ve structured this month’s Power Up into what you should consider before, during and after a rebrand:

Rebranding: What to do before?

Rebranding is a significant undertaking. It’s usually expensive, it takes resources to manage and, particularly if you change your name, it will impact your brand awareness and SEO. The first thing you should consider is: why do you want to rebrand?

If your business has outgrown your current brand, taken a new direction, or you have been through a merger/acquisition, then yes, you should rebrand.?

Also consider, do you need a full rebrand or just a brand refresh? You can work with a designer to update your brand visuals while keeping the same core brand elements. This maintains continuity without a huge price tag.?

Timing really is everything here. Your rebrand has to come at the right time and it has to be meaningful. Our Scale Up alum Nosso initially launched as Hapi Plan in 2020 and then announced a new brand and ￡2.5m of investment earlier this year. They described the timing as “the right moment to grow up a bit”. All the press they generated around their investment uses the new brand name, which is a great way to get the news out there.?

The process we use at the Scale Up Collective is:

? Research: Who should be your target audience, what sets you apart from competitors and what market trends are out there.

? Audience development and brand positioning: Your ideal customer and how you attract them.

? Visual look and feel: Once we have a strategy in place, we then move onto visual branding and design.?

? Roll out across all channels: We create a plan to launch the new brand across channels which usually include website, social, email, PR and of course internally.?

And some practical steps to consider:

? Due diligence: If you are choosing a new name, check trademarks, competitors, domains and social handles. If you work internationally, does the name make sense in other languages?

? Take it in stages: You can take your rebrand step by step to help spread out the cost and manage resources

? Make a checklist: Not just for your launch campaign, but for assets you need to rebrand. You would be surprised what gets missed!

In 2016, Mastercard unveiled their first rebrand in over 20 years and were very open about the process. In an interview with Forbes, Mastercard’s chief marketing and communications officer said: “Firstly, resist the temptation to change the brand for the sake of change. The equity and heritage your brand has built over time is an invaluable asset and you need to feel extremely responsible for it.”

Mastercard understood the brand value of the two overlapping circles. They have changed the style, changed their font (and have now dropped the text completely), but have always kept the familiar graphic. What we can learn from this is to take the time to understand what value your brand has and what customers identify with before changing anything. You certainly don’t want to end up like Tropicana who changed their iconic brand with disastrous results.?

Your rebrand is happening! What do we do next?

Consider the impact on you, your team and your customers.?

You as a founder: There’s nothing like a rebrand to bring out a lot of conflicting opinions and any decisions by committee can cripple the whole process. As a founder, you should provide clear objectives and strategic direction to build the best brand.?

Striking a balance between including everyone’s feedback and keeping on track with your original purpose is not always easy, but the rebrand is only as good as the brief.?

When everyone has seen multiple versions of your vision, your brand assets and the new website design and it’s all starting to look the same, bring the team back to the reason why you rebranded and the brief - are you on track with your vision?

Your team: You need to bring your team on the journey. In our team alone we have so many examples of rebrands being led by marketing or a senior leaders and the first the team hears about it is at launch.I think it's important for everyone to proud of the rebrand... you won't represent your brand properly if you're embarrassed by it / don't like it. Your team is such an integral part of your brand, so involve them in your research, for feedback, and make sure they know what’s going on. They will be your biggest advocates during your launch phase, so if they are fully bought in, this will give your rebrand the best chance of success.?

Your customers: Your brand needs to show your customers what you are about, and in turn, your customers should feel a synergy with your brand. As much as the timing should be right for you, it should also be right for your customers. Use surveys, focus groups and even bring in trusted customers to make sure the rebrand will have the right impact. You can use select customers as influencers as part of the rollout - even in B2B. Ask them to share your content, post on social media and support the new brand.?

And on a practical note…

Remember to update all your assets. This is where you need to go through your checklist and make sure that everything that needs to rebranded is underway. Pay particular attention to customer-facing assets such as your website, social channels, email templates and frequently used documents.?

Launch with impact. However much work you put into it, your rebrand on its own probably isn’t newsworthy (sorry!). When you launch, make sure you’re tying in your founder story, your brand story and why you rebranded. Not only does this bring people on your journey and provide context, it is more likely to be picked up by the press if there’s a story involved.?

And that’s not the end of the process. What happens afterwards?

Once your rebrand is out in the world, you need to measure its success. Here are some metrics to look at:

Are your team proud of the new brand? A way to measure this is, if you gave out branded merch, would this get snapped and shared on social media or hidden in a drawer?

Are people talking about the new brand? Have a look at your impressions and mentions on social media and in the press.?

What do your customers think? If they are giving your positive feedback without asking - great! Have your customer-facing team members received any feedback?

Can you see an impact on numbers? This might not be immediate and it can be difficult to track, but is definitely something to monitor.?

After your launch phase, we recommend reviewing your positioning every 12 months:

? Benchmarking yourself against competitors

? Reviewing your position in the market - has it changed?

? Does your brand still fit your purpose?

We'd love to know your feedback on our new brand. And if you like it, please do share it with your friends ??