A Short Guide to Brand Revitalization with Nokia Case Study
Rajesh Srinivasan
Founder - Mindful Marketing | Board Advisor | 3x Author | Keynote Speaker | Trusted Advisor to CEOs & CXOs on their path to Growth and Market Leadership
In February 2023, Nokia changed its iconic logo after 60 years.
This change was part of the brand revitalization strategy the company undertook.
It wasn't merely a surface-level identity change.
The company aimed to adapt to the ever-changing tech landscape and revive its brand appeal after losing ground in the mobile handset segment to Android and iPhone.
In this newsletter, I'll be sharing my thoughts on Nokia's strategy behind its brand rejuvenation efforts, while also delving deep into the core principles of revitalizing a brand.
From Mobile Titans to B2B Powerhouse
In the dynamic world of technology, Nokia, once a dominant force in mobile phones, has transformed its business model to thrive in the business-to-business (B2B) market.
With a focus on networking solutions and industrial digitalization, Nokia's B2B segment generated €6.1 billion in revenue in 2021, a significant portion of its total earnings.
Particularly successful in telecommunications, Nokia's 5G equipment and software are utilized worldwide by telecom giants.
Beyond telecom, Nokia serves industries like transportation, energy, and public safety with IoT solutions.
Nokia's resilience and adaptability shine through as it capitalizes on its strengths to drive growth and profitability in the B2B arena, despite missing out on the smartphone era.
Back in the news with its brand revitalization, Nokia, made waves with its logo change on Feb 2023.
The company's CEO, Pekka Lundmark, unveiled the new look, featuring a sleeker, more modern design, aimed at reigniting the brand's appeal among consumers and businesses alike.
The logo, which retained the iconic Nokia name but with a new, contemporary typeface, symbolized the company's commitment to innovation and progress.
It was a bold statement from Lundmark, who had taken over as CEO in August 2020 and had since been working tirelessly to revive Nokia's fortunes.
While the world saw it as a mere logo change, at Mindful Marketing, I believed that Nokia's recent rebranding was actually a strategic move towards brand revitalization.
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So, what brand revitalization really is?
Brand revitalization is a marketing strategy that involves repositioning an existing brand to better resonate with its target audience, improve its competitive position, and drive business growth.
It is a strategic effort to revive a brand that may have lost relevance or appeal over time. The purpose behind using brand revitalization is to restore the brand's health and enhance its overall appeal to customers.
It's more like a house renovation
Brand revitalization exercise is like a house renovation - it involves taking a fresh look at the brand, identifying areas of weakness, and making changes to improve its functionality and appeal.
However, just as a house renovation involves more than just cosmetic changes like a fresh coat of paint (in case of companies – a logo change), brand revitalization should involve more than just a superficial refresh of the brand's image.
To truly revitalize a brand, it is important to carry out internal changes in the structure and culture of the organization.
This means rethinking processes and procedures, investing in new technologies and infrastructure, and fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration. Just as a house renovation may involve updating plumbing or electrical systems, brand revitalization may involve restructuring teams and bring alignment.
6R-s of Brand Revitalization
Larry Light, former CMO of McDonald's, has outlined six rules for brand revitalization. These rules provide a useful framework for companies seeking to revive their brands and improve their overall appeal to customers.
Back to Nokia’s revitalization story
In Nokia's revitalization strategy, the focus lies on updating the company's logo and messaging to reflect its renewed emphasis on 5G networking technology.
The revamped logo and messaging aim to convey this strategic shift, positioning Nokia as a leader in the 5G sector.
This comprehensive approach ensures Nokia remains relevant in the eyes of new customers and partners seeking innovative solutions to technological challenges.
Overall, Nokia's strategy demonstrates a thoughtful brand revitalization effort rather than a mere superficial change in logo.
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1 年Needed one Rajesh Srinivasan sir. In existing pace of the business and tech revolution , it is imperative to analyze the business model and products to align with market shift and ever evolving consumer preferences well in advance. Though the task is not easy as it sounds but strategy makers must be mindful of these shifts and reposition the brand image and its products as per scenario. Status quo is not going to help anymore except few legacy brands about whom customers are on advocacy level and enjoying the original brand authenticity than redefined version of it.
Design Thinking for making Marketing Customer Centric|Coalescing Brand and Performance for Customer Lead Business Growth| MarTech and Adtech Expertise to evangelise Customer Journey |Data Intelligence |@IIMB|@MIT
1 年My thoughts When Nokia was a household name for the hand held cell phones it was also behemoth in Network and Communication technology provider with Ericsson, AT&T being a few other players just as Amazon Web Services (AWS) was the cloud data platform while Amazon is a household name. So was it business reinvention on realising that while it fell asleep at the wheels in case of D2C segment was it loss one arm leading to extra focus on the already existing arm and possibly more profitable. It did not change course or reinvent as such the Rebranding excercise was PR exercise at best .