It’s common for a business to change their branding as they grow or mature. Businesses change their branding for a variety of reasons which include new ownership, name changes, reputation management and to keep the business new and fresh. If you are thinking of making changes to your brand, the way customers perceive your business is going to change; these perceptions make it important to update your signage as well.
Rebranding a business can be tricky. You don’t want to change your brand elements so much that they are unrecognizable to loyal customers, but you do have to change the elements enough to convince potential customers to give your products a shot. Rebranding involves a lot of change, so it is important to stay flexible; you need to be able to change campaigns based on consumer reactions. It is about finding a good balance; you need new people to notice your product, but your new product can’t offend older customers.
Corporate signage specialists recommend keeping one brand element the same during rebranding. If you keep one element the same, older customers feel like they are still patronizing the company they trusted before the rebranding efforts took place. For example, if you are changing your company name, then make sure that you keep your old brand’s colors. The only good time to completely overhaul your brand is when you want to break ties with your past; if your business has a bad reputation or has experienced a scandal, you might want to consider completely overhauling your brand.
Tangible elements of your brand need to be represented through your signage, so it is important to make sure that your storefront reflects your new brand. If you don’t update all the elements of your business, it creates a disconnect between you and your customers. When people see signage and advertisements that aren’t reflective of what goes on in the store, they feel put off and mislead. The best way to let your customers know that changes are coming is to put up some “Grand Reopening” or “Under New Management” signs; this acknowledges that changes are coming without scaring away older and loyal customers.
Once you get customers into your store, use signs to direct them; when things look different, customers rely on signs to navigate through your store. Use posters near your entrance to direct customers to your best-selling products; when you do this, you let your loyal customers know that things haven’t changed too drastically. If you’ve done research, you can be confident about your new branding efforts; when done correctly, the process is pretty easy.