Marketing Expert Joey Armstrong Explains How Rebranding Companies Can Maintain Their Followings
Companies that are in the process of rebranding, no matter the reason, have their fears and apprehensions. Whether it be an issue of perception, costs, or logistics, Joey Armstrong recognizes that there can be a plethora of obstacles to undergo. When examining some of his former clients’ largest concerns, keeping the following that the entity had worked so hard to create and maintain was commonly the most glaring. After all, companies do not want to see the manifestation of their work being flushed down the drain.
Fortunately for businesses in the process of rebranding, there are several ways to keep their current audience up to speed and on board with their changes. Here, Joey Armstrong pulls from his rebranding expertise to include a few methods for maintaining an audience through a rebranding campaign.
Know Why You Are Rebranding- And Handle Planning Accordingly
Joey Armstrong speaks to the fact that there are hundreds of potential reasons that a company would want to undergo a rebrand. For example, maybe they realized that their looks and messaging do not differentiate themselves enough from the competition. Similarly, it is possible that a brand does not look at home in the current landscape, wants to widen their audience, or has been included in a merger or acquisition. Internally, it is crucial that the brand is aware of the reasoning for its rebrand.
Joey Armstrong recognizes that the reasoning behind the rebrand is instrumental for the development of a plan moving forward. It will decide, not only the steps taken during the rollout, but the best way to unify messaging from the brand as it goes through the process. In his teachings to marketing students, Armstrong maintains that humans are naturally resistant to change. This means that the best way to facilitate widespread change in your business is to do so in as streamlined a way possible. Having a concrete plan will keep things clearly defined for your team and your audience, empowering you to maintain what you have worked to achieve.
Keep Your Services Up to Par with Your Current Standards
Longtime clients may wonder what the reason for a company’s rebrand could be, but they have much less of a reason to rethink the relationship if the services rendered are just as satisfying. Joey Armstrong maintains that customer service is one of the most critical aspects of a business to uphold as it undergoes rebranding. A huge mistake that companies recruiting Armstrong for consulting make is that they put too much of an emphasis on the audience they wish to acquire with their rebrand. While these groups are certainly important, businesses should not lose focus on their existing audience.
The reasoning behind keeping up with your current customer service standards are clear- you want to ensure that a rebrand impacts your existing client-base as little as possible. Keeping an existing audience happy can influence both your revenue flow and perception of the business. It may take longer than a company realizes to fully make the marketing to a new group pay off monetarily, and revenue will drop quickly if existing customers jump ship.
Be Ready with Answers to Hot Questions
Very closely related to keeping existing customers happy during the rebrand, companies are also going to want to anticipate questions that will likely be fielded after their announcements. Joey Armstrong notes that businesses should clarify the answers to hot questions internally as to keep the answers that they provide consistent. Addressing fears and concerns of an existing client-base in a straightforward manner can do wonders for preserving the trust that the business has worked to grow and maintain.
To keep messaging informative, straightforward, and consistent, businesses should ensure that their employees at all levels understand what the rebrand means for both them and the audience. Reason being that apprehensions had by staff will likely trickle down to interactions with existing and potential customers. By clarifying answers to questions fielded by employees, businesses can cement the messaging for when these employees answer questions fielded by the audience. Common questions may include how services or products will change, where more information can be found, and what the rebrand will mean for existing clients. If you can anticipate these questions and ones more specific to your businesses or industry, Joey Armstrong notes that you will be on your way for communicating effectively with your base.
