Full Rebrand vs. Brand Refresh: Which Is Right for Your Health and Wellness Product?
If you’re looking to make changes to your health and wellness product’s branding, it is essential to understand the difference between a full rebrand and a brand refresh.
Both approaches can be effective, but they serve different purposes and require different levels of investment. Let’s dive deeper!
Aventive Studio is a full-service branding agency that helps health & wellness businesses sell more products. We can update your visual branding, develop a rebranding strategy that positions your business for its next level, and more.
Learn about our branding & design services here.
Rebrand vs. Refresh: What’s the Difference?
A full rebrand involves a complete overhaul of your product’s branding. This includes changing your product name, logo, brand messaging, and even visual identity.
A full rebrand is typically undertaken when a product needs to be positioned differently in the market, when there is a change in ownership, or when a company is pivoting to a new business model.
On the other hand, a brand refresh involves updating and refining your product’s branding without changing its fundamental identity. This can include making changes to your logo, refreshing your product packaging, updating your brand messaging, and refining your visual identity.
A brand refresh is usually undertaken to keep your product’s branding up-to-date and relevant or even to make minor adjustments to improve its appeal to customers.
So, which is right for your health and wellness product? The answer depends on your business goals and the extent of the changes you want to make.
When Does Your Business Need Rebranding?
Rebranding is a process of changing the image, name, and other branding elements of a business. There are several cases where rebranding your business makes sense. Here are some of them.
For examples of how we’ve helped our health & wellness clients rebrand their businesses, you can explore our projects here.
1. When There Is a Change in Your Business’s Focus
A business may rebrand when it changes its focus or shifts to a new market. For example, a company that started as a clothing retailer may decide to focus on selling accessories, and thus rebrand to reflect the new focus.
Similarly, if you have been selling quinoa-based food products and suddenly start selling weight gain supplements, there may be an adjustment period as people get used to the new product line.
Your customers may not know what to expect from the new products or they may have trouble establishing your credibility around your new product offerings.
For whatever reason, it sometimes makes sense to completely change your focus from one industry to another (or even merge two or more industries into one), and this can be a very good reason for rebranding.
2. When There Is a Merger or Acquisition in the Works
Speaking of merging, you might want to rebrand if you are merging with another company or if there is an acquisition in the future.
If you are planning on merging with another company or acquiring another company, then you will need to make sure that everything aligns properly between both entities so that no confusion arises because of any marketing collateral involved.
The new entity may need a new name, logo, or visual identity that reflects the merger or acquisition.
In addition to making sure that everything looks consistent with theirs, you would also need to make sure that the rebranding strategies of both entities align with each other.
3. When You Have an Outdated Brand Identity
This is usually the case with brands that have been around for decades. It is important for brands to stay relevant, especially considering that no two age demographics within the millennial or Gen-Z groups have similar preferences.
Older businesses may need to rebrand if their existing branding is outdated or no longer resonates with their target audience. This could include updating your logo, colors, or messaging.
4. When You Want to Eliminate Negative Associations with Your Brand
If your business has negative associations with its current branding, you may need to rebrand to distance itself from those associations and create a more positive image. That’s what PR is all about – controlling your public image!
Your reputation stands to suffer greatly as a result of poor press, bad reviews, and other negative publicity. It is important for your brand to be seen as professional and trustworthy by potential customers before they make a purchase decision.
Successful rebranding can help improve this perception, which can help you reinstate trust in your current customers as well as attract more customers.
5. When You Want to Expand Into New Markets
If a business expands into new markets, it may need to rebrand to ensure that its branding is relevant and resonates with the new market. You can’t simply refresh certain aspects of your brand and call it a day.
You will be required to deep-dive into this new market segment, the different preferences of the new demographic, and the competition. So, for instance, if you are a donut brand venturing into vegan meat, you will need to do a complete 180 to appeal to the senses of this new target audience.
We highly encourage every company considering a rebrand to work with a professional branding agency that can develop this brand strategy for you.
Ultimately, the decision to rebrand should be based on the needs and goals of the business and should be carefully planned and executed to ensure that the new branding effectively communicates the desired message and image.
When Does Your Business Need a Brand Refresh?
Brand identity is everything. It sets you apart from competitors, helps you build relationships with customers, and influences how people perceive your business.
A brand refresh is a process of updating and revitalizing a company’s existing brand identity without completely changing it. It can help you stay current and relevant. Here are 5 reasons why you might have to refresh your brand instead of doing a full rebrand.
1. When You Are Operating in an Evolving Market
Your business may be doing well right now, but that doesn’t mean it will always be a winner in the current market. Trends change quickly, consumers’ preferences evolve over time, and competition can get fierce (especially if you are new).
If the market has evolved since the last time the brand was updated, it may be time for a refresh to ensure that the brand stays current and relevant.
There is always a new entrant that can be a threat in the health and wellness category, and relevant branding is one of the most important things you can do to stay competitive and relevant in your market.
2. When There is a Change in Consumer Needs
There are lots of internal and external factors that affect a consumer’s buying decisions. If your consumers’ needs have changed, a brand refresh can help you better connect with them and meet their needs.
At present, many companies, especially those operating in the lifestyle category, are experiencing a need to refresh their brands because consumers are going vegan, making healthier choices, or looking for cruelty-free alternatives for everything.
The change is so prominent that even investors and venture capitalists are hesitant to invest in lifestyle brands that don’t share these values.
You can afford to be set in your ways if you are lucky enough to have loyal customers who are happy with their experiences with your product or service. If not, you will need to find things about your brand that need tweaking or improving so that the world does not pass you by.
3. When Your Company is Experiencing Stagnant Growth
Unless you have captured the entire market and peaked in terms of product and service offerings, there is always something you can do to improve your bottom line.
A brand refresh can help you create excitement and generate renewed interest in the company if your growth seems to be stalled. You can read a rebranding case study from one of our skincare clients here to get a sense of what the process entails.
4. When You Are Competing With New Ventures
Reclaiming your competitive edge is crucial when your competitors have core values that are more relevant to your consumer market than yours or they are simply getting more attention from consumers because their marketing is better than yours.
If you are losing market share to new competitors or even the old ones who are freshening up their brands, this could be your cue to refresh your brand so that you can stand out and differentiate from the competition, own your space in the market, and present yourself as a viable option for customers.
5. When You Want to Update Your Visual Elements
This is self-explanatory. If a business’s visual identity (i.e. logo, colors, typography, etc.) looks outdated, a brand refresh can be instrumental in updating these elements to give the brand a more modern look and feel.
Keep in mind that your goal should be to retain the essence of the brand while making it more relevant and appealing to the target audience.
So, while you can change the way you communicate your message using updated graphics, your message should remain unchanged for it to be a brand refresh. Should you change your core message altogether, it will be considered part of a rebranding.
Aventive Studio can update your visual identity, logo design, brand colors, website design, packaging design, and more – all with the base of a unique rebranding strategy that will help you scale. Learn more about our signature process here.
Is a Brand Refresh or Full Rebrand Right For You?
If you are looking to make significant changes to your product’s positioning or you are pivoting to a new business model, a full rebrand may be necessary.
This will involve a complete overhaul of your branding, which will require more time, effort, and resources. However, it can be an effective way to breathe new life into your product and position it for success in a new market.
If, on the other hand, you want to make minor adjustments to your product’s branding to keep it up-to-date and relevant, a brand refresh may be the way to go. This can be a less time-consuming and less expensive option, but it can still have a significant impact on your product’s appeal to customers.
The decision to opt for a full rebrand or a brand refresh should depend on your business’s specific needs and goals. Our branding experts at Aventive Studio can help you take the time to consider your options and make the right choice for your health and wellness brand.
Get in touch with our team to learn more and take the next steps to update your health and wellness branding today!