“Hey, can you do a quick rebrand?”

We get this question a lot, and understandably so! Many of our current and future clients want to change up and modernize their brand to fit the vibes of their audience better and keep up with the Jones’ on the other side of the billboard. We get it! But a quick rebrand isn’t as quick as you may think– in fact, it might not be quite what you’re looking for. It comes down to the difference between a rebrand and a refresh, and which one is right for you. 

So what exactly is the difference between a rebrand and a refresh? 

Rebrand

Think of branding like it’s your house (we love a good analogy). You renovated your kitchen years ago, back when Tuscan decor was in and “Yeah!” by Usher was playing on your CD player/radio combo. But now it’s time for something new, and you’ve got shiplap on your mind. 

Marketing rebrands are a complete renovation of what you already have, like tearing out outdated cupboards and replacing the tiled countertops. It can be a lengthy process and a hefty investment, but the results? Gorgeous. You finally feel at home in your brand again. 

Rebranding doesn’t just change the look of your brand. It goes deep into market research, competitor analysis, strategic planning, color theory, and more to change not only how your brand is viewed, but where it is viewed and how often. This can have incredible results for your business, plus, you’ll feel extra cool when you whip out your new business card the next time your aunt Carol asks you “so what is it you do, again?” at a family get-together. 

Refresh

A marketing refresh takes what you already have and spruces it up. It’s quicker, less of an investment, and a great option if you already love what you have but you just need some tweaks. It’s the equivalent of painting over the Tuscany Tan walls, replacing the brushed nickel hardware, and putting away the decorative bottles with the peppers inside (you know the ones) rather than tearing out your whole kitchen. 

From a brand perspective, this can look like adding new brand patterns, changing up your color palette, adding some different elements, updating your brand fonts, creating a new tagline, and more. It’s a cosmetic renovation that lifts your brand from feeling a little outdated to feeling sparkly and new. 

Marketing refreshes take less time than marketing rebrands, but can still be incredibly impactful for your business. If you’ve ever painted a room in your house, you know how much of an improvement that seemingly small change can make.

How do you know which option is right for you?

Knowing the difference between rebranding and refreshing is all well and good, but sometimes it can be hard to figure out which one you need. Asking yourself the following questions will help you decide if you need a whole new kitchen or if you can just paint the walls to still get that “wow” factor:

Do you even like your brand?

Let’s be real for a second. If you don’t like your brand, doing a refresh won’t be enough. Maybe someone before you was in charge of branding, you hired someone to do your branding and they gave you a bad brand guide and then ghosted you, or you just simply don’t like it anymore– that’s okay, it happens to everyone (except MINT clients 😉)! Whatever the reason is, adding a new color scheme to a brand that gives you the ick isn’t going to fix it. You need a rebrand, STAT. 

Okay, so you like your brand. But is it getting you the results you want?

Maybe you like your brand, but it’s not drawing in new people. It’s good, but it doesn’t stand out in the crowd. It accurately reflects your business, but it looks like every other business in your industry. These aren’t bad things if you are happy with the amount of business you have coming in, but if you are looking to expand, a branding refresh will give your brand the extra eye-catching pizazz you need. 

Does your current branding fit your business? 

It isn’t ideal to change your branding with every new trend that comes along, but if your brand was last updated 20 years ago, it might be time for a refresh or an entire rebrand. It is important to stay relevant to your customer base, and having an outdated brand can have negative impacts on the quality and quantity of new customers and clients. Talking through your current brand with marketing experts will help you determine how much your brand needs to change to reflect who you are as a business.

Do you just want to mix things up a bit?

Sometimes you like everything about your house, but then you find the *perfect* new artwork to hang in your kitchen and it makes the space even better. For your brand, that could be a new accent color or font, some new brand patterns to go on your printed materials, or updating your logo colors. The smallest changes sometimes make the biggest impact! If this sounds like what you are looking for, a branding refresh is the best choice for you.

We’re here to help!

If you still don’t know if you need a brand refresh or a brand redesign, that’s okay! We’re here to help you figure out what your options are– after all, marketing and branding are what we do best, and there’s nothing we would love more than digging into your brand and figuring out how make it feel like home to you. Whether your brand just needs a new paint job or if the entire space has to be redone, we’ve got the (power)tools to turn your brand into something that feels like it belongs to you. Plus, once your rebrand or refresh is complete, we can help integrate it into your business with our other services, including:

• Website updates
• Business cards
• Brochures
• Signage
• Social media posts

…and anything else that helps you get your brand out to your customers.

After all, is there a better feeling than showing off your updated kitchen to anyone you can reasonably wrangle through the door? We don’t think so. 

Book your branding call with MINT Brand Marketing to get started today!