How to Know if You Should Upgrade Your Branding

If you're reading this, then congratulations! You're likely trying to weigh the pros and cons of hiring a professional brand designer and that means you're committed to your business and how it's portrayed to the world. Trying to figure out whether or not you should upgrade your branding, or keep things the same isn't always an easy decision, and we're gonna go over the tell-tale signs that point to you upgrading your current branding.

Your Services And Products Have Changed

Picture this... You've been in business for 2-3 years now, you've improved your products or leveled up your services, refined your processes, made a decent amount of money, and maybe you've hired some employees, invested in new software, and better quality materials for your products, and you've started taking continuing ed courses. You eventually realize that your DIY branding no longer represents your current business. It’s low quality. It’s grainy and you can’t remember where your other logo files are anymore (if you even have more than one), and your brand colors don’t vibe with the look and feel you’re going for. Or, maybe it was even done by a professional, but even still, it no longer represents your brand well.

If any of that sounds familiar, it sounds like it's time to upgrade your branding. If we're progressing in our business, it only makes sense that over time, our experience and expertise should be improving, our skills should be getting better and more refined, our knowledge should be expanding, and if you're a product-based business, your products should be getting better over time, too. That being said, as your business is growing and improving, your branding should as well. If you're selling $50 non-toxic, high quality, sustainable candles and you're still using your DIY hand-made label that doesn't directly reflect the quality of your product, then you should probably take that as sign to upgrade your branding.

If you're a business coach, or professional service provider, and you've worked with numerous clients over the years and your knowledge has expanded, and your skill set has improved, and you've had more and more experience in your field, but you're using your DIY logo template you purchased off Etsy, or found on Canva, but you're wanting to charge top dollar for your services, you might have a hard time getting your ideal clients to pay top dollar. On the other hand, if you're intentional and you invest in professional brand design (and web design), your potential clients will take notice of how serious you take your business and that you care, not only will you look more professional right off the bat, but people will be more willing to pay top dollar for your services.

Overtime, as your services and skills and products improve, you should consider rebranding, or at the bare minimum, doing a brand refresh. The quality of your branding, and the quality of your products and services should directly reflect each other.

Your Target Audience Has Changed

It's perfectly okay to get a year or two into business and realize that it's time to make some major shifts in order to keep your brand moving in the right direction. Sometimes we out grow our branding and that's not a bad thing. There could be a number of reasons as to why you've outgrown your branding and need to change things up. And you'll realize that the more your business grows, the more you'll keep refining who your brand is, who your target audience is, who you want to serve, how you want to serve them, and so much more.

Big national and international brands such as Starbucks, GAP, Harley Davidson, McDonalds, Comfort Inn, and so many more have made changes to their branding over the years, and you can check out a whole list of these widely known brands and their reasons for changing their branding, and they're fun to look through and see how they've transformed their brands.

Your Business is Either Doing Incredible, or Doing Terrible

Does this sound like you? You finally took the leap into entrepreneur-hood, started that business you've always dreamed of, and you haven't looked back. Your business took off, and you find yourself totally booked out (or sold out, if you are product-based) regularly, you're getting inquiries right and left, and things are great. But, there's just one thing... Your branding. When you started out, you used a quick logo your friend threw together for you one weekend, and you never really established any brand fonts, colors, or anything else to help you stay consistent with your branding. Now that your business has taken off and you're a well known business in your community, you want your branding to reflect that. That's 100% okay, and that's what you should want.

Or, you're on the other end of the spectrum... You're not attracting your ideal clients whatsoever, or any clients at all for that matter. Business is slow, and people aren't sure who you serve, and you're using brand fonts and colors that don't accurately represent the feelings you want your branding to evoke in your ideal customers and clients. You are burnt out from working so much on your business and not seeing results that you just wanna give up entirely. Or your products aren't selling because your branding looks very homemade and DIY, but the quality of your products (or services) are five-star, but your branding doesn't relay that properly.

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