5 Signs It’s Time For A Rebrand | Episode 87

Hello hello and welcome back to the Purpose & Progress Podcast. This is a bonus 3rd Tuesday of the month solo episode.

And before I dive too far into today’s topic: signs you need a rebrand, I wanted to flag that there’s a mini “Ask An Expert In Progress” segment at the end of this episode, with a soundbite from past guest Kimberly Tara. She’s a CPA, Certified Tax Coach & Tax Strategist. I interviewed her in Episode 73, which is linked in the show notes, along with her business website.

I’ve mentioned before (at least in my newsletter) that I’m here for all the “new year, new you” content. I get sucked into the YouTube algorithm vortex with zero need of convincing. Partly for the market research, but partly for the motivation.

But not because I think the new year signifies anything more than Jan 2 or Oct 5, or anywhere in between. (More of my thoughts on arbitrary milestones in episode 50, linked in the show notes.)

It’s also not that I believe you “need” to change yourself, especially to fit other people’s narrow views of what’s “right.” Although I would argue, we all evolve and/or the world around us changes, so our relationship to it and the people in it are constantly in flux. (More ideas on committing to consistency amidst constant change in episode 61 and giving yourself a label to prevent others from mislabeling you in episode 82, both linked below.)

So, the golden question: how do I know if I need a rebrand?

The quick answer: when it just doesn’t feel, sound, look like you anymore.

The full answer…obviously more nuanced.

Here are a few signs:

• “We haven’t refreshed our mission and vision in decades.” A friend of mine literally told me this the other day. Her boss threw her into a rebrand without any strategy to back it up or drive it forward. They’d already worked with a designer without giving him any breadcrumbs (let alone golden nuggets) to design around. And their mid-sized team hadn’t given any insight or buy-in either. (Luckily, we’re co-creating their collective new brand messaging strategy centered around their team’s values soon. And I can’t wait.)
• “I’m launching a new website.” Because your home turf on the interwebs NEEDS to represent your brand’s intention, while matching other people’s perception. And that aligns (or misaligns) most intensely on your website.
• “I’m getting a new logo/visual identity.” We often think of think of colors, fonts, logos, etc. making up a brand…but what do you tell the designer? What are they representing with their beautiful visuals? How do you know when they’ve nailed it? (These are not rhetorical questions…the answers to those questions are what actually make up the brand. The visuals simply reflect it.)
• “I’m hiring a copywriter.” Or an OBM. Or a coach. Or a VA. Or a social media strategist. Or a salesperson. Or a customer experience pro. Or a community manager. Literally anyone. If what you’re bringing them on board to do doesn’t match what you already have going for you, it’s time to close that gap through values-aligned brand strategy.
• “I’m having a bit of an identity crisis and feel like my values really aren’t reflected in my brand anymore.” As CEO of your business, brand visionary, leader of your personal life, you need to feel a strong sense of alignment, pride (the good kind, not the arrogant kind), and purpose. And if anything about your marketing, operations, or other decision-making feels out of whack, you need to address that spidey-sense tingle ASAP. *(More thoughts on reframing and auditing your own brand values here.)*

But then a rebrand may also NOT be the vibe.

But if the time DOES feel right for a rebrand, you need to go in ready for some deep self-reflection. (Ideally with some outside perspective and empathetic accountability too. Ahem, those are my specialties.)

And when you do your rebrand, that brand messaging strategy is such a foundational piece of the puzzle.

Your brand messaging gives direction. And clarity. And confidence to everyone involved.

Not just for you and your team (which is super important). But also to your audience, collaborators, and anyone you want to connect with.

Ok let’s dig into something a bit less theoretical and more applicable. In a recent episode of the Balanced Black Girl podcast (which I watched as a YT video instead because…the algorithm—it’s linked below), gave some super concrete exercises and examples around a personal rebrand.

And since she’s a founder-forward entrepreneur and content creator, the crossover to business-building was super clear to me.

She related a personal rebrand to updating your operating system on your phone. So you might have new features, better belt and whistles, or you might just run more smoothly. It’s the same phone (you’re the same you), but the operating system got an upgrade (aka your rebrand).

No surprise, my favorite prompt was a 3-word exercise to anchor your new direction and subsequent actions. (Very similar to your “style language” if you consume any personal style content, or values exercises like I facilitate. I’ll link examples of both in the show notes.)

I ALWAYS say our values are our “how” and literally compare them to our operating system in our business, so all her ideas were hitting home.

So, if you’re as nosy (or we’ll call it curious) as I am, my words were vibrant, centered, and expansive. The first 2 came to mind really quickly. And I really struggled with a third one. But you know, straight-A me had to complete the assignment. And I do think the concept rounds it all out.

And as always, how we define our values or vibes really make a big difference.

For vibrant, I want to be full of life. I want to be full of energy. I want to be showing up for myself. I want to be showing up for others. I also want to be inviting permission for other people to do the same.

I want my life to be beautiful and colorful. Not overwrought, not drawn too thin, not constantly on the cusp of burnout (where I tend to hang out), but nice and juicy and full.

I don’t want to tone myself down or fight against my nature or whims. I want to be a beacon of light, inviting it in, shining it on others, being a source of possibility and positivity.

For centered, I’m a homebody. I always want to feel like I have a home base that I love to go back to, even when I explore. And I’m talking both my physical home, my body and personal style, and my professional home (aka my brand). I’ve felt really detached from my body over the last few years with a chronic illness diagnosis and management (latent Type 1 diabetes, if you can relate), two pregnancies with two postpartum periods and two breastfeedings journeys, a broken toe, getting back into exercise amidst all this.

Centered to me also means coming into my own value system, coming into how I want to show up, how I’m most confident, what I’m best known for. (Essentially, the work I do so well and enthusiastically for other people.)

And it means really prioritizing what’s in front of me, what I want and need, being able to see AND articulate that. This seems basic, but I really struggle with all of the above and I know I’m not alone.

And maybe surprisingly, I don’t wanna be particularly “grounded.” That’s not what I mean when I say centered. I want my head to be in the sky a little bit. I don’t even want to be focused (necessarily). I want to be able to go a million in one directions, as long as they can eventually point back to that center, whatever that center is. And the center can be a moving target too, right? Think of how our center of gravity changes as we stand up and sit down—still centered, but in motion. I like that flexibility.

For expansive, it’s not necessarily about being or having or doing more. (Although sometimes more is more, so it’s also not about minimalism or the ever-popular “doing less” movement.) I imagine it being about new opportunities, new relationships, new experiences. And not even always entirely new, but also deeper—deeper with the people in my life, deeper with the subject matter I already talk about, deeper with the clients I already work with, deeper with the offers I have. Or if not deeper, then bigger or better in whatever way makes sense in that moment.

So for me, that expansiveness is multidirectional, multidimensional, and really encompasses how I want to be feeling and what I want to be doing and producing.

And sometimes in motherhood, you (or at the very least, I) can feel really, really stagnant. Kids are always constantly growing, changing, developing, exploring and sometimes it feels like you’re just kind of there for the show or to keep the show running smoothly. So expansiveness in this phase of my life is wanting to be a more active participant in my own life. But also active and a big presence in in my kids’ lives, in my clients’ lives, in my friends’ and families’ lives. (Yes, I want it all, unapologetically, if not in entirely equal proportions.) So often clients come to me either because they’re on their brink of really great momentum or because they’re feeling really stagnant, and they need to shake things up. I love holding that space for them and I want to do the same (or find the same) for me too.

And I’m also thinking about more concrete expansion—revenue, reach, audience growth, what I’m capable of, who I am, what this life is, even expanding my kids’ horizons. Again, not just growing necessarily “bigger,” but always better. (That progress that seems to be such a central theme in my life and work lately. I recently recorded episode 85 all about sharing this progress in public and giving permission to others to do the same.)

So that’s my current vibe going into the rest of this year, or however long. I’m SUPER curious what your words are—if they’re your values directly or more of a feeling or description like mine were. Definitely send me a DM or voice memo to share yours.

Regardless, an exercise like this can be a great starting off point because it’s essentially a boiled down brand messaging prompt. So if you think a rebrand or refresh are on your horizon, let this be your green light to just start.

Your brand messaging strategy reflects your biggest vision for your business and its potential for impact. And your brand messaging guide maps it all out on [virtual] paper so that it’s there to reference when you, a team member, or a partner need it.

Brand messaging makes purposeful shifts easier. And intentional decision-making faster. And discernment between opportunities vs distractions clearer.

Because when whatever you’re creating or faced with aligns with the 6 core elements I advocate for in a brand messaging strategy—brand statement, mission, values, audience, voice, and key differentiators, which I talk about in episode 68—then you know you’re on the right track.

(Caveat: until very recently, I included “core messages” as part of my process instead of key differentiators, but in doing more brand messaging strategies and audits than I can count, I found that most people really struggle with articulating what makes them different than everyone else. And I found that my clients were getting lost in the pages of potential “core messages” I provided, rather than leveraging them in copy, content, and conversations like I intended. So that’s been a process shift in my messaging strategy that I offer.)

If you want more of all this goodness (the direction, the clarity, the confidence, the collective buy-in, the manageability, the roadmapping, etc.), then it’s time to either co-create or fine tune your values-aligned brand messaging strategy.

⇒ The best next step? Let’s chat via a free Alignment Call.

We’ll talk about where you’re coming from, where you’re headed, and how we can work together.

Be sure to check out all the resources in the show notes below or at ashleesang.com/podcast.

I’m about to hand the mic over the Kimberly for our mini “Ask An Expert In Progress” segment.

After that, come back next week because I’ll be coming at you with another solo episode to kick off the month!