As a business owner, you know your company better than anyone else. You’ve defined your brand, but what about evolving it? Our ever-changing world leaves little room for staying stagnant. In fact, evolution can make or break the success of a business. When LEGO launched in 1939, their offering was simple: children’s building blocks. Building a franchise was only possible by allowing their brand to grow—creating more durable products, tapping into the adult market, building LEGOLAND, and adapting to new media like video games and film such as the Lord of the Rings.
Their success was built on evolving with the times and the needs of their customers. But the transition is not always simple. For your businesses’ success, we’ve outlined four steps in the evolution of a brand and why your company needs it.
How do you know when to take a step forward? We’ve learned it’s not about when, but which way. The first step is looking for opportunity. As you begin to play with the idea of changing your brand, you are pushed to reexamine your businesses, customers, and culture. Question the status quo to see where the holes are and then explore ways you can fill them. What aspects of your business that could benefit from new technology or processes? Look at the parts of your business that you take for granted and assess whether a change would be beneficial.
People trust familiarity but love shiny and new. Bringing these together is the biggest hurdle when trying to change a brand. It’s also the most important. Completely disregarding your established brand is like throwing away all the effort of past marketing, but so is refusing to adapt. An old brand has loyalty and a new brand has savvy—it’s what makes brand evolution so strong. By tackling this challenge well, your business will build an identity that wins over customers, no matter your industry.
Question the status quo to see where the holes are and then explore ways you can fill them.
Between 2012 to 2013, the number of local business owners on Facebook grew by 100% (from 8 to 16 million). And that was four years ago. Our culture doesn’t find success and settle; it keeps looking for new ideas. For your brand to simply stay relevant, you have to keep up. Know your audience and market, so you can make quick and smart decisions. The faster you learn, the faster you grow in the right direction.
Say you start with a new look for your business—now what? An evolving brand is a living thing. Recognize that success yesterday doesn’t guarantee success tomorrow. Work to stay relevant. Create products or services that continue to entice your client or customer, over and over. This commitment is the only way to make a lasting impact.
Since the beginning, the Skidmore family business has been evolving. The walls that once helped build our group are now limiting us from further growth, and naturally requiring us to evolve.
With the new Skidmore Group brand, we have a more specific focus while building on the foundations of our past success. This provides us an opportunity to partner with other businesses to increase growth and capitalize on potential. Ready to join us?