Rebranding. Lots of companies did it. Either they dislike their current brand, their values do not match the previous brand anymore, or whatever the reasons, rebranding is something that most of the companies will do. Sometimes rebranding is seen as inevitable as people and companies grow. Values might also come externally when it changes overtime based on what's on demand.
For example, Netflix used to be a DVD rental. But as the time progresses, very small number of people still watch DVD. Therefore, they did a rebranding from the DVD rental platform to on-demand streaming service. We will never know if Netflix will did another big rebrand in the future.
Rebranding does not necessarily a change in name, logo, colour, and any other corporate visual identity. A transformation of what the company does counts as a rebrand, too, because they change the way they position themselves in the market.
At the time of this writing, there is a full rebrand on Twitter. From Twitter, to X. Yes, you are not seeing it wrong. The new name is just one simple letter.
Not only their name, logo, corporate visual identity are changed, but their position in the market changed too. The way I see it, now Twitter, nay, X, wanted to monetise from each account being created on the platform. Therefore, it doesn't sound like a social media platform anymore where to purpose of users is to socialise and network. However, it is like a competition platform of who can make the most engaging contents and gain as much "viewers" (the new term of "followers") as possible, so each users can gain something more meaningful of it, such as money.
It's not a necessarily new and transformative direction in the industry.
Instagram has been implementing that since the rise of Instamodels, Instacelebrities, and Instagram Influencers. And then followed by TikTok.
It's just that, maybe for the first time, a company is being honest and actually saying it out loud that they are making this platform to monetise on your presence.
The aftermath of Twitter's announcement caused a huge wave of criticism.
Many designers and visual artists mentioned that X is a bad name with a bad logo. Memes and parodies followed its criticism. Apparently here we can also see how people loved the iconic Twitter bird, too.
It is rather difficult to know exactly what caused the big change. It's even more difficult to know whether the change is a sudden or a long-awaited one.
What's more: there is little official documentation or announcement from Twitter team explaining this change. The only official source I could find is from Elon Musk's late night tweets, or X's.
Like everybody else, I have some thoughts on rebranding.
And it's not just based on Twitter's rebranding. But many other rebranding I've seen in general.
Firstly, I just feel slightly bad on Jack, the actual creator of Twitter. He built the brand, the product. Over time, it got improved. And once it's sold to Elon Musk, (almost) everything turns into something he's never intended it to become. This is probably something to keep in mind for many creators out there. When you are selling your creation, remember that your creation will be turned into something you either like, or dislike. It may even be turned into a weapon that attacks you (not necessarily the case with Twitter). If you are aware whatever that will happen, feel free to sell it. If you still have high expectations, hold on dearly to your creation.
Secondly, make sure that your user would be very much happier with the new rebranding. Not just your investors, or board of directors.
There is a brand that I used to love because they are different, they are non-conforming to the other unhealthy standards. They offer healthy food towards busy people who has almost no time to cook a healthy meal. And many other like this company and their value, too. However, they soon decided to did a full rebranding to become an (sort of) fast-food chain. In an interview, the founder mentioned that it is to appeal to more people as it is more affordable and they indeed want to steer away from healthy food. The company may or may not achieve a greater success now, but a large number of their fans now no longer interested in the company as it doesn't align with our value anymore.
Before doing a rebrand, let's rethink. Does it worth to sacrifice a large number of your existing fans in order to appeal to a crowd? Will you also be irreplaceable once you've appealed to the mainstream crowd?
Sometimes, once you have appealed to a mainstream audience, you lose your unique value and be easily replaceable. In the case above, affordable and tasty food can be easily created by many. Even small competitors can outrun it in no time. Soon, there is just no more reason left for people to choose your brand.
"But I need to rebrand to appeal to my investors.", some might argue.
When investors are involved, they do sometimes complicate a once simple product with their endless requirements that sometimes don't reflect the users. My suggestion for creators out there is to really pick one. Investors, or users. This is probably no easy decision, as this will determine the future of your product. Whichever you choose, you should choose with knowledge, thoughts, research, and less emotional reaction.
Finally, I think a rebrand can either improve or impair a brand. It doesn't matter to rebrand or not to rebrand, it matters more on the direction you are going forward.
Let's just take the example of Netflix. They change their market positioning because their users way of consuming content had also change. In this case, we can see that after years, they're not only surviving, but also thriving. We would never know if they will always maintain that position, or will Netflix be long forgotten like a Blockbuster?
Blockbuster did not do any rebranding but they are now just a thing in the past. So to rebrand or not to rebrand is not the only success factor. It's the strategy on how you move forward.
If you would like to rebrand, think of how to truly use this opportunity to make the best of your company and your product. Sometimes people think they are stuck and let's just rebrand to refresh. But if a rebrand is not accepted well by the users, it might drive the brand downwards. Some companies also think to engage with well-known agency and give their image a refresh. However, even the world-renowned agency might still be able to impair your brand if a rebrand is the last thing you need.
I hope this article on a rebrand encourages you to take a step back and rethink. To all the product creators out there, I wish you well with any decision you made. To rebrand, or to rethink.
Leni Tjahjadi
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