There are dozens of companies out there with brand strategy services, and finding the right one can be overwhelming. Even if you know you need branding services, defining the specifics can be tough.
Using a framework (like our IDEA Method) can take some of the stress out of changing your brand, but branding is never one-size-fits-all. The truth is, you need a team of skilled experts to brand a company successfully. They will take a tailored approach to your needs and your customers’ preferences.
After all, your brand is your company’s lifeblood. Changing a brand isn’t something to take lightly, and– if you have a strong brand– it’s not something you’ll need to do often.
That being said, these six big events might mean it’s time to take a closer look at your brand and invest in some brand strategy services.
6 times to use brand strategy services
Here are some crucial times to take a look at your branding:
1. When you’re launching a new product or product line
Are you expanding your current offers?
You might be moving from managing suburban apartments to your first downtown building. Or offering co-working spaces in the same building as an apartment. Whatever your new offering, you want to make sure your brand reflects all of what you do.
That’s where brand strategy services come in. Product marketing vs. brand marketing aren’t necessarily competing with each other, but they are both necessary when launching a new product or line.
Brand strategy services can help you reposition yourself and change how customers see you. When your brand reflects your full suite of services, you’ll be spared from hearing, “You do what??? I didn’t realize!” from your customers six, 12, or 24 months post-launch.
Benefits most from: the Energize phase
At Flux, branding services start with our IDEA Method – Ignite, Distill, Energize, Activate. Each and every brand we work with goes through all of these phases. However, different brands need more emphasis placed on certain steps.
A brand that’s making changes due to a new product offering benefits most from the Energize phase. In this phase, we take strategic intelligence gathered from the Ignite and Distill phases and translate it into visuals.
That visual change can spark a conversation with your existing customers and draw in new ones, giving you the perfect opportunity to talk about the changing services you provide.
Brand example: Pfizer
In 2021, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer visually rebranded to draw attention to their new focus on scientific research. The logo changed from a flat, commercial-feeling oval to a double helix – representing the DNA research Pfizer is committed to.
The CEO described the rebrand as a sign that “Pfizer is no longer in the business of just treating diseases – we’re curing and preventing them.” We describe it as an excellent example of using rebranding to highlight new products and services.
2. When you’re looking for a fresh start
Companies can have whole lives of their own, and these lives have occasional twists and turns. Sometimes, this means that your brand becomes associated with something you don’t actually stand for – or something you no longer stand for.
This can cause a widening spiral of problems for your company and your customers. Maybe you’re dealing with bad press, negative reviews, or a course-changing event that you need to correct.
Brand strategy services can help you refocus your company and take back the narrative.
Branding services can help you effectively communicate who you are as a company and what you truly stand for.
Benefits most from: the Activate phase
In the Activate phase of the IDEA method, we take your brand out into the world. This includes showing up in your customers’ lives in a bold, positive way. It’s easy to see why this can make such a difference to brands looking for a fresh start.
Brand strategy services can (and should) help you create excellent internal-facing documents. But companies struggling with an inaccurate image benefit strongly from the Activate phase with its focus on putting your new brand in front of customers.
Brand example: Meta
Meta (still sometimes called Facebook) underwent a massive rebrand after a slew of accusations. Even before this, the company was considered “old person social media” – not the image that Facebook wanted to convey.
Rebranding to Meta shows the company’s new outlook on life and its commitment to moving forward and bringing people together in the digital space. While people are still divided on whether this was the right move, Meta has altered the public’s perception of them – even if it’s only a small step in a different direction.
3. When you’re finalizing a merger, acquisition, or sale
Mergers, acquisitions, and sales are exciting times in a company’s life. They can also be some of the shakiest. A branding checklist can help minimize the stress, but there are some questions it can’t answer.
How will you incorporate elements from both companies’ brands?
Are you dealing with one small brand integrating into a larger one?
Or are you looking to start a totally new brand?
How will you convey these new changes to your team members?
These are all questions brand strategy services can answer. Rebranding can help significantly with how to integrate companies after acquisition.
Every person involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale wants to make sure their voice is heard. This can lead to unnecessary stress and confused brand identity – at least for a while. In a time when your company’s identity is constantly shifting, an outside eye is the greatest power of brand strategy services.
Benefits most from: the Distill phase
All that to say, brands undergoing a merger, acquisition, or sale will love the Distill phase.
The Distill phase of the IDEA method results in a beautiful, internal-facing document. This document clarifies your internal branding from top to tail. Your employees (especially the marketing team) won’t be left to figure things out on their own.
More importantly, you don’t have to deal with a hundred branding questions a day during this stressful time. Instead, you’ll sit down with our team, and we’ll help you organize your ideas over the course of our time working together.
Brand example: Verizon
Verizon wasn’t always Verizon. The company as we recognize it today began with a merger in 2000.
Telecommunications companies Bell Atlantic and Vodafone recognized that the market was changing due to cell phones, and they needed a way to keep up. The result was Verizon, a company that exploded into the largest wireless network operator in the United States.
4. When you need to solidify your brand in a growing market
That leads us into the next reason you may need brand strategy services – a market that threatens to edge you out.
The rise of the internet means that ideas grow and spread faster than ever. For your business, that could mean trouble. Take blanding, for instance. Once big companies like Google and Apple simplified their logos, companies in every sector rushed to do the same.
When it comes to your brand, you might start to notice that you and your competitors are… a little too similar. Brand strategy services can help you make a splash and stand head-and-shoulders above other companies in your market.
Benefits most from: the Ignite phase
When competition is starting to get on top of you and you see revenue shrinking, it’s all too easy to get caught up in a frenzy of activity while you try to course-correct. That’s why Flux’s brand strategy services always start by slowing things down with the Ignite phase.
During the Ignite phase, we stop, look, and listen. We gather data on what your competitors are doing, how your customers and employees view your brand, and where your business lives within the larger industry.
This data is the foundation for a stronger, more distinct, and more authentic brand identity.
Brand example: Momentive
Anyone visiting the Momentive website may not immediately connect it to SurveyMonkey, but it’s the same company. SurveyMonkey was early to the software-as-a-service (SaaS) game, but that market is seeing rapid expansion.
The rebrand helped Momentive to stand out from the huge selection of “quirky” SaaS companies and make a home for themselves as innovators – which is right where they belong.
5. When you’re in need of an update
Brand strategy services aren’t just for massive restructuring efforts. The truth about brands is that they evolve with time – just like the people who own and work for them. Most people change up their clothing style or haircut every couple of years when they “just need a change”.
Your brand is the same.
Every now and then, it comes to your attention that your brand is just a little outdated. Maybe the color palette or logo screams 90s. Maybe your brand doesn’t quite reflect the kind of company you’ve grown into. Maybe it’s missing the mark a bit with the latest generation of consumers.
Brand strategy services can help.
Benefits most from: the Energize phase
Like brands introducing a new product line, brands who need an update can get excited about the Energize phase. When your brand strategy services start working, we can see the company you are now, not the company you once were.
In the Energize phase, we take that identity and turn it into visuals that more clearly communicate your place in the here and now.
Brand example: Dunkin’
Coffee chain Dunkin’ underwent a brand refresh in 2019. The company had previously been called “Dunkin’ Donuts”, and their logo featured the name and a coffee cup.
Now, the logo is just the name, and the product packaging looks more playful and modern. The change wasn’t massive, but it was significant in aligning the company with the way people see the brand.
6. When you’re ready to attract (and retain) top talent
Branding isn’t always all about the customers. It’s about your employees, too. Attracting and retaining talented employees is one of the most difficult challenges a company can face.
Not surprisingly, your brand can make a big difference.
Brand strategy services touch every place someone is interacting with your company – and that includes job boards and boardrooms. A strong brand can instantly communicate what kind of person will thrive in your company’s environment.
Benefits most from: the Distill phase
Like companies finalizing a merger, anyone looking to attract and retain talent desperately needs the Distill phase. The internal-facing document is something that can be shared with everyone in the company, not just the marketing team.
When those job listings are being posted and when it comes time for annual performance reviews, your HR team will have a guiding light. The Distill document can ensure that your employees never get a mixed message – they know exactly how you want to treat them.
Brand example: Starbucks
During the economic crash of 2008, Starbucks was struggling. Customers were looking for cheaper coffee, and Starbucks suddenly had to compete with fast food chains like McDonald’s adding coffee to their menu.
Starbucks responded by running a rebranding campaign. Surprisingly, caring for their employees was a part of their new brand identity as a place for community and support. Since then, they’ve continued to expand their employee benefits.
The result? Workers stay at Starbucks around a year longer than they do at other food service jobs, and frequently have more people applying than they know what to do with.
Put your best foot forward with the top brand strategy services
Shopping for branding services is difficult. You’re trusting the future of your company to someone you’ve only just met. That level of trust is hard to find, but not impossible.
Like any part of running a business, there are proven, strategic ways to ensure the final brand will perform the way you need it to.
A top branding agency in Los Angeles will have clear, measurable goals they look to meet. They’ll have a process you can put some trust in. And they’ll help your business make the right first impression.
If you’re looking for the leading brand strategy services in Los Angeles, get in touch! We give you the tools you need to be the company you want to be – and make sure everyone knows it.