There are times in business when you know what the answer is, and there are times when you won’t know - when there are pros and cons to the solutions in front of you and the decision is not clearcut. This blog considers the benefits of renaming - of developing a completely new brand identity. We also have a blog that considers the main risks. Our role in these projects is to help you to better understand the drivers of change in your particular situation, and to enable you to confidently and strategically make a decision on the best way forward. If you think we might be able to help you in your decision making process, please get in touch.

To rename or not to rename? That is the question. Dunkin Donuts was in the news not so long ago over its move to change its name from Dunkin Donuts to just Dunkin. The driver behind this move was that their core business was shifting from Donuts to coffee and the shortened name would support this shift. Shortening or lengthening your name can be highly effective in signalling strategic shifts, as can complete brand name changes.

Changing your brand name is a significant undertaking and yet when done successfully can be very powerful. So when does a rebrand really make sense?

The role of research

Not every proposed name change ends in a name change. One of our clients, the Institute of Eye Surgery, originally planned to change their name. After a discovery workshop and consultations with the Institute’s client base, it was decided to retain the name, which was shown both to have real value in the eyes of their clients, and to be fully embedded with their referring audiences of GPs, ophthalmologists and hospitals. The only change in the end was to the URL which was shortened to IOES. Making use of a discovery workshop to explore stakeholder views was a highly valuable exercise in this case, resulting in the retention of a highly valuable brand name.

When renaming makes sense

Generally speaking companies should consider a rename / rebrand when they want to communicate a change - whether in focus, strategy, ownership or something else, and when the name change will make sense and provide greater meaning and relevance to both internal and external stakeholders. The top reasons for changing a company’s brand name include the following:

1. Change of Ownership

   Rebranding following mergers, acquisitions and spin-offs is often required for legal and regulatory reasons, as much as highlighting the ownership change.

2. Changes to strategic focus

   There are several famous examples of this including Shell which began life as a shell importing company in London’s East End in the 1830s. They expanded their range of imports to include silks and rice and by 1892 they built the first oil tanker to import oil, becoming the Shell Transport & Trading Company. A merger with Royal Dutch followed and another name change to Royal Dutch Shell, only officially becoming Shell plc in the past two years.

3. Globalisation

   Some brands may relate too much to their country of origin and may even mean something entirely different in another language or cultural context. Examples of this include the infamous Vauxhall Nova, which reputedly did not sell well in Spanish speaking countries as ‘no va’ translates as ‘doesn’t go’, and the Citroen Cactus, which was the butt of many jokes in Australia, where cactus is the popular term for ‘kaputt’.

4. Brand Portfolio changes

   As businesses acquire or create new brands, these brands may not be cohesive. In this case, addressing the overall brand architecture helps to ensure brand consistency, so that the brand value across the brand family, parent brands and sub-brands, can be maximised.

5. Repositioning

   Changing your brand name can help you to call out a strategic shift in direction. This usually follows a period of internal change and the purpose of the name change is to communicate this strategic shift to your audiences, both internal and external. When we worked with Mater Private as they became Mater Private Network, the name change served two key objectives: it highlighted its transformation from a single high-tech Dublin based hospital to a major national healthcare group, and it underlined its patient-centric focus by bringing its world class consultants and services closer to patients across the country.

6. Outdated

   Like everything else, most brands age over time and need to be made more contemporary and relevant so that they don’t lose ground against newcomers. When the Irish Wind Energy Association approached InsideOut, it was with the goal of elevating their brand, to make it more relevant and relatable to its multiple stakeholders, and in particular to emphasise the brand’s benefits in terms of clean and sustainable energy. Following our structured process, we held a discovery workshop with stakeholders, agreed criteria, generated a longlist, checked availability, market tested alternatives and provided a shortlist of potential names, from which Wind Energy Ireland was selected.

Examples of successful brand name changes since the 1970s

InsideOut Consulting has wide experience in brand name development, brand renaming and brand positioning. If you are considering renaming your brand, a clear process is key.

Get in touch and we will be happy to talk you through ours.