When most organizations embark on a rebrand – for example a new positioning, logo and visual design system – most understand that there will be implementation costs to roll-out the brand, but few know exactly how much. As part of the brand implementation planning process, we help clients arrive at a budget to provide leadership with a clear picture of cost. We do this by answering one of two questions:
What do you want to accomplish?
In most cases our clients don’t have an outlined implementation budget and are looking for us to provide a number. So we start by walking through organizational goals and objectives surrounding the rebrand, working to understand the totality of what they are trying to accomplish. We look at what needs to be converted, what needs to be created and what a desired brand launch looks like. We consider who does the work, meaning what the organization is going to shoulder internally as opposed to outsourcing to specialty partners. Having a detailed outline of what needs to happen against a defined timeline helps us establish firm execution costs.
How much do you have to spend?
If clients are working within a defined budget, it helps to know that number up front. With this approach, we still work through the process of outlining goals and objectives for rebranding while ensuring we work within the parameters of what we can achieve within the allocated budget. We also exercise creativity to find ways to optimize what we can accomplish. For example: producing multi-use templates, evaluating collateral lifecycles and designing a multi-year roll-out to spread out investment. By understanding the budget at the start of the planning process, we can have a more focused conversation around making trade-offs and finding brand efficiencies.
As we build to a budget number, we guarantee robust dialogue about what needs to be accomplished and how much it will cost, going back-and-forth until we find the right answer. There are several inputs to consider when working towards a final price. A few of those being:
As you plan for a rebrand, think beyond strategic and creative documents. Determine how you will bring the brand to life – everywhere it lives, with everyone it touches. Understanding how much brand implementation costs will equip your organization to take calculated steps toward reaching rebrand success.
Is it time for your organization to start thinking about implementing a rebrand? Drop us a note at hello@tentengroup.com. Having planned nearly 100 rebrands, we understand what it takes to customize each client’s roadmap to brand change.
