Reinventing Your Brand

When is it time to reinvent your brand? We all have indicators that are signaling either good or bad times ahead. There are times when you can weather the down trend lines and completely recover and move full steam ahead; and, then there are times that a trend line is a stronger warning sign. This is the sign that we all try to shake off because we don't want to believe that our brand can be that fragile and spiral to death. How can we tell the difference?

Here are some of my red flag suggestions to consider:

When a new brand emerges in your market that taps into both convenience and low cost for the consumer. Think Redbox versus Blockbuster Video.
When one hot trend trades the place for another trend. Think Rock N Jump (Trampoline Parks) versus Bounce U (inflatable bounce facilities).
When size and ease of use matters. Think iPod versus Walkman.

There were surely tell tell signs that all of the above were becoming extinct but the brands refused to respond quick enough and found their product/service out of business.

As we start a New Year, I encourage you to go into it with your eyes wide open. Make sure that you are willing to analyze the data, trends and listen to any of the bad stuff too. But, more importantly reacting while you have time to make adjustments to your brand, your business, your products and services is paramount.

Think ahead not just for now.

Sonya Ruff Jarvis, is the Managing Member of Jarvis Consultants and Founder of the eRetailer Summit. Sonya has extensive experience in creating original innovative solutions to overcome major business challenges. Sonya has spent most of her career visiting headquarters across global industries and has built strong business relationships across diverse brands.

Sonya has a M.B.A. in Marketing. She is married and has a daughter and they live in Fairfield County Connecticut.