«The rebranding of many Western companies is now taking place in emergency mode, because business owners are tasked with getting up and running quickly. This is the first time we have seen a situation like this. Whereas it takes 3–6 months on average to develop a brand and all its attributes, today, brands created in 4–6 weeks are coming off the agencies’ conveyor belt. In doing so, they face the challenge of doing something new while maintaining the recognisability of their popular predecessor. It is likely that with such tight deadlines, agencies are sacrificing research, without which it is difficult to do anything outstanding, so logos and names get a lot of fair criticism.
But still, a brand is more than a name, a logo and a corporate identity. It is an intangible asset of the company, based on consumer trust. Behind it are business processes, people, communications, and history. The success of new brands will therefore depend on whether they can keep the values and positive customer experience that initially attracted consumers behind the new name and logo.
Interros, which bought Rosbank from French group Société Générale, chose the right path. Interros announced rebranding of the bank, but was in no hurry to do so: the company said it would change its brand platform and colours, but retain the name. For the bank’s customers, it will be a more painless rebranding that has a much better chance of success.
We are seeing a trend towards russifying names of new brands, for example, McDonald’s has become “Vkusno i tochka” (Tasty. Full Stop). This can be perceived ambiguously by consumers, because the inhabitants of megacities and major cities, especially the affluent population and young people, are quite strongly integrated into Western culture and are already used to foreign names for their favourite brands. Many people have more confidence in foreign names, partly because there are far more successful international brands than local Russian ones.
Russified names for local businesses were chosen by 3 of the “Big 4” consultancies: Deloitte – Delovye resheniya i tekhnologii (Business Solutions and Technology), PwC – Tekhnologii doveriya (Technologies of Trust), E&Y – Tsentr auditorskikh tekhnologii i reshenii (Centre for Audit Technology and Solutions). But the problem here is also that they are not unique to the Russian-speaking ear: the use of anglicisms allows for a more obvious distinction between competing companies, a more flexible approach to developing a brand platform, and provides more room for creativity. In marketing, this is all very important: a successful name can reduce promotion costs. In general, abandoning the use of anglicisms in the name, especially of B2B brands, seems pointless to me – they remain preferable to an educated business audience.
Successful existence and development of no name companies contradicts the theory and practice of modern marketing. All new brands will have to re-conquer customer loyalty and prove that behind the new name is their old essence – the people, technology, values, and customer service. And this will require a large investment in marketing, PR and corporate communications. A drop in revenue in this case was inevitable, as a large proportion of customers came to the brand name. There will be a redistribution of shares in all business segments – including in favour of native Russian companies, which in these circumstances will prove to be preferable to many customers.
In most cases, customers and consumers will become more wary of new names and logos. In addition, the wave of rapid rebranding we are seeing now will inevitably lead to a loss of company recognition. It is good if a new Russian brand manages to maintain at least some connection with its international predecessor, because customers perceive brands through associations, be they verbal, visual, spatial, behavioural, communication or otherwise.
The new brands will certainly be able to retain some of their audience. How much will depend on marketing strategy. In general, all channels of communication with the brand’s audience remain available to new business owners, and if used correctly, audiences can be retained.
Businesses have always been bought and sold. Whether or not the names change, continuity is important. Even in cases where one brand is taken over by another, the process is always very gradual in order to retain an audience.
A succession strategy in circumstances of forced rebranding is the best way to retain an old loyal audience. It is not necessary to completely copy the old brand, but it is important to retain the values it gave consumers. You have to explain to customers that a company under a new name will operate to the same high standards to which they are accustomed, and that nothing will change for them, because the. It is particularly important here to work towards corporate communications: increasing brand awareness and strengthening the reputation of the new company, and constant dialogue with the audience».
The source of information: Афиша Daily