Static brands wither and die.
Spring clean your brand and make room for new growth.
Spring has well and truly sprung. The weather’s heating up. Lively conversations around new goals and fresh beginnings are in the air.
On the 1st of September, I started a 30-Day Minimalism Game with a colleague. The idea being you get rid of one thing on the first day. On the second, two things. Three items on the third and so on. Sounds hard right? Especially when you do the maths, that’s 465 items! But with the promise of clarity, focus and new energy in my grasp, I was up for the challenge.
For most, spring cleaning is an annual ritual. Often associated with housework, spring cleaning can also reap rewards for your brand. By decluttering, re-organising and shedding excess, you can make the most of the new growth — over the Christmas retail period and into the New Year.
Is your brand tired, out of date, overgrown?
Today, singular, static brands will wither and die.
Brands need to flex and adapt to resonate and stay relevant over time. All while staying true to their core, yet constantly regenerating to thrive. Clever brand design is about creating coherent and flexible patterns, not just repetition. Lots of smaller ideas that connect and move people to action, when and where it matters most.
So when was the last time your brand had a spring clean?
For most organisations, it’s probably been more than a year, even a few? That may have sufficed in yesterday’s world. But today where success hangs on a business’ ability to evolve faster than the competition, a brand needs to do so far more regularly. If constant reinvention can accelerate your chance of growth and exponential success, why wouldn’t you make it a yearly focus?
This doesn’t mean a complete overhaul, but it does mean refreshing elements of your branding that are holding you back (maybe it’s your visual identity, or your messaging, or the way it all connects). Whether you’re looking to re-energise your employees, get closer to your customers, drive innovation or transform your business, cleansing your brand is a great way to get clear on what has equity and value, and what doesn’t.
“When you think of a brand like a garden, making room for new growth, means pruning the excess baggage.”
Can’t see the forest for the trees?
Is your experience, getting in the way of your brand’s success?
When you have a lot of experience with something, it’s possible to miss what’s new about it, or what needs to be challenged. So when it’s time to hold a magnifying glass over your brand, unless you take notice of what’s missing, where you’re going, or what the future holds, how can you possibly know what to keep or what to let go?
Taking these simple steps can make all the difference:
Cultivate a beginner’s mindset
When was the last time you saw something for the first time? Commit to exploring with an open mind and fresh eyes. Look at things from the side, take notice of what’s missing and what might be. Learn to value the question even more than you love the answer.
Take a future back perspective
If you’re focusing on the present, you’re already too late. Explore new pathways, without being fixated by yesterday’s winning formula. Optimise for the future. Stretch your thinking of what’s possible, and you’ll get clear on the progress to be made today.
Put yourself in the customer’s shoes
Great brands move people to make the progress they desire. Look at your brand from a user perspective. How do you want them to feel after they use your brand? What are the gaps, where’s the friction and how can your brand create a sense of wonder, excitement and lasting memories?
Thank you for reading! :)
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Ready to think about your branding differently? Say hello on Linkedin or at The Garden on Instagram.
Or, ask about The Garden Agency’s 30 DAYS TO LIVE program — designed to get organisations clear on what matters versus what is noise and to position your brand (established or new) to level-up and lead.
