WHY Pivot/ Rebrand or signs you should make the CHANGE
For the business on any stage pivoting/ rebranding means to shift to a new strategy, but often confused with drastically changing the whole company. Often, the company has to address one or a few main problems to make a step forward. Like:
— Focus on a different target audience, try out the new market.
— Rethink the design, work on the user experience.
— Turning one feature of a product into the product itself, making it simpler.
— The opposite, turning one product into a feature of a larger platform, making additions, building up the ecosystem.
— Changing the versions. Move to mobile or web platforms.
— Picking up a new revenue/ monetization model.
— Thinking through the different technology options to build a product, to create a more reliable product.
And more. Depending on the industry and with the assistance of quality analytics it’s important to define those weak points and choose the ways to influence them. Often for business owners, it’s hard to see the exact time when they should consider making this step. So let’s talk about the signs that the time had come.
When and Why
1. Your company is always catching-up
You outplayed in your own game, company progress is too slow despite the amount of work you’re putting into it. The company itself may not need the significate change, but you may need to change the revenue model, product, or market.
2. Competition is too high
Even if your idea may seem unique at first and you launched it pretty fast, there’s always the chance that a bigger company with more resources/funding and a completely loyal audience will create a similar offering. But there is always a way to rethink the idea make it stand out, change the market, etc.
3. One particular feature gets the most traction
If only one aspect of your concept is succeeding and getting more attention, and feedback, that may mean that your company should focus on what’s working and rethink what’s not and how you can upgrade it. Moving in this direction and depending on what strategy you take, your company can experience a boost in productivity, efficiency, and, of course, revenue.
4. Your branding is desperately outdated
Clients may enjoy being on the cutting edge of everything from the latest strategies to the best technology. But the user convenience and clean flow are what make them loyal to the platform. If the services are not easy to use and they confuse the potential clients, not so many of them will want to spend time figuring things out. Rethinking the design and making the brand more recognizable is the key. To define if you’re on the right track with the design or need to make changes we recommend keeping an eye on the best website design tops/awards and similar resources!
5. Branding causes confusion.
Being clever is a good way for users to remember you, but if your product’s name requires too much thought from the potential client, you might want to reconsider. Even the joke loses its charm when you have to explain it.
6. You’re embarrassed to share the link to your website or hand out your business card.
There’s not much to say if your corporate identity is outdated. To draw attention it should perfectly represent your services and be easy to remember.
7. You’ve scaled beyond your original geography
Due to the different countries’ markets, it would be smart to make the additional website version and rebrand to fit the exact needs.
8. Your perspective changed
Running a business for some time, there’s a possibility that your goals, vision, and values will change. Researching a niche and experiencing its challenges you may realize that you need to rework the strategy.
9. The business isn’t financially reliable
Founding a business from scratch is a matter of having both a new idea and the motivation to see to it that it’s realized. That makes it very personal.
Take an honest, objective look at your business — without accommodation or emotion — and see where you could be doing better. See what you can strip back, which aspects are burdening you financially, and where you might be able to go with the resources you have on hand. Use that information to identify a reference point for your pivot.
10. The market didn’t respond the way you’d expected
There might be a lot of reasons why clients don’t resonate with consumers as you thought. Maybe, People won’t be moved by your messaging. Maybe, you’ll overestimate the scale of the problem your product or service addresses. Or maybe, your target audience just won’t be willing to pay what you’re charging.
Take steps forward to generate interest in your solution. That could mean lowering your price, focusing on further developing certain features, or changing your target market. Ultimately, you have to make consumers see your business in a new light.
How to make the necessary changes efficiently
Once you’ve decided to make changes, you must take into account numerous factors. Here are some tips to help ensure that you reduce the existing risks:
— Do it as soon as possible
In order to avoid wasting time, effort, and money.
— Pick up new goals that align with your vision
— Don’t lose the achievements and work you’ve already done
It’s important to define what aspects of your company can be kept and reused once you’ve settled on the new direction to head in.
— Feedback is fundamental.
Listen to your customers. The occasional negative feedback is expected, if the criticism is constant you might need to be ready for a pivot of some sort.
— Make sure your plan opens new opportunities for growth
Making steps in a new direction without much thought as to where you’re going next, there’s a strong possibility that you’ll hit yet another roadblock, just under different circumstances.
Final Thoughts
Often the first and main sign is that you’re wondering if changes are necessary! Trust your hunch and analytics to build out the new strategy. And last but not least find reliable partners to perfect your product.