These days it is apparent that the way we sell and the way that we market is changing right before our eyes. For some business owners not being able to flex with the changes is causing major problems with their profitability and with some it has meant closing down altogether. Therefore, being able to change as our market changes is critical to maximizing our market share and profits.
The opposite can be just as bad for a business, mainly changing for the sake of change. In other words making a change to a process or marketing system simply because it has been a while since anyone has made a change.
Some of the reasons that are commonly expressed for doing this include:
· The CEO thinks we need a new look and feel
· We have been using the same old marketing piece for several years and it is time to update it
· The marketing or sales department wants something new because our competitors have something new
· and many more similar excuses
A cardinal rule in marketing is change is only necessary when the current marketing method is not working anymore. Simply stated, there is no real reason to take a good working marketing piece and throw it out for an unknown marketing piece.
One area where a lot of time and money is spent unnecessarily is in logo designs under the guise of branding. There are many reasons why this expense may not be justified in the end. Here are just a few:
1. A logo design does not persuade your customers to buy your product over the competition.
2. Any logo change will involve making a change to all marketing materials. You are talking about reprinting everything from letterhead and business cards to brochures and other publications.
At times business owners executives fall into the trap of investing time and money working on items such as logos at the expense of things that would really increase sales and revenue.
A case in point is GM’s Cadillac division undergoing a logo change (see above). Looking over the logo it does not appear to be much different in design although industry sources claim it is more “jewel” like in appearance.
Truth be told the consumer does not judge the value or the performance of a vehicle based on a logo. It would have been a better use of money and resources to focus on building a car that meets the needs and expectations of the buying public rather than focusing on designing a logo.
There are other car companies that have been able to do this successfully such as BMW, Lexus, and now Audi. These vehicles have pushed Cadillac out of the luxury car market by providing exceptionally well designed vehicles (not logos) to their consumers.
Nevertheless, there are times to change the various marketing pieces because they are no longer working. In today’s challenging times this decision should be focused on those things that will make the biggest impact to the bottom line and not to the corporate ego.