A new you in the new normal

The pandemic has brought about radical changes to consumer lifestyles across the globe. And the health crisis has balled itself into a socio-economic catastrophe with far-reaching effects. Therefore, a range of brands are looking at repositioning and rebranding strategies to cope in the post-pandemic era.

But why the rebranding exercise? Branding and storytelling have always been the hallmark of successful brands. And revamping the brand’s touchpoints will become even more essential post the pandemic era to remain pragmatic towards the customer requirements in the new normal, according to Beyondesign’s Bhavika. “The brand preferences will now be based on how much they remain relevant to the new trends and maintain customer relationships."

Thus, innovative marketing and out-of-thebox thinking will become the need of the hour to attract and retain a loyal customer base. Additionally, digital-first brands or direct-to-consumer brands will witness unprecedented growth and a promising future in the postpandemic era. “A range of brands are already benefiting from the manifestation of an online presence ¬¬in diverse product brackets by enabling consumers to adapt to the new normal and embrace change.”

One such project that Beyondesign undertook was for the logo and collateral designing for The IHCL group’s new food delivery app Qmin. Since its launch in July 2020, amid the pandemic, Qmin has revolutionised the culinary space with its exclusive offerings across multiple market segments pan India. “As a hard-hitting answer to the pandemic blues, the brand surprised the fans of the group’s iconic restaurants as it promised to bring home culinary experiences par excellence.”

“A well-strategised marketing plan, an innate brand presence, and a strong story and timely execution - the perfect recipe for this brand’s launch - promises to bring home a repertoire of culinary experiences. We are truly humbled to have experienced the grit and resilience of team IHCL,” she says. How does one create this perfect recipe? Here's a five-point mantra on the need for evaluation before a reevaluation of brand strategies by Kavita Dalal of Beyondesign.

A quick revisit of your core values
The vision and mission of the brand’s position in the next five years must be on top of the company’s to-do list. Marketing strategies to boost consumer engagement focusing on their requirements will help brands sustain and flourish in the future. Thus, a surge in demand for creative and aggressive marketing practices is definitely on the cards.

An audit and re-assessment of target audiences and competitors
Evaluating and analysing who the target audiences are, and more importantly, the potential audiences one can cater to with just minor adjustments in a product’s marketing strategy are the key focus areas. Besides customers, it is crucial to keep tabs on who the competitors are and how one can gain an edge above them.

A thorough evaluation of the rebranding agenda
Crisis management, new mission, market re-structure, and digitising could be plausible reasons for a rebrand. Whether to rebrand or not is always a tough decision to make. A drastic change may be disastrous at times whereas a minor one can go unnoticed. Therefore, as a company, it is always better to answer the question, why rebrand, before taking the plunge.

Retaining the brand essence
It is essential that one retains the core strengths of the brand to remain relatable with its ardent customers and create stability. Hence, the company should thoroughly evaluate what needs to be retained from the current brand and what needs to change and why?

Strong communication plans
A strong consumer engagement strategy that can effectively liaison the brand revamp can do wonders. It helps to keep the audiences in sync with the company’s new image and how it will improve the brand experience. “Simply put, the companies and brands that will rebrand or reposition themselves ethically and emotionally to connect with their consumers at a macro, as well as micro-level, will be the true winners in the race to survival,” Bhavika concludes.