067: OMG! It’s a rebrand!
Omg! It’s a rebrand!
With host Solveig Petch, aka Petchy
OK, so this is exciting! And terrifying. But mostly exciting.
When you’re a brand designer, one of the hardest damn things in the whole world is working on your own brand! And yet, that is exactly what I’ve been doing for the past few months.
I’m 42 today, and this is my gift to myself: a bolder, braver, and more edgy iteration of my brand. I’ll be rolling it out across all my platforms and brand collateral over the coming month or so, starting with my evergreen Instagram grid, the most important parts of my website and my podcast.
You’ll recognise some familiar things, like two of my brand colours and one of my brand fonts (and me, I’m not going anywhere) — but there are also some quite radical changes, like a new and quirky feature font that is also used for the logotype. My yellow accent colour is sharper, and I’ve added a darker teal for better visibility and contrast against white backgrounds. Overall, it’s a more attention-grabbing, less apologetic, brand identity that aligns better with my brand values, my personality — and my depleting levels of fucks left to give.
When I first started this business, I fell into the same trap that so many of us do — and that I, ironically, warn other people about: I designed my business and my brand around other people’s expectations.
— Solveig Petch
Episode links
Check out my new Instagram 9-grid
Take a peek at my new brand guidelines
Sign up for the Brand values, not bland values! micro email course
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So why did I decide to rebrand? There are a number of reasons why a rebrand might be a great move:
You feel like something is not “quite right”
You’re not sure what exactly, but you keep changing your brand colours and tweaking the visuals, and yet it still just feels off. This is a sign of a misalignment.You’ve outgrown your brand
If you built your company from scratch and DIYed your branding in the early days, and now you’re more established – it may be time to step up the branding game to match the quality of your business.People keep confusing you with a competing brand
At the end of the day, branding is all about standing out from your competitors. If you feel like your brand is lost in a great pile of bland sameness, it could be time to shake things up.You need to disassociate your brand from something negative
Not a good position to be in, but sometimes shit happens and things come up that drag your brand through the mud. That’s just business. Rebranding can be the fresh start you need to shake off the crap and start over.Or it could simply be that your business has evolved, or you have evolved as a person, and your branding no longer reflects who you are. Brands are not static, and they shouldn’t be. Maybe your values have changed. Maybe you’re ready to break into new markets. Maybe your target audience is different now than it was when you started? Or maybe your business model is changing? These are all good reasons to take a step back and make sure your branding still makes sense.
And this last point is what prompted me to make some adjustments to my branding: I just didn’t feel like my brand was an accurate representation of me.
This is actually the third iteration of my brand, and it reflects the change that has happened in my business, and in me as a person, over the past five years or so. And since Petchy the brand can not exist without Petchy the human, these two are closely interlinked. I built my brand around who I am, so my brand is shaped by my own values, opinions, quirks and personality traits — and I wanted to make sure that all of that shines through in everything that I do. This new iteration of my brand also reflects a shift in my ideal client, and is designed to appeal to a more established business owner who is looking to uplevel their branding through a strategic approach to their brand and visual identity. My perfect-fit client is not only business savvy, they’re also someone who deeply cares about making a difference in the world — and they use their brands as a springboard to do so.
When I first started this business, I fell into the same trap that so many of us do — and that I, ironically, warn other people about: I designed my business and my brand around other people’s expectations. As a result, my initial brand identity soon started to feel suffocating. It felt wayyyy too stiff and formal.
The second iteration of my brand was a step in the right direction. Less corporate, a little more playful, more me — but it was still very vanilla. I realised I was still holding back.
A lot of that I think has to do with feeling like a bit of a misfit for most of my life. I was bullied in school. I never felt at home in the corporate world. On the outside I was quiet and kind, the textbook example of a “good girl” — always seeking approval. Inside though, I was exhausted by the constant struggle to conform and always masking the real me. I never really understood why I couldn’t just be me, and have that be enough. But still I felt like I shouldn’t take up too much space, or ruffle any feathers. I felt like I had to change, in order to fit in and to find that sense of belonging and acceptance that I never really felt growing up.
And then came 40.
And with 40 came… I won’t say confidence, because I still have some severe bouts of self doubt wash over me, but more of an “I don’t give a shit” mentality. It sounds like a cliché, but there was a notable shift. I’ve been connecting with more like minded people
in recent years, I feel like I’ve found my people, and that makes it feel safer to let go of the fear of what others might think of me — and consequently: to show more of the real me. I felt it was about time my brand reflected that too!
So now, I’m officially done with corporate schmorporate, and with undermining my values and beliefs in an attempt to fit in. It took me a while, but I’m finally at a place where I put my values and my integrity before people-pleasing. Moving forward, I’m going to show up as me, without apologising for who I am or what I stand for.
And that feels good. It feels bloody good.
Cheeky, tenacious, compassionate, and sincere — with a rebellious streak. That’s me in a nutshell — and I hope you’ll see that shine through in my new brand identity and brand communication.
I’d be super grateful if you could help me spread the word about Petchy 3.0 by showing me some love over on Instagram, sharing this podcast with a business friend who might enjoy it, or by name-dropping me if you know of anyone looking to uplevel their branding through strategy and design.
If you enjoyed this episode, remember to subscribe so you don’t miss the next one! I’d also be super grateful if you’d share my podcast with a biz friend or two, or leave me a review.
