Spring Clean Your Brand - Three Ways To Refresh Your Brand

Spring is officially here and we don't know about you, but we're biiiigggg believers of a good ol' fashioned Spring Cleaning. From our home to our workspaces, we use this time to embrace our inner Saturday morning señora vibes, blast on some tunes, pull out the Fabuloso, and get to cleanin’.

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But spring cleaning doesn’t just have to mean physically cleaning up. In fact, we always recommend our clients do a quick "spring cleaning" of their brand on an *as-needed* basis. This means it could be as deep or as surface level as you feel your brand might need, so while some might do quick check-ins with their brand every quarter, others might choose do a deep dive once a year.

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It’s important to remember that rebranding is only the first step to creating a memorable brand. Maintaining it by continuously refreshing your visuals and keeping information up to date is a great way to keep things diverse and engaging.

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From audits to updates, here's a few ways you can spring clean your brand this season:

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Refresh Your Collateral

Consider the collateral items your audience sees almost every day. These can be things like digital collateral (social media, digital workbooks, forms, and newsletters) or printed collateral (signage, stationery, marketing cards, packaging, or flyers).

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Trends are constantly changing and if it’s been a while since you’ve made any updates, your graphics can start to feel outdated or monotone. It’s important to consistently evolve collateral for your brand to keep your audience continuously engaged.

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A few ways you can quickly freshen up items you use on a regular basis are:

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Update your social media templates - Change up the layout of the text and images or diversify the primary colors of your graphics to another option from your brand palette.

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Refresh the cover graphics on your social accounts - Update your profile photo on Instagram or add new cover photos to the highlights on your page.

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Restructure your newsletter layout - Rearrange some of the sections in your newsletter or add a new section to your newsletter that engages with your audience in a more authentic way.

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Update presentation decks or worksheets - Refresh some of the imagery of your welcome decks or zhuzh up the layouts of some of the pages.

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Update Your Website

No judgment at all if the last time you touched your website was when your web designer handed off the website to you. Updating your website can be daunting if you’re not a designer or at the very least, a time suck.

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But keeping your website up to date is key to letting your audience know you are active in what you do and, if you are taking on work, that you’re available. Your followers will want to see the latest from you and having outdated work or information could discourage viewers from continuing to the rest of your site.

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So consider some of the following:

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Is all the information on your website still accurate? Make sure to check office hours, service offerings, email addresses, and external links.

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Do you have portfolio work or blog posts you've been neglecting to upload? Make a plan to schedule a day to add all your latest work or schedule any blogs. You can also hire a designer to populate content for you.

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How are those “About Us” photos looking? Is it from a previous space you’re no longer working in or with employees no longer in your team? Update your photography to reflect your current brand.

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Have a Brand Photoshoot

Speaking of those “About Us” photos, when was the last time you had a brand shoot? If you gave up the bangs from your original photos yeaaarrrssss ago, it might be time to invest in a brand photoshoot that reflects you and your business as it stands today.

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Having a brand photoshoot is an opportunity to align the photography to your own brand in a more intentional way. It’s an opportunity to tell a story, be authentic, show a vibe, create a mood, and set a more professional tone. You can also achieve a uniform look among your team photos or the photos of your office/studio space.

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Start by searching for a photographer that has the aesthetic you want to achieve, plan the looks, props, and locations for your shoot (or hire us to develop a brand media campaign to do that for ya), and most importantly, have some damn fun. Brand shoots don’t happen every day and they’re a great way to showcase your brand personality. New brand media can reinvigorate the content on your social media and website in a positive way.

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Bonus: Conduct a Brand Audit

Ok, so this one is definitely going to require a little more time, but if you're not connecting with your brand or your brand is not connecting with your audience, it's probably time for an intensive brand audit.

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We shared an Instagram post about how to conduct one for yourself, but we’re always going to recommend working with a professional if you’re feeling really stuck.

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Working with a brand strategist or designer is great because they will do a deep analysis of your brand, examine your current visual identity, review your customer experience, and provide actionable steps that can help you get back on track.