Mergers present a new opportunity to build on the strengths of two companies uniting under one banner. This new entity’s visual identity should stay true to its mission, and in our experience as brand designers, there are three essential things to remember during the rebrand.

We’re sharing some best practices to guide you and your team toward a successful rebrand after a merger.

Set a good foundation for your visual identity by looking at the past

As part of your rebranding strategy, you can gain inspiration from the companies participating in the merger, taking their best qualities and folding them into your brand story. Those positive attributes will help you create a stronger brand identity that connects with customers and builds on the new chapter you’re embarking on.

Here’s how you can begin shaping this story.

– Define and analyze what differentiates the two brands before merging and finding the common denominators.
– Reflect on the deeper story behind why these two companies complemented each other enough to unite.
– Highlight the people who make up the team and their contributions.

Once you know the parts that make up your past, you can create the visual identity that will take your brand into the future.

Get clear on what stakeholders want, and audiences need

When companies merge, there’s a lot of movement as both parties work through the kinks of combining resources and making decisions that will affect the new entity. Sometimes, this results in a push and pull between stakeholders during a rebrand because everyone has their own thoughts about the new visual identity.

And while your company’s decision-makers are essential during this rebranding effort, so are your customers. It only takes a few moments for them to form an impression about a brand and decide whether they want to give it their attention, much less buy from it.

So, there’s pressure to get this rebrand right.

With that in mind, there are a few ways to capture insights from your internal decision-makers and customers so you can provide direction to your design team. This will also enable your team to evaluate the evolution of the visual identity based on data instead of gut feelings.

These are a few of our favorites:

Stakeholder Questionnaires
These forms ask key decision-makers about their likes and dislikes, among other questions. This questionnaire helps to set expectations about what the new brand should convey to its customers.

Customer Interviews
Used as a powerful tool to gain insight into how, why, and what of your customer’s thinking, which can help guide your brand messaging and identity design.

Stakeholder Interviews
Adding to the questionnaires, interviewing stakeholders can help highlight the important insights behind creating the new company.

Using these tools can help you gather the pieces of the larger puzzle that provides a holistic view of your customers and business. With this information, it’s easier to develop a brand identity that encompasses your company’s values and mission.

Design an identity that represents the new brand

We’ve rebranded a lot of businesses, including those that have undergone mergers, and we’ve learned that the people involved in them want to explore design options symbolizing this union.

Part of this includes in this non-exhaustive list:

– Designing descriptive logos that symbolize the brand.
– Choosing brand colors and fonts to create a mood.
– Creating a style guide that defines the creative language your company should learn and follow.

There’s a lot of thought that goes into every color, line, and shape for each of its elements. These components serve as an extension of the brand’s message and how the world should see it.

Ensuring your rebrand is successful post-merger

When rebranding after a merger, the goal should be creating an authentic brand identity for your buyers. To do this, you need the voices of both company stakeholders and customers to define and navigate the development of this new identity.

Their thoughts and guidance are crucial when working with a creative agency to shape the brand. Partnering with a design agency specializing in branding gives you a strategic partner who can bring out the best in this new company. By the time you launch, you’ll have a visual identity designed to reflect the company, its values, and its customers.