We’ve recently covered a rebrand for your company, although my concern that it is not always optimum for anyone who depends on email marketing probably came through. I hope it did. Our data is what makes us competitive, and a rebrand can cost us the dependability of our testing data. Also, nothing is more likely to frighten your subscribers than something startling. Despite how much fun and enjoyment you can get from a rebrand, you should only indulge your desires when it is absolutely necessary; and it hardly ever is.
A refresh is a much less risky project as it keeps much, a fair bit or just enough of your established brand appearance, reassuring the subscribers to your email marketing lists that you are still whom they signed up for. You can keep your From Line. You can keep your name.
The normal reason for a refresh is external. Your subscribers expect you to both reflect their aspirations and also the way they view themselves, and the same old appearance can make you appear to be living in the past. If such an impression is what you are after, then stick with it. For the rest of us, we need to respond to what our customers want.
The most popular aspect to change in a refresh is your company’s logo. Although this opinion has to be torn from me as I spent my college years designing logos, most people aren’t that bothered by one. Graphic designers talk about logos. Customers ignore them. On the other hand, if it’s part of a subtle realignment, then keeping art students from starving has my full support. It can’t hurt.
In email marketing, any change should be subtle. A different typeface similarly might not be noticed by most customers, although the overall impression such a change makes can alter the perception by your subscribers. A change from a serif typeface to one without is simple enough to do, but can be significant.
The same goes for colour. If you go from bold primary colours to something more in line with Laura Ashley wallpaper, you will alter the way your customers see you. I don’t like pastel. It’s almost not a colour, but if that’s what will please your subscribers, go for it.
You can complete a refresh just by changing your copy style. For instance, if your marketing emails are now aimed at a younger generation, perhaps a more humorous approach, or one significantly more punchy, is what will produce a greater ROI. You might need other changes to support it, such as a brighter, bolder heading and it could be worthwhile to consider a change of brand slogan. But remember; subtle works.
Keep it simple, and keep in mind all through the planning process of your refresh that this is not a rebrand. It is also not something you need to prepare your subscribers for. Anything dramatic should be squashed and it can be revealing to place your pre- and post-refresh marketing email designs side-by-side so you can strike out anything too striking.
