In my last two articles, I explained a lot about logo design, branding, and brand refreshes. I recommend reading those first for a better understanding.

Generally, companies decide to rebrand when they don’t have a strong visual identity, or when they haven’t updated it for many years. This kind of rebranding can be seen with Animal Planet, Airbnb, or McDonald’s.

However, it’s not always about design. The shift from Facebook to Meta, or from Dunkin’ Donuts to Dunkin’, are two great examples that show rebranding is about more than just visual changes.

A company is made up of many elements: its products, visual identity, services, user experience, policies, mission, and vision. Together, these create the image and emotional connection customers have with it—what we call a brand.

Over time, exposure and changing circumstances can lead to shifts in company policies, vision, or mission. Rebranding is the best way to communicate these changes to the world and to its users. It’s not just that “the look” wasn’t good; it also signals that the company’s vision, services, or overall direction have changed or improved along with the new look.

Let’s understand this through two examples: Meta and Xiaomi, and what led them to rebrand themselves.

Rebranding of Facebook to Meta:

Facebook doesn’t just change its name to Meta or rebranded visually, it changes the whole direction of the company. On 28 October 2021, the tech giant Facebook company which owns platforms including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, rebranded as Meta. 

“Right now, our brand is so tightly linked to one product that it can’t possibly represent everything that we’re doing today, let alone in the future. Over time, I hope that we are seen as a metaverse company, and I want to anchor our work and identity on what we’re building toward.” - Mark Zuckerberg at the company’s annual Connect conference.

Dunkin' from Dunkin' Donuts:

Dunkin’ Donuts unveils its new branding on Sep 25 2018 saying it officially drops the word ‘Donuts’ from it’s brand name and tweeted:

It’s official: We’re going by Dunkin’ now. ? After 68 years of America running on Dunkin’, we're moving to a first-name basis. ? Excited to be #BFFstatus with you all ?☕? #firstnamebasis #besties pic.twitter.com/hmzd2Bamlm

— Dunkin' (@dunkindonuts) September 25, 2018

According to the brand, before the debut of its "America Runs on Dunkin'," tagline, the brand was on a "first-name basis" with fans, with customers referring to the brand as "Dunkin'." As a result, the name was changed "in recognition of this relationship."

Conclusion: reBranding is a complex and vast process that involves understanding the need of brand improvement and its connection with its audience and consumers. While some companies choose to reBrand because of their poor visual identities or outdated designs, other companies rebrand as a representation of changes in their domain of work as we see in Meta from Facebook or their emotional attachment with their fans and customers as in Dunkin’ from Dunkin’ Donuts.