10 Dead Giveaways You Need a Rebrand

About the episode:

Today on the podcast, I am sharing something that's been a game-changer for many entrepreneurs: recognizing the signs that it's time for a rebrand. I’ll walk you through ten dead giveaways your brand might need a little (or big) makeover. Rebranding goes beyond just a new look; it is about making your brand a beacon for your ideal clients and crafting an online presence you're proud to call your own. So, if you're nodding along, thinking, "Yes, this is exactly what I need," let this episode act as your first step toward a brand that truly represents you and your vision.

Discover the ten essential signs that it's time to reconsider and refresh your brand:

Inconsistency in your online presence
Outdated brand appearance
Lack of confidence in your brand
Poor audience connection
Prices not reflecting your brand's value
Feeling scattered while ready to scale
Wasting time in Canva and your website without results
Hesitation to share your website
Visual brand lacking a clear strategy
Changing business focus and expertise perception
Bonus: Intuitively knowing you need a rebrand but feeling overwhelmed by the process

Free Resources

Website Assessment

RuthAnn Rafiq
Hey friends, welcome back to Rebrand with Ruthann. I'm so thankful and excited that you're here. Today is going to be a good episode because we're gonna talk about dead giveaways that you need a rebrand. And if you're thinking, I don't need a rebrand, I'm like pretty sure everything is rocking and rolling just fine. You know, maybe these are some things that you can consider that you haven't thought of before. And we're gonna run through a list of 10 things. And so...
Hopefully, one of these things, you know, you can see where maybe you can improve, maybe you do need to go through the whole rebrand process, maybe you just need to refresh, but some of these things are good to keep in mind as you are growing your business and just to make sure that you're on the right track and that you are exuding exactly what you want to when you're showing up online. So let's dive into 10 dead giveaways that you need a rebrand.
Number one,is you have inconsistency in your online presence. This is something I hear most often, I think when I am on a discovery call with a client or a potential client, they are saying that things don't look cohesive. Like that is a huge phrase I hear all the time. And what that means is basically you're on someone's website, then maybe you go to their Instagram, maybe you're checking them out in different spots online, and there's like a lot of inconsistency.
And the thing about this is it, the thing about inconsistency is that it can deteriorate trust and trust is something you really wanna build as soon as possible. You wanna start building as soon as possible when someone learns about you or learns about your work. And so having a consistent cohesive online presence really can help build that trust to make you look like you're legit.
It makes you look like you know what you're doing, that you really care about your potential clients. And so having inconsistency is a big one that maybe things need to change and maybe it's time for a rebrand. Number two, you have an outdated appearance. And I'm not saying you have to update your site like every single year or anything, but I think people can tell when a site is really outdated versus someone's really taking the time to make intentional updates. And so an outdated site and pieces that aren't cohesive.
And again, kind of going back to number one, having an outdated appearance can signify that maybe you don't care about your online presence, which of course, everyone who listens to this podcast, I'm sure is extremely thoughtful and intentional with their clients and stuff. But whenever you have an outdated appearance on your website or things are just looking really outdated, it can signify that maybe you don't care as much.
And so I think it's really important to keep that in mind and just see, do you have an outdated appearance? Do you think you do? Do you not think you do? A great place to start is I have a brand and website assessment that really can help give you some feedback and ideas about your website currently as it stands. And you can learn more about that by going to ourartspace.com slash assessment and it's just a loom video where I go through your website and give you practical tips and feedback on your website and what I recommend if you think maybe it needs some work but you're kind of not sure what to do next. So going on to number three, you lack confidence. This is a huge one. I remember having, and I think I've mentioned this before, but I was on a discovery call with someone and they were saying like they don't even send people to their website. They're just so embarrassed and they have like no confidence in their online presence and they feel like it doesn't represent who they are. It doesn't lead someone through the client experience. It just doesn't represent them well. And I just think that's such a travesty because your website is there to share about you, to share about your services. You should be getting people inquiring regularly and I think if your website is not doing that it's really a you know a disservice because your website is there working for you 24 7 that's what I like to say is your website should be your best employee and so I think having a lack of confidence and not really being excited to share about your website is a huge indicator that maybe you need a rebrand.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Your brand should be a magnet to your ideal clients. And so when you feel like you're not attracting the right people, that is like a big red flag. Because if you're attracting people, for example, if you are getting inquiries and people interested in learning about your services, but they're just price shopping, that is an indicator that maybe there's a misalignment between your messaging and you're attracting people who are wanting to pay lower prices rather than someone who really loves the work you do, they're ready to pay your, you know they're ready to pay what you're asking for. And so I think, you know, when there's that disconnect of you're kind of attracting a whole bunch of people who are not interested in the level of service you provide, they're wanting discounts, you know, that's a big indicator that maybe you don't have a very good audience connection, which ties back to your brand strategy and your branding, and what type of clients are you attracting with your messaging and stuff like that.
So poor audience connection is definitely a red flag that maybe you need a rerate. All right, going on to number five, your prices don't match your online presence. And this is one that I also hear a lot is, people are wanting to raise their prices and they're wanting to be in a premium space, but they feel like they can't do that because their online presence doesn't look like it can command premium prices. And I definitely think there's something to be said for having like a gorgeous strategic online presence that looks the part where you can have premium prices on your websites and people are, you know, they think it's a no brainer because of the quality and you know, the high end look and vibe of your website and brand. So I think that's a big one. Whenever clients are interested in working with me, they do want that premium, they wanna go into that premium space and they wanna raise their prices significantly or maybe even just a little bit. And I think it's really important to have a brand that's really professional, that you look like you can command the prices you're asking for and people won't even think twice about it see that increased perceived value and they're ready to pay.
Number six, you are ready to scale but feel scattered. This is one I have definitely, as I have started scaling my own business, and I know of people around me who are scaling their businesses, and this is when you are wanting to stop trading time for money, you're ready to bring on more team members to help with your process, and you're ready to make more money in less time and continue to grow your revenue basically. And so when people are ready to scale, having a brand that they feel really confident to scale with is imperative because I just feel like if you are second guessing, I recently remember.
I was on a discovery call recently and a client said that she was like, I just feel like I'm reinventing the wheel every single time I go into Canva. I'm not exactly sure what colors to be using. I'm not exactly sure, you know, how I should be representing myself with my, with my fonts in my color palette and stuff. And you know, that's a huge indicator that, you know, you need to have thing, you need to have like a cohesive brand where you know exactly what you're doing. You have like a roadmap for how to use your brand for your marketing materials. So you can pass it off to a team member and they can take it and run with it and you don't have to be looking over their shoulder making sure that, oh, make sure you use this color, making sure you use this font, that kind of thing. I want to point back to one of our earlier episodes where I interviewed Anna Rapp, who is the founder of the Heart Center and Entrepreneur, and she is my coach as well. In her episode, she talks that was a big factor for her when we went through her rebranding process was being able to scale and feeling like there was a lot of time wasted before we worked together because her team members had questions about how to use the brand. They weren't exactly sure how.
And then after we worked together, it was just so much more save time, mental space. She didn't have to continue to give people direction like they had everything in one clear spot. So I encourage you to check out that episode if you're interested in scaling and want to know how rebranding can help you do that.
Moving on to number seven, the seventh dead giveaway that you need a rebrand. And this ties back into what we just said in you're ready to scale but feel scattered. Number seven is you're wasting precious time and energy in Canva or on your website with no real results. This is huge if you are wasting, if you find that you're wasting a lot of time and you just don't have that much time to waste.
This is big because you don't want to be wasting time that you don't have doing something that you really feel you're not the best at. And most of my clients are coaches or they're service providers. And so you want to be taking the time doing what you really love, what you're really good at, which is coaching people, which is providing your excellent service. So I feel like if you are wasting a lot of precious time and energy when you really don't have that time or energy to waste. It's time to consider rebranding so you can save so much time, have that roadmap and clear guidelines for how to use everything and to have that solid brand foundation as well. So you feel confident in your brand strategy moving forward. And then you can actually get the real results you're looking for, which are attracting ideal clients increasing your revenue and so on. Number eight, you're hesitant to share about your website. Thus, you are only promoting yourself on social media. I recently, I've mentioned this a few times before, but I'm taking a little break from Instagram at the moment. I'm just not posting as much over there, just because I found that it wasn't as productive as I wanted it to be and I don't have a ton of time. Right now at the moment in my business to work. So I'm trying to focus a lot of my attention on outlets that I really enjoy, like this podcast, Pinterest, a few other things. And so, oh, sorry, I get on T-Jet sometimes. But it's very important that you are promoting yourself with your website all the time and then use social media like, as a supplement, you know, like on top of. If you wanted to add something more to your marketing efforts, you know, add in social media, but I don't think social media and specifically Instagram should be your main source of like, oh, I don't have a website, but I do have a social media account. I just think it's dangerous to do that because I know of so many people who their Instagram accounts like disappeared out of nowhere and they had you know thousands of followers and It's just one of those things where it's not your platform And you don't own it and it could disappear and I don't want to like scare people of course But this is a real thing that happens like your account could disappear and all of those people If you don't have any way to connect with them like how are you gonna reach them again?
And so I think it's important to have a website and to have a place where you can gather email addresses and you can really build a platform that is your own and that really can help you market and that you feel confident and like this is not gonna disappear tomorrow.
Number nine, your current visual brand is scattered, piecemealed, and has no clear strategy. And this is I kind of mentioned this a little bit, you know, in these last few ones that we went through, but it's so important to have a visual brand that's really clear and cohesive and that leads your potential clients through a journey of how they can learn about you, work with you, get involved with what you're doing. And having a visual brand that's really focused with strategy is so important. I mean, it's the most important thing. I think whenever, whenever I hear about clients who have worked with a brand designer and there was no real strategy involved, it just makes me like cringe because if there's no strategy behind the visuals you're doing, you will not have the impact that you wanna have.
And so that's why I believe that strategy and visual branding need to go hand in hand for sure, because then it's clear, cohesive, and it's with you in the long haul, but it also will do what you want it to do and get those results you want it to get, which is being a magnet to your ideal clients and charging those premium rates and so on.
And finally, you are changing your business focus and you want to look like an expert. And this one, I definitely think I recently signed a client who was in this boat where she's pivoting, but she has a lot of experience, like so much experience in the online space. And she's ready to really look like the professional with this new direction. And I think this is a big one that people, especially if you've been in, you know, you've been entrepreneurial or in the online space, or if you have corporate experience for decades, you know, you don't really want to start off DIY and look like you don't know what you're doing. Sometimes you would just rather come out the gate and look incredible and professional, capable, credible, all of those things. And so I think that's, you know, a big one is if you're changing your business focus and you want to look like the expert, a rebrand could be the next best thing in your future because then...
You just collapse the time basically, and you can look like that professional that you know that you are. And I have a bonus one too. I just wrote down this one really quickly just because I thought this is a big one too. I feel like if you already know deep down that you need a rebrand, but you're feeling overwhelmed at all the moving pieces or getting started, that is a big indicator that you are ready. And I know there's a lot of talk that goes around sometimes like, oh, how do you know if you're ready? How do you, like, is there a feeling or is there something you need to feel ready to do the thing? And I think whatever the thing is, whatever the adventure you're embarking on, whether it's rebranding, starting a podcast, starting a course, I don't know if you ever feel ready.
I think you just know that this is the next step for you, that this is gonna help you reach your goals.
And that is your guiding. That is your, you know, guiding.
And that is what helps you lead the way to know like, okay, I'm on the right track. I definitely know I need this. I don't exactly feel ready, but I feel like this is what I need to do to help me get to where I wanna go. Then you're in the right path to get started. And I don't think you have to have all of the answers when you get started, but having, I think hiring that support to help you is incredibly important because, you know, just having that expert in your corner.
Having someone to bounce ideas off of, having someone to lead you through a process is, I mean, just so, so valuable. And I just can't recommend it enough if you're going on a new venture or if you're starting something new, hiring that expert who can help guide you through the process is invaluable. So let me run through those 10 things in a bonus again.
Just so you have all of them. Okay, so 10 dead giveaways that you need to rebrand. Inconsistency, outdated appearance, lack of confidence, poor audience connection, your prices don't match, you're ready to scale, but you're feeling scattered, you're wasting precious time, you're hesitant to share about your website, your current visual brand is scattered with no clear strategy.
You're changing your business focus, and the bonus one is you already know you need a rebrand, but you're feeling overwhelmed. I would love to invite you to check out my signature service, the Master Rebrand Experience. This is for women who are ready to transform how she shows up online. So it's in alignment with her vision for her growing company, and she's ready to exude authority and be a magnet to her ideal clients in the premium space.
This is a service that I truly, truly love, and it is the complete done for you, start to finish experience, and so you don't have to feel overwhelmed at all the moving parts. I just take you by the hand, and we start all the way at the beginning from brand strategy. We go through the visual branding. We can do marketing collateral pieces. We do a custom website, launch and support and copywriting can be an add-on. There's just so many things included in this process, so you don't have to find all these different contractors to work with. You can get it all under one roof. You can get it all at one time. And it is a 8 to 12 week experience, but it has all of your bases covered.
This is the perfect solution if you are ready to have some help with the rebranding process and you're ready to come out looking like the expert and the professional that you are and you're ready to do it with a design expert who's ready to help you from start to finish with a team who is capable and has done this before for dozens and dozens of other women.
I would love to help you in this process. If you are interested, you can learn more about my services at artartspace.com slash services. And when you're ready, just fill out the contact form on the contact page and we'll also have links in the show notes as well. But this is, like I mentioned, my signature service. I absolutely love helping women with this and they come away with results like booking out their group coaching programs.
They are connecting with ideal clients. They're having more discovery calls booked. They are growing their podcast numbers and they are really just exponentially growing and ready to scale and just they're in that position to just reach all of their biggest goals. And it having a rebrand done is one of those things where you don't do it all the time. You do it once, I say once every five to 10 years and it really just sets you up for so much success in the coming future. So I encourage you to check that out if you feel like you had several or more, like one or more of these dead giveaways that you need to rebrand. Now is the best time to reach out. So you can reach out to me through my website or through Instagram at r underscore art space. And I really look forward to connecting with you there. I hope this was helpful. I hope you took away something that I hope this podcast was helpful and like I said, if you're interested in rebranding, I can't wait to connect with you. And until next week, I hope you have such a beautiful day and I'll talk with you soon.