brand repositioning case study

Brand repositioning strategy (With Case Studies)

Table of Contents

0.1 Brand repositioning strategy
1.1 Change in consumer behavior:
1.2 Increased competition:
1.3 Changes in technology:
1.4 Decline in sales:
2.1 Define the brand’s current position
2.2 Identify the target audience
2.3 Determine the brand’s new positioning
2.4 Develop a marketing plan
2.5 Monitor and measure the brand’s performance
3.2 Old Spice
3.3 McDonald’s
3.4 Harley Davidson
3.6 Brand repositioning strategy
4 Conclusion

Brand repositioning strategy: Brand repositioning is a marketing strategy used to change the way consumers perceive a particular brand in the market. It is a process of redefining and refining a brand’s image, messaging, and value proposition to make it more appealing to the target audience.

In today’s ever-evolving marketplace, businesses must remain agile and adapt to changes in consumer behavior, technological advancements, and industry trends. This requires companies to regularly evaluate their brand’s position in the market and make adjustments as necessary.

A successful brand repositioning strategy can help a company differentiate itself from competitors, increase market share, and improve customer loyalty.

Brand repositioning strategy

Why do companies need brand repositioning.

There are various reasons why companies need to reposition their brands. Some of these reasons include:

Change in consumer behavior:

Consumer behavior is constantly changing, and companies must adapt to these changes to remain relevant.Therefore, if a company’s target audience’s needs and preferences change, the brand must also change to reflect these changes.

Increased competition:

As the market becomes more competitive, companies must differentiate themselves from their competitors to stay ahead. Repositioning the brand can help the company stand out in the market and attract more customers.

Changes in technology:

With the advancement of technology, companies must adapt their brands to keep up with the latest trends and innovations. Brands that fail to do so risk becoming obsolete.

Decline in sales:

If a company’s sales are declining, repositioning the brand can help re-energize the business and attract new customers. In some cases, a decline in sales may be a symptom of a more significant issue with the product or service itself. Therefore, it is important to conduct thorough market research and analysis to ensure that repositioning the brand is the right solution to address the decline in sales.

Steps to successful brand repositioning

Define the brand’s current position.

The first step in repositioning a brand is to understand its current position in the market. This involves analyzing the brand’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Identify the target audience

Once the brand’s current position is defined, the next step is to identify the target audience. The target audience is the group of people who are most likely to buy the product or service.

Determine the brand’s new positioning

Based on the analysis of the brand’s current position and the target audience, the brand’s new positioning can be determined. This involves defining the brand’s unique selling proposition (USP) and developing a new messaging strategy that resonates with the target audience.

Develop a marketing plan

Once the new positioning is determined, the next step is to develop a marketing plan that will communicate the new brand message to the target audience. This plan should include a mix of marketing channels, including social media, print, television, and radio.

Monitor and measure the brand’s performance

After the repositioning strategy is implemented, it is essential to monitor and measure the brand’s performance. This involves tracking sales, customer feedback, and other key performance indicators to determine the effectiveness of the repositioning strategy.

Examples of successful brand repositioning

Apple’s “Think Different” campaign was a revolutionary brand repositioning strategy that transformed the company’s image and helped it become a leader in the technology industry. At the time, Microsoft was dominating the market with its Windows operating system, leaving Apple struggling to compete. Apple’s brand was seen as outdated, and it was losing its relevance with consumers.

To address this, Apple embarked on a brand repositioning strategy that focused on celebrating creativity and innovation. The “Think Different” campaign featured ads that showcased visionaries such as Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mahatma Gandhi, encouraging consumers to think outside the box and challenge the status quo.

The campaign was a massive success and helped Apple differentiate itself from Microsoft and other competitors. It not only attracted a new generation of customers but also helped to re-energize Apple’s existing customer base.

The “Think Different” campaign is an excellent example of how brand repositioning can help companies redefine their image and messaging to better connect with their target audience. By celebrating creativity and innovation, Apple positioned itself as a company that valued individuality and originality, which resonated with consumers.

The campaign’s success led to increased sales and market share for Apple, and it cemented the company’s reputation as a trailblazer in the technology industry.

Old Spice’s “Smell Like a Man, Man” campaign was a bold move that helped the brand appeal to younger consumers and establish a new image in the market. In the early 2000s, the brand was struggling to connect with younger consumers, who saw Old Spice as a brand for their fathers or grandfathers. The brand’s image was perceived as outdated and uncool, and it was losing market share to its competitors.

To address this, Old Spice embarked on a brand repositioning strategy that focused on humor and irreverence. The “Smell Like a Man, Man” campaign featured commercials that parodied traditional masculinity and challenged gender stereotypes.

The campaign was a huge success, with millions of views on YouTube and widespread social media buzz. The commercials featured over-the-top scenarios that were meant to be funny, while also highlighting the brand’s products.

The success of the “Smell Like a Man, Man” campaign helped Old Spice increase sales and attract a new audience of younger consumers. The brand became associated with humor and irreverence, which resonated with millennials and Generation Z. Old Spice’s brand repositioning strategy was so successful that it inspired other brands to adopt a similar approach, and it became a case study in the marketing industry.

McDonald’s

In the 2000s, fast-casual restaurants like Chipotle and Panera Bread were rapidly gaining popularity, especially among health-conscious consumers who were looking for healthier options than traditional fast-food fare. This posed a significant threat to McDonald’s, which was known for its burgers, fries, and other high-calorie menu items.

However, to address this, McDonald’s embarked on a brand repositioning strategy that focused on offering healthier menu options. The company introduced salads, fruit smoothies, and other low-calorie menu items, making it more appealing to health-conscious consumers. McDonald’s also updated its restaurants’ interiors, creating a more modern and inviting atmosphere that appealed to a wider range of customers.

The repositioning strategy was a significant success, and it helped McDonald’s differentiate itself from its competitors. By offering healthier menu options, McDonald’s was able to appeal to a broader range of consumers and position itself as a more health-conscious fast-food chain. The updated restaurant interiors also helped the brand create a more contemporary and inviting image, which helped attract younger customers.

Harley Davidson

Harley Davidson, an American motorcycle manufacturer, faced significant competition in the 1980s from Japanese manufacturers who were producing high-quality, affordable motorcycles. As a result, Harley Davidson’s market share began to decline, and the company was in danger of becoming irrelevant.

To address this, Harley Davidson embarked on a brand repositioning strategy that celebrated the company’s American heritage and the emotional connection between riders and their motorcycles. The “Live by it” campaign featured ads that showcased riders on the open road, emphasizing the freedom and individualism that comes with owning a Harley Davidson motorcycle.

The campaign also highlighted the company’s commitment to quality and craftsmanship, emphasizing the pride and passion that went into every motorcycle produced.

The “Live by it” campaign was a massive success and helped Harley Davidson differentiate itself from its competitors. Consequently, the campaign resonated with riders who saw owning a Harley Davidson motorcycle as more than just a mode of transportation, but as a lifestyle choice. The emotional connection that the campaign created between riders and the brand helped to build a loyal following, which still exists today.

Dove, a personal care brand known for its traditional soap products, faced a challenge in the early 2000s. Younger consumers saw the brand as outdated and lacking relevance, as they were looking for products that reflected their values and beliefs. To address this, Dove embarked on a brand repositioning strategy that celebrated women of all shapes, sizes, and ages through the “Real Beauty” campaign.

The “Real Beauty” campaign featured ads that showcased real women, with varying body shapes and skin tones. The campaign emphasized the importance of self-esteem and body positivity, encouraging women to feel confident and beautiful in their own skin. The campaign’s success was driven by its message of inclusivity, which resonated with consumers who were looking for brands that reflected their values and beliefs.

The “Real Beauty” campaign was a huge success and helped Dove differentiate itself from its competitors. Additionally, the campaign’s message of inclusivity and body positivity not only resonated with consumers but also helped to build a loyal following. The campaign’s success helped Dove become a leader in the beauty industry and drove sales growth for the brand.

Brand repositioning is an essential marketing strategy that can help companies adapt to changes in the market and remain relevant. By defining the brand’s current position, identifying the target audience, determining the brand’s new positioning, developing a marketing plan, and monitoring the brand’s performance, companies can successfully reposition their brands and differentiate themselves from competitors.

Successful brand repositioning requires a deep understanding of the market, a clear vision for the brand’s future, and a willingness to take risks and try new approaches. Companies that are willing to embrace brand repositioning can enjoy increased market share, customer loyalty, and long-term success.

Legal considerations when starting a business

Marketing automation KPIs to watch out for in your business

International market positioning: Considerations for global expansion

The Future of Marketing Automation: Trends and Predictions

The Caregiver

The creator, the explorer, the innocent, the magician, the regular guy, search by category, search by archetype, the most instructive repositioning case studies of all time – part 1.

The most instructive repositioning case studies of all time – Part 1

In the last few years, we have written a series of articles analysing the most instructive rebranding case studies, including stories such as: – Tropicana changing its iconic packaging and Netflix’s attempt to separate and rebrand its DVD rental service ( part 4 ) – Bell Atlantic and GTE becoming Verizon, and Lucky GoldStar becoming LG ( part 3 ) – Norwich Union and CGU creating Aviva, and Airbnb changing its visual identity ( part 2 ) – Abbey National, Bradford & Bingley and Alliance & Leicester rebranding to Santander, and a spin-off from Arthur Andersen becoming Accenture ( part 1 ).

This article starts a new series focusing on repositioning examples that show how various brands have either achieved success or failed commercially as a result of redefining their brand territory. The two brands we are showcasing today are GoPro and Lurpak .

After many successful years, GoPro ’s growth slowed down due to the fact that the niche the company was targeting was relatively narrow. Most of the people who were interested in buying GoPro products already had them and were disinclined to upgrade to newer models, as older-generation products were still of satisfactory quality. The company, in order to continue to grow, made three detrimental business decisions designed to reposition the brand and expand its user base. The results of the new approach led to the brand’s decline. However, it’s still disputable whether the strategy itself was wrong or its implementation was too hurried.

The first decision was to widen GoPro’s target audience to attract more regular consumers. The company attempted to convince them that using GoPro products in everyday situations, instead of smartphone cameras, would enable them to be more present in the moment. This strategy never worked, although it didn’t harm the business as much as the other two decisions.

The second idea that GoPro implemented sought to expand its range of products. The company launched the Karma series of video drones while announcing that it had started conducting virtual reality trials. As the drones experienced major technical problems (they were prone to fall from the air), GoPro discontinued their production.

The third decision which turned out to be the most damaging to the business was to transform GoPro into a media company. As GoPro cameras allowed their users to create a large amount of unique video footage, the company, similar to Red Bull , became a content outlet, with “shareability” as one of its key objectives. GoPro invested a lot of money in developing more than 30 of its own series and launching a streaming platform, but none of these was officially launched as the company started having problems with its core business (mainly because resources were moved from it to the other GoPro endeavours). As a result of worsening commercial results, GoPro shares lost more than 90% of their value in just a few years. Nick Woodman explained to Inc. the reasons why the new approach failed: “The teams were killing themselves to launch the products on time. We were doing too many things, and it was taking too long to make decisions because management was juggling too many projects at once.”

What’s the key lesson? Be careful when diversifying and protect your resources; entering new categories is always a risky endeavour and, while a recognizable brand name can help, sometimes it’s just not enough to achieve success.

The success of the Lurpak brand on the British market is largely down to its effective positioning and the creative work, which has been developed by Wieden+Kennedy London, since 2007. The core of Lurpak’s brand strategy lies in positioning it as “a champion of good food” and targeting so called “gourmet foodies” – people who like cooking at home and enjoy doing everything from scratch. This strategy doesn’t make Lurpak butter the main hero of the communication but focuses on its transformative power and places a stronger emphasis on a great food one can prepare or serve with it. Lurpak’s positioning and its execution have been so effective in the UK that they have also been adopted by the brand globally.

Lurpak’s communication and in particular its TV campaigns are widely believed to be a benchmark of what good food advertising should look like. They present cooking as a creative and almost magical process, in which with a little help of Lurpak and the special powers of the cook, the ordinary can be transformed into something extraordinary. It is also worth noting that despite the healthy lifestyle trends, the food shown in Lurpak’s communication is chosen to look delicious more than anything else. Bacon, cookies, pancakes and toasts are much more likely to appear in the brand’s advertisements than, for example, broccoli. Lurpak’s champion of good food positioning was captured in the tagline, “Good Food Deserves Lurpak”.

What’s the key lesson? Sometimes your brand can be better off if you don’t make it the hero but accept the fact that its role is that of an enhancer.

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Magda Adamska is the founder of BrandStruck . https://www.linkedin.com/in/magda-adamska-32379048/

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