Tag: Rebrand

Copper, Blue + Pink: An Artful Name Change / Rebrand

Posted on by Drew Neisser

If you took every tech company logo and stacked them by color, here’s what you’d see: some red, some shades of black, grey, and white, some green. But all those stacks would be in the shadow of one color: blue. Samsung, Facebook, Lenovo, PayPal, hp, Dell—the list of blue logos goes on and on.

So what did Morgan Norman, CMO of Copper (née ProsperWorks)? He went pink. With a dash of creative, and a spritz of data analysis, Copper went bold and rebranded in a major way. But—a rebrand isn’t just a name and a color. The new mentality has to fill up every nook and cranny of the company, employees need to buy in, users need to be kept informed. On this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite, Drew Neisser talks with Morgan Norman about the keys to a rebrand, some common hurdles, and more about B2B marketing.

Tune in here.

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What You’ll Learn

Why a company name change?

Before its company name change, Copper was a very successful business. It was not looking for a different name to boost sales or to pull itself out of a slump. However, there were still various reasons to change its name. ProsperWorks was a hard name for people to remember. It was even harder for people to say. Prior to its name change, it was in 110 countries, and the name ProsperWorks was hard to translate. Studies were also showing that customers were consistently misspelling its name. All of these reasons culminated in a desire to explore new company names.

Just a coat of paint, or a complete overhaul?

When ProsperWorks changed its company name to Copper, it did not just change its name – it changed its entire brand. Morgan explains that every bit of product was overhauled, from customer interactions and existing content, to its brand and the company’s roadmap of where it wanted to go. He said that with the new name, the brand changed to revolve around relationships.

How Copper used a relaunch to generate interest in its brand

Copper used its relaunch to help generate interest in its brand in several different ways:

  • They launched a new advertising campaign: CRM Minus the Bad Stuff. Their ads were enough to make the public curious enough to finish the story by finding out more information on the product.
  • Copper utilized billboard ads. They ran 2 at a time in San Francisco near the airport. This captured the audience of people flying in. They also put a human face to CRM.
  • They produced massive amounts of content about the company and its new name. The name change was surrounded by information on the company.

Timeline

  • [2:30] Who is Morgan Norman?
  • [5:52] Why ProsperWorks changed its name to Copper
  • [7:31] Which came first: the name change or the URL
  • [12:24] Why the name Copper instead of Copper CRM
  • [15:43] Why Copper chose pink in branding
  • [17:46] A complete overhaul: from name to product
  • [21:34] Internal involvement before a name change
  • [27:25] The launch of Copper’s new name
  • [30:18] How to use a relaunch to generate interest in your brand
  • [35:22] Top lessons from name changing
  • [38:47] Key metrics that matter in marketing

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How Braze Mastered the Art of the Rebrand

Posted on by Drew Neisser

Renaming a company is no small task. It’s even more challenging when your company is fewer than 10 years old. Marissa Aydlett, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Braze, is Drew’s guest for this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite. They skillfully unpack the art and science of renaming a company and it’s a conversation you don’t want to miss.

Marissa shares insight into challenges surrounding the renaming process and the subsequent rebranding efforts. There is power behind selecting a name and future direction for your company, and it’s not something that should be tackled haphazardly.

Key differences between historical, in the moment, and predictive data are also covered. Knowing how to capture these types of data and use them to your company’s advantage is one of the biggest pieces of advice Marissa has for listeners.

What You’ll Learn

The essentials behind renaming a company

Braze is a customer engagement platform that allows companies to send out personalized messages across a variety of platforms. Formerly known as Appboy, the company began in 2011 and Marissa’s team started the renaming process when the company was only 6 years old. She knew the company needed to be a leader in predicting how people will communicate and interact with each other in both B2B and B2C environments in the future. Achieving this leader status could only come after a renaming process. Marissa shares the following key insights about renaming a company:

  • Understand that a name could stick with your company forever
  • A name should be symbolic of your company’s goals and values
  • Naming a company is a personal experience – be sure to take into account internal and external opinions
  • Don’t be afraid of seeking third-party advice and support
  • Have a plan for rebranding efforts after the naming process is complete

All of this advice and more great insights can be found on this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite.

The power of choosing a great name and how that name can organically become an eponym

The ultimate dream for marketers is universal awareness – the point in time when your brand becomes synonymous with a noun. Having your brand become a verb is an even better case scenario. Think, “I’ll Venmo you the money!” or “I’ll Google it!” Marissa has found that the company name “Braze” is organically becoming an eponym and that organic discovery process is better than any marketing-driven campaign. Her team members are using variations such as “Brazify it!” and that’s quite an exciting process to watch. There’s power in a great name. It could drive the future direction of your company for years to come. You can’t afford to miss the renaming secrets that Drew and Marissa discuss, so be sure to listen.

Being an innovative company is all about fostering personal connections with each customer

Even though a stellar name is a perfect foundation for a company, the company then has to strive to make personal, individualized connections with every customer. That’s where data comes into play. Marissa describes how Braze encourages its clients to use three types of data: historical, in the moment, and predictive. This combination of data gives a company the best chance at knowing what the customers want, when they want it, and why they’re seeking it. She says it’s all about delivering the right message at the right time to the right person. It’s an explanation that’s best heard from the expert, so be sure to listen to Marissa’s conversation with Drew. You won’t regret it.

Timeline

  • [0:30] Drew introduces his guest for this episode, Marissa Aydlett of Braze
  • [2:56] The major brand transformation from Appboy to Braze
  • [7:56] Understanding the true importance of selecting a new name through dedicated research
  • [10:33] The biggest lessons Marissa’s learned throughout the renaming process
  • [14:27] So the company has a new name – now what?
  • [18:06] The medium was the message at Braze’s live promotion events
  • [21:57] Turning the Braze name into an eponym
  • [24:40] The future of Braze – where are all of the company’s ideas heading?
  • [28:21] Historical data vs. in the moment data vs. predictive data
  • [34:23] The power of first-party data within predictive analytics
  • [36:39] How to look at your marketing programs beyond the next 6 months

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How Dropbox is Channeling Global Creative Energy Through a Bold Rebranding Effort

Posted on by Drew Neisser

Few companies have mastered the art of channeling creative energy through a focused rebranding effort better than Dropbox. On this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite, Drew interviews CMO of Dropbox Carolyn Feinstein. Their shared love of creative energy and authentic storytelling makes for a podcast episode you don’t want to miss.

Carolyn discusses her passion for connecting deeply with consumers through stories as well as why Dropbox chose to “fix something that wasn’t broken” all on this episode. Be sure to listen to discover how Carolyn’s team shifted the market’s perspective about the well-loved company and its offerings.

With over half a billion worldwide users, Dropbox is among the best for workflow technology companies. Their ability to roll out massive internal changes while simultaneously conveying the right story to loyal consumers is encouraging.

Hear all about the challenges tackled, lessons learned, and joyful successes on this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite. Click here to listen now.

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How did Dropbox approach such a massive project? By following these three main ideas

Carolyn’s team is passionate about storytelling. She explains to Drew on this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite that connecting people to one another through quality products and touching stories is the best way to begin a rebranding project. After realizing that Dropbox wanted to reinvent itself, Carolyn followed three main ideas that dictated their path: the art of storytelling, achieving buy-in from internal audiences, and listening to the voice of loyal customers. To hear how she skillfully knit these steps together into one successful mission be sure to listen to this episode.

Rebranding should not be incremental – bold actions conquer fear and allow your company to make huge strides forward

Dropbox’s biggest success throughout the rebranding process was persuading every member on the team that bold actions were the way to achieve ultimate success. Drew is also a huge proponent of the idea that incremental steps don’t move companies forward. Carolyn knew she needed to snap people to attention and have them understand that Dropbox is more than cloud storage. While there will always be some concerns about restructuring a brand’s identity, moving forward with confidence is the ultimate way to launch your company into the next chapter of success. You’ll surely learn from this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite so be sure to give it your full attention.

The crisis of modern work is “death by distraction” – hear how Dropbox is channeling the world’s creative energy and allowing people to work to their full potential

The modern workplace is plagued with notifications, emails, and deadlines. Carolyn and her team at Dropbox recognized this issue and wanted to solve it. Their solution? Streamlined services and products geared at freeing teams from monotonous and time-consuming tasks so they can unleash their creative energy. The goal? Global teams working on a united platform to create projects that will change the world. That’s why Dropbox continues to be a leader in workplace technology and creative storytelling. This interview is one you don’t want to miss.

What You’ll Learn

  • [0:30] Drew asks the question, “if it’s not broken, should you break it anyway?”
  • [2:00] Carolyn’s go-to story to share with marketers
  • [6:16] The biggest moment for Carolyn when she was with Electronic Arts
  • [11:03] The massive rebranding project Carolyn helped Dropbox navigate
  • [14:27] Shifting the consumers’ perspective of Dropbox
  • [16:57] How Dropbox handled the fear of changing a well-loved brand
  • [21:40] The internal rollout of Dropbox’s rebranding project
  • [23:57] Dropbox is becoming an eponym and approaching the level of Google or FedEx
  • [26:00] The art of a living, dynamic workspace product
  • [28:15] Distraction = death in the modern workplace, and how Dropbox is unleashing global creative energy
  • [31:08] The biggest lessons learned throughout this bold rebranding mission and the 3 main measures used to measure a storytelling effort
  • [35:06] Drew summarizes this inspiring episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite

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