Three steps for a successful rebrand
Written by Niki Juhasz
What happens when your brand (like your name, logo, colors and tagline) no longer fits who your organization is, and the vision of what you’re working towards?
It’s time for a rebrand.
At Forthright, we adore rebrands. They are some of the most fun projects we work on!
Today, we’re breaking down three key elements to a successful rebrand using a recent project we worked on with Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina (formerly Prevent Child Abuse North Carolina) as an example so you can see how the steps play out.
Step 1: Start with Strategy
The key to a great rebrand is understanding your current challenges and looking ahead to where you want to be in the future. You must also deeply understand your current and future audiences – who you serve, who you work alongside and who you’d like to work with in the future.
The PCANC team’s work is, simply put, incredible. They’re challenging the status quo for how organizations and advocates support children and families – leading to more positive childhoods across North Carolina. And their work has evolved a lot throughout the past 45 years.
Yet some North Carolinians – from partners to policymakers to prospective supporters – were confused about PCANC’s mission and work. For example, the team often received calls from people who thought the nonprofit was the same as Child Protective Services. (This was due to the name – Prevent Child Abuse!)
Together, we looked at how PCANC fits into the landscape of nonprofits in North Carolina that do similar work – and we identified what sets them apart. In corporate speak, we developed their ‘competitive advantages’.
Step 2: Gather Inputs and Feedback
The second step is understanding what’s next for the organization, and what you want to be known for. We worked with the PCANC team to survey staff, partners and their board, and gathered a robust set of feedback that we analyzed for themes.
We looked at it from every angle, asking questions such as:
What is the one main thing you want audiences to know about PCANC when they see your new logo and new name?
What emotions do you want your key audiences to feel when they see your brand?
What do you like about the current brand? (Logo elements, brand colors, fonts, etc.)
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We were looking for everything from visuals that resonated with the team to brand personality.
This helped us come up with different name options for the organization: the first piece in a full rebrand. This is when it can be handy for an organization to work with an outside consultant on a rebrand – it’s easier for a third party to serve as a fresh set of eyes.
We suggested several name options. The PCANC team then got feedback on them, and ultimately agreed on Positive Childhood Alliance NC. The name reflected the organization’s commitment to strengthening families and the communities they live in, and captured the organization’s positive, forward-looking, and inclusive spirit.
The PCANC team wanted to reassure their long-term supporters they were still working with a trusted, familiar partner. By keeping the acronym – but changing what it stands for – we could maintain a piece of the nonprofit’s history, while refreshing the full brand!
Step 3: Build the Visuals
Once a new name is selected, it’s time to develop how the brand will show up in the world. That means colors, logos and a full style guide (a PR term for graphic design guidelines).
For PCANC, we knew the logo iconography was important. The colors also needed to represent the fresh and bright identity of Positive Childhoods. Our team developed a few different logo options, and PCANC selected a modern, four-square logo that represents the breadth of their services. (With a nod to their long history of advocacy with the pinwheel!)
Main Logo
Full Color
Main logo
One Color
In March 2024, Prevent Child Abuse NC unveiled their new brand: Positive Childhood Alliance NC. The fresh, positive brand resonated! Partners shared comments on LinkedIn, such as “Love the manifestation of POSITIVE childhoods!” and “What an exciting shift. Children are so much more than what happens to them!”.
Successful rebrands help supporters see your organization’s work today, and help you pave the way for the future. We loved getting to work alongside the PCANC team, and know that with a new way to talk about the work they do, they’ll be able to make an even bigger impact on children, families and communities across North Carolina.
