How often should you refresh your brand?

3-5 years is the prevailing wisdom. But if you’re wondering what’s reasonable for your business, it helps to understand why that time frame exists, as well as the drawbacks of thinking of it as a hard-and-fast rule. 

Because a refresh can be a considerable undertaking, and not all brands have the same expiry date.

Why 3-5 Years?

Think about the kind of change that can happen in that amount of time. Three years ago, we were all blissfully unaware of the realities of pandemic life. Client relationships were different, expectations were different, and the industry was different. 

Technology alone, in a few years’ time, can progress by leaps and bounds, affecting everything from CRMs to web design in unpredictable ways. And this can have far-reaching implications for your practice.

And then there’s your own business. Your team, your offering, your opportunities—none of it will stay static for long, and your brand needs to undergo the same degree of change if it’s going to continue to support your goals.

Overall, in this space of time, the evolution of your business and the world in which it resides will erode the relevance and value of an untouched brand. 

What works best?

So the 3-5-year window isn’t an arbitrary rule, but it’s not exactly universal, either. If it’s been two years, but your business and your competitors have changed dramatically, you won’t gain anything by waiting to refresh your brand.

And if it’s coming on five years since you’ve launched your brand, but you’ve been developing it continuously, then a refresh may not be as urgent as some of your other priorities. 

In reality, you’ll get the most out of your brand if you treat it as a kind of living thing—not something you build once and put aside. Some of the most successful brands we’ve worked with have a perpetual outflow of new content and a team committed to ongoing brand enhancements to keep up with the needs of their clients and their business. Then, periodically, they revamp major components like their website or core principles. And because they’ve already been actively managing their brand, those refreshes aren’t as arduous an undertaking as they would have been otherwise.

If you’re not quite sure what makes the most sense for you, let’s talk and we’ll give you our recommendations.