On January 13th, 2014, Rebelle Agency released a new logo and motto for the new year, "REfine, REalign, REbelle" 

After 1.5 years of company work we are excited to refine our brand image, realign our company mission and focus, and continue to build upon our company foundation to rebelle. 

In the history of brand recognition, some consumers and industry professionals believe that changing company logos disrupts the connectivity between customers and the brand of the company. However, when a company needs to refresh brand image, a logo change is often the most necessary action.

According to an article in foxbusiness.com:

A logo change is always a great way to control-alt-delete when it comes to customer perception of a brand, said Keith Rogers, an independent consultant who helps build brands and is currently consulting several startups.

For us at Rebelle Agency, we changed our logo because we were dedicated to portraying a more mature and approachable brand image and to reaching out to a more diverse audience. We appreciate all of the supporters and clients that have worked with us from the beginning and we know that this new logo and brand mission will show them that we are poised to be an even stronger resource for them in the future.

We are a fast-growing, young, boutique agency that is looking towards the future as a global corporation and we want clients and supporters to look toward that future as well. A logo change for us is acceptable in our youth however big brand, big name corporations have a much more difficult decision in choosing to change their logo to enact a refreshed brand image. The Gap logo change debacle in 2010 is a clear indication that not all consumers are willing or ready for logo changes. Just days after The Gap released a new logo, consumers took to Facebook and expressed their discontent with the logo change. As a company dedicated to their consumer, The Gap quickly reverted back to their original logo and admitted their mistake.

From bbc.co.uk:

Where marketers often go wrong is they think they have identified an opportunity for the brand to evolve and become something else, become more modern, and they think they can shortcut this by changing the visual identity, and carry the customers with them.

It's a fundamental error because customers may not be ready to go with you. The product positioning has to change first, then the logo should be the last thing.

The conversation about brands changing their logos is one that will be ongoing. In the past, logos have positioned themselves as the universal language for the brand of a company. In this modern digital era, companies are competing to remain relevant, fresh, and visually interesting with their logos, websites and social media spaces. Logos need to reflect the foundation of a company, with their historical reference and future plans all in one. The most important factor in a brand image is one that cannot be argued, consumer opinion. The main objective in a company's decision to change anything has to be anchored in the reaction of the consumer and the ability to make the consumer believe that whatever changes made are the best for them and the company together.

We hope you enjoy our new logo. We promise we won't change it every year, we are pretty married to this one.

*Note: This blog post is an example of the content that will be available through BrightRed, a compilation of infographics and white papers about the public relations, marketing, brand management and events industries. Please look forward to BrightRed content in future blog posts and online by Summer 2014.