Guide

Transitioning brands when acquiring businesses.

Dealing with acquired brands

Brands acquired via a trade purchase must be incorporated via a brand architecture in a way that does not disrupt existing relationships between different levels. In relatively flat structures this is a straightforward process and means that decisions on naming and timescale can be made prior to finalising the purchase.

Points of order in the assimilation process are as follows:

  • Decide which brands have value eg. acquired company’s
    corporate brand vs acquired company’s product brands
  • Decide whether to keep the existing name or create a new one
  • After assessment of the newly acquired brand’s equity decide on the length of the transition period. How long for a brand
    endorsement period prior to fully incorporating the business or product
  • Communicate planned changes with the acquisition’s existing
    customer base, employees and your own staff with strong, clear
    and benefit-led messaging
  • Incorporate the newly acquired brand into the new naming
    convention for your sub-brands and products
  • Conduct an early modification of the acquisition’s existing
    website and sales support materials, by applying the new logo,
    apply some of your brand’s look and feel and corporate
    colourways etc.
  • Run workshops with sales groups
  • Run cross-sell messaging between your website and the
    acquisition’s site
  • Give communications the same look and feel including marketing
    to prospects and customers to avoid any confusion
  • Complete the full incorporation of the acquisition’s web presence
    by bringing it onto your main site

Brand evaluation

As early as possible in the acquisition process we should discover more about the brands being acquired.

 

  • What is the brand’s market position?
  • What is the market’s perception?
  • Which audiences are currently engaged?
  • What are the potential implications for the brand’s transition –
    customers, operations, employees.

 

To answer these questions means gaining customer insight. This is usually 1st Objective’s starting point when building brand architectures. It can take the form of management interviews, brand research, customer satisfaction surveys and interviews and by talking to staff in customer services and operations.

 

The result should inform your knowledge in the following ways:

 

  • Does this brand complement or conflict with your current
    offering?
  • Does this brand strengthen your overall strategic position in the
    market?

Assimilation

Brands acquired via a trade purchase must be incorporated via a brand architecture in a way that does not disrupt existing relationships between different levels. In relatively flat structures this is a straightforward process and means that decisions on naming and timescale can be made prior to finalising the purchase.

Points of order in the assimilation process are as follows:

 

  • Decide which brands have value eg. acquired company’s
    corporate brand vs acquired company’s product brands
  • Decide whether to keep the existing name or create a new one
  • After assessment of the newly acquired brand’s equity decide on the length of the transition period. How long for a brand
    endorsement period prior to fully incorporating the business or product
  • Communicate planned changes with the acquisition’s existing
    customer base, employees and your own staff with strong, clear and benefit-led messaging
  • Incorporate the newly acquired brand into the new naming
    convention for your sub-brands and products
  • Conduct an early modification of the acquisition’s existing
    website and sales support materials, by applying the new logo,
    apply some of your brand’s look and feel and corporate
    colourways etc.
  • Run workshops with sales groups
  • Run cross-sell messaging between your website and the
    acquisition’s site
  • Give communications the same look and feel including marketing to prospects and customers to avoid any confusion
  • Complete the full incorporation of the acquisition’s web presence by bringing it onto your main site

Assimilation

Brands acquired via a trade purchase must be incorporated via a brand architecture in a way that does not disrupt existing relationships between different levels. In relatively flat structures this is a straightforward process and means that decisions on naming and timescale can be made prior to finalising the purchase.

Points of order in the assimilation process are as follows:

 

  • Decide which brands have value eg. acquired company’s
    corporate brand vs acquired company’s product brands
  • Decide whether to keep the existing name or create a new one
  • After assessment of the newly acquired brand’s equity decide on the length of the transition period. How long for a brand
    endorsement period prior to fully incorporating the business or product
  • Communicate planned changes with the acquisition’s existing
    customer base, employees and your own staff with strong, clear and benefit-led messaging
  • Incorporate the newly acquired brand into the new naming
    convention for your sub-brands and products
  • Conduct an early modification of the acquisition’s existing
    website and sales support materials, by applying the new logo,
    apply some of your brand’s look and feel and corporate
    colourways etc.
  • Run workshops with sales groups
  • Run cross-sell messaging between your website and the
    acquisition’s site
  • Give communications the same look and feel including marketing to prospects and customers to avoid any confusion
  • Complete the full incorporation of the acquisition’s web presence by bringing it onto your main site

Competing brands

In some cases, M&A activity may result in multiple brands to your portfolio that compete in the same category or segment. This can come about when you purchase a business to say, grow market share, and a competing brand comes as part of the package. Decisions must be made early if one of the brands is to be phased out. This needs confident communication both internally and externally with benefits clearly stated for all audiences.

 

Alternatively, it may be decided to keep both brands. In such a situation, it is important to ensure that both brands receive the strong endorsement of the corporate brand.

Phasing out acquired brands

It is common for acquiring companies to phase out brands from acquisitions over time. The process may be stepped in three stages:

 

  • Both brands co-exist
  • The brand to be phased out is endorsed by the stronger brand
  • The stronger brand replaces the phased-out brand

Phasing out acquired brands

It is common for acquiring companies to phase out brands from acquisitions over time. The process may be stepped in three stages:

 

  • Both brands co-exist
  • The brand to be phased out is endorsed by the stronger brand
  • The stronger brand replaces the phased-out brand

Re-naming acquired brands

Some companies rename acquired brands rigorously to match an existing naming convention. This may mean changing a brand name into a functional name and then applying this name to the main brand, as if tagging it.

 

It is important to maintain flexibility here and make exceptions if commercially important. For example, if it is decided that an acquired brand’s market equity has such value that to rename it would be a detriment to the business or allow competition to make advances.

This is how our client Access handles products by using a product descriptor naming convention to replace acquired product brand names.

Process for assimilation

Before acquisition

Here is an example of an acquisition’s brand structure:

Post-acquisition day 1

The products, at this stage, stay under the newly endorsed acquisition’s banner:

Transitional phase

Adapting marketing support materials in the endorsed transitional phase.

 

Here is an example of a Website transition – NewCo to Bloggs.

Transitional Timeline

Launching the new brand

 

The acquisition of a new brand is a PR opportunity.

 

A basic checklist follows:

 

  • Develop a concise messaging ‘wrap’ for use in all
    communications
  • Communicate to internal audience – both Bloggs and acquired
    company
  • Communicate to external audience – clients, vendors,
    stakeholders
  • Prepare press release, blogs and social nets
  • Create website landing page content
  • Make SEO adjustments

 

Brand management

 

As acquired brands join the portfolio, strong brand management practices will ensure consistent positioning.

 

1st Objective acts as brand guardian to many companies.
We advise against using an individual employee as it requires specialized experience and often needs challenging at board level. We take responsibility for the management of the brand portfolio and guard against the creation of ‘local’ brands and additions by divisions within the business. Not merely ensuring that guidelines are adhered to but responsible for the integration of further acquired brands into the portfolio. And for several of our clients we induct new businesses in the new brand culture that they have joined.

Launching the new brand

 

The acquisition of a new brand is a PR opportunity.

 

A basic checklist follows:

 

  • Develop a concise messaging ‘wrap’ for use in all
    communications
  • Communicate to internal audience – both Bloggs and acquired
    company
  • Communicate to external audience – clients, vendors,
    stakeholders
  • Prepare press release, blogs and social nets
  • Create website landing page content
  • Make SEO adjustments

 

Brand management

 

As acquired brands join the portfolio, strong brand management practices will ensure consistent positioning.

 

1st Objective acts as brand guardian to many companies.
We advise against using an individual employee as it requires specialized experience and often needs challenging at board level. We take responsibility for the management of the brand portfolio and guard against the creation of ‘local’ brands and additions by divisions within the business. Not merely ensuring that guidelines are adhered to but responsible for the integration of further acquired brands into the portfolio. And for several of our clients we induct new businesses in the new brand culture that they have joined.