A Brand Audit will examine all aspects of your existing brand to understand how it is performing in relation to your current and future markets. From a re-branding perspective the following two aspect of the brand audit are of particular interest.
Perception. The analysis of how your brand is perceived from both and internal and external perspective is probably one of the most important aspects of the brand audit. If the perception of your brand is poor or if there are mixed feelings or confusion then it is important to understand the root causes.
By understanding what needs to be improved within your business to improve the perception of you brand and taking the appropriate steps to correct the issues you will be building a stronger foundation on which to build your new brand.
If you choose to rebrand your business without identifying and correcting the issues within your organisation that have a negative impact on the way in which your current brand is perceived then your new brand will suffer the same fate.
Direction. The second aspect of the brand audit that influences your decision to rebrand is how well your current brand fits with the current and/or future direction of your business.
The focus of a business can change over time as it adjusts to changes in its marketplace, new competitors entering the market, etc. Auditing your brand can help to highlight the any disconnects between your current brand and the strategic direction of your business.
When the focus of your business changes it can signal the need to redefine your identity and the best way to communicate this is by re-branding your business.