Thesis (M.M. (Strategic Marketing))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, Graduate School of Business Administration, 2014. / In the last two decades, South Africa has witnessed a series of reforms in the telecommunications industry, including the corporate rebranding efforts undertaken by major telecommunications corporates. In April 2011, Vodacom, following the increase in ownership in 2009 by Vodafone, launched its new image. With the corporate rebranding, Vodacom kept its name, but effected changes to the logo, slogan and colour scheme. The rationale for keeping the name is the fact that Vodafone’s presence in Africa is far smaller than Vodacom’s. Vodacom holds power and position in the marketplace in South Africa and Africa. In addition to changing its brand colours from the familiar green and blue to red, the brand colour of UK-based Vodafone, which owns 65 percent of Vodacom, it has also assimilated Vodafone’s teardrop logo. The purpose of this research was to investigate the drivers of corporate rebranding and the impact of corporate rebranding on brand equity of South African brands. The research used quantitative data. There were 134 respondents, with 109 completed questionnaires, from a convenience sample who were all employees of Vodacom. The survey was administered through an online portal and analysed using descriptive statistics and principal component analysis. The main findings confirmed 9 of the 10 drivers of corporate rebranding identified in previous literature. The outcome of the research also summarised these drivers into 2 fundamental factors, namely corporate structure and strategy, and macroeconomic factors. The brand equity of the Vodacom brand has been adversely impacted following a rebranding exercise. The old brand is represented by three factors that corresponded with Aaker’s model (Aaker, 1991). These factors are brand awareness, perceived quality and brand loyalty. The new brand was represented by a factor labelled ‘infant brand’. Macroeconomic factors were perceived to the most significant drivers of corporate rebranding.

<p>The strategy when you change the visual part of the brand identity is often referred to as Corporate rebranding and is seen as a good way to show that a company has undergone a change. Despite high risks and high costs, this strategy has become more common and there are companies today who make the choice to change an already well-known graphic profile. This phenomenon is what underlies this essay’s problem statement: Why does a company with an already well-known graphic profile choose to change it and how does the process behind the change occur? In what way have the company’s customers recognized the change and how has the company’s image changed in this context? The purpose of this essay is therefore to explore the process that occurs when a company in the sport and fashion industry changes its visual identity and to explore how the company’s customers have perceived the change.</p><p>To fulfil the purpose of the essay a case study was carried out on a company’s Corporate rebranding process. The company that was chosen was the Swedish sports retail chain Stadium Sweden AB who decided to change its graphic profile even though their logo was one of the two most recognized in their field. With the help of existing theories on brands and Corporate rebranding two interviews and a survey was conducted for this study.</p><p>After this case study we have come to the following conclusions; The reason for the brand change was primarily the need to modernize the graphic profile in context of a larger reorganization of the company. The process can be described in four main phases: Initiation phase, Planning phase, Development phase and Launch and implementation phase. The study also showed that most of the customers had noticed the change and that the company’s image had changed for the better as they managed to maintain the core values of the brand while making it more contemporary and unique.</p><p>We have also come up with three propositions that can be used in future research on this subject: 1. A reason for a brand change might be that the old graphic profile needs to be modernized to practically suit new media, 2. The choice of the Phase in/Phase out strategy is controlled by the availability of various resources and 3. To distance the brand from its heritage doesn’t need to be a pitfall for a brand change.</p>

The strategy when you change the visual part of the brand identity is often referred to as Corporate rebranding and is seen as a good way to show that a company has undergone a change. Despite high risks and high costs, this strategy has become more common and there are companies today who make the choice to change an already well-known graphic profile. This phenomenon is what underlies this essay’s problem statement: Why does a company with an already well-known graphic profile choose to change it and how does the process behind the change occur? In what way have the company’s customers recognized the change and how has the company’s image changed in this context? The purpose of this essay is therefore to explore the process that occurs when a company in the sport and fashion industry changes its visual identity and to explore how the company’s customers have perceived the change. To fulfil the purpose of the essay a case study was carried out on a company’s Corporate rebranding process. The company that was chosen was the Swedish sports retail chain Stadium Sweden AB who decided to change its graphic profile even though their logo was one of the two most recognized in their field. With the help of existing theories on brands and Corporate rebranding two interviews and a survey was conducted for this study. After this case study we have come to the following conclusions; The reason for the brand change was primarily the need to modernize the graphic profile in context of a larger reorganization of the company. The process can be described in four main phases: Initiation phase, Planning phase, Development phase and Launch and implementation phase. The study also showed that most of the customers had noticed the change and that the company’s image had changed for the better as they managed to maintain the core values of the brand while making it more contemporary and unique. We have also come up with three propositions that can be used in future research on this subject: 1. A reason for a brand change might be that the old graphic profile needs to be modernized to practically suit new media, 2. The choice of the Phase in/Phase out strategy is controlled by the availability of various resources and 3. To distance the brand from its heritage doesn’t need to be a pitfall for a brand change.

Bakgrund: Corporate rebranding är ett relativt nytt fenomen som innebär att ett företag väljer att omdefiniera sitt varumärke på grund av förändringar inom företaget eller omgivningen. Men det är fortfarande relativt ostuderat och ingen studie behandlar den eventuella kopplingen med en dynamisk marknad. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att skapa en förståelse för hur fenomenet corporate rebranding fungerar inom en dynamisk marknad, där vi valt att utgå från telekombranschen som exempelmarknad. Metod: Studien har en hermeneutisk ansats med ett deduktivt angreppssätt för kopplingen mellan teori och empiri. Studien har vidare använt sig av en komparativ design med fallstudieinslag utifrån en kvalitativ strategi. Referensram: Referensramen består av teorier om dynamiska marknader som leder in till globalisering, lokalisering samt glokalisering. Därefter definieras varumärke med respektive underliggande teorier och avslutningsvis corporate rebranding. Slutsats: Den dynamiska marknaden har gett upphov till ett stort antal rebranding-processer inom branschen, där tre strategier för att hantera ett nytt globalt varumärke har identifierats. Slutligen har varumärkets roll inom branschen blivit av en mer dynamisk karaktär där syftet är att ha ett varumärke som är mest lämpat för de förändringar som skett inom såväl den interna som externa miljön. / Background: Corporate Rebranding is relatively new phenomenon where a firm decides to redefine their brand due to changes within the company or the environment. But the amount of literature on the subject is lacking, and so far no one has studied the potential connection to a high-velocity environment. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to create an understanding of how Corporate Rebranding interacts with a high-velocity market by using the telecommunications industry. Methodology: The study was a hermeneutic endeavour with a deductive approach in linking theory and empirical evidence. In addition, a comparative case study using qualitative methods was performed. Theory: This chapter consists of theories on dynamic markets as well as glocalization, localization and globalization. This is followed by a definition of branding and finally Corporate Rebranding. Conclusion: The high-velocity market has been the root of numerous cases of rebranding and we have identified three different strategies for handling the adaptation to a new global brand. Finally, the role of the brand within the market has taken on a more dynamic role, where the purpose is to create a brand better suited for the changes in the internal as well as the external environment.

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to contribute to a better understanding of the company's ability to communicate the message of a Corporate Rebranding. This is by examining the strategic implications that influence the control of communication on Social Digital Platforms during the implementation of a corporate rebranding. Method: This research study may be called a multidisciplinary study and is based on an abductive approach. It is written with a qualitative research strategy with a hermeneutic approach. Theoretical frame of reference: Model of Corporate Rebranding, compilation of previous research in the field of “External communication on Social Digital Platforms during a Corporate Rebranding”, the authors conceptual framework Empirical foundation: Empirical evidence has been collected through qualitative semi-structured interviews with a total of six (6) respondents. Conclusions: Based on empirical and theoretical analysis, the authors have come to three (3) promotional prominent actions that fulfill the study's purpose and the study's research question. These are (1) Brand Descriptions based on insights. Produce a clear Brand Description that is based on insights from external stakeholders to act from. (2) Internal Anchorage. A corporate rebranding must be anchored internally to externally be communicated uniformly, or coordinated. (3) Factual Convincing. Convince with facts and factuality to reduce subjective criticism. / Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att komplettera existerande forskning med ökad förståelse för extern kommunikation vid corporate rebranding i den digitala eran. Detta genom att undersöka vilka åtgärder som bidrar till företagets möjlighet att bibehålla kontrollen av den externa kommunikationen vid genomförandet av en corporate rebranding. Metod: Studien kan liknas vara flerfallsstudie som utgår från en abduktiv ansats, är skriven med en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi samt ur ett hermeneutiskt förhållningssätt. Teoretisk referensram: Model of corporate rebranding, sammanställning av tidigare forskning inom ämnesområdet “extern kommunikation på sociala digitala plattformar vid corporate rebranding”, konceptuellt ramverk Empiri: Empiriskt underlag har insamlats genom kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer med totalt sex (6) respondenter. Slutsatser: Baserat på empiriskt och teoretisk analys har forskarna kommit fram till tre (3) framträdande främjande åtgärder som uppfyller studiens syfte samt svarar på studiens frågeställning. Dessa är (1) Insiktsbaserad varumärkesplattform. Framställa tydlig varumärkesplattform som är byggd på insikter från externa intressenter att agera ifrån. (2) Intern förankring. En corporate rebranding måste förankras internt för att kommuniceras enhetligt, eller samordnat. (3) Saklig övertygelse. Övertyga med fakta och saklighet för att minska subjektiv kritik.

Problem: Rebranding in the services is a recent trend, which brings focus to the impor-tance of the employees in this process. Their attitudes, perceptions and views need to be considered by the management when creating the internal communication strategy related to the rebranding in order to direct the employees to the desired brand image. This raises the problem as how employees perceive the management`s rebranding efforts. Purpose: This study aims to focus on how rebranding is executed and communicated in-ternally to the employees of the company. It is interesting to find out how the employees evaluate the communication strategy that the management implements and how they perceive the new image of the company. In order to get insight to the internal rebranding process the correlation between the perceived image by the employees and the components of the internal communication strategy is presented. Methodology: The empirical approach is a case study of the Bulgarian telecommunication company Vivacom. The research includes two interviews with the management of the company and a questionnaire based on the interviews and the relevant literature, which was sent to the employees of the company. Moreover, company`s documentation and website were used to complement the information. Conclusions: The results helped us identify the decisions that the management made re-garding the rebranding and the internal communication. The quantitative data indicated the relatively positive attitudes and views of the employees for the management`s rebranding efforts. They also showed good knowledge and awareness of the new brand elements.

Baigiamojo darbo tikslas. Išanalizavus UAB „Omnitel“ prekės ženklo kaitą, pasiūlyti korporatyvinio prekės ženklo keitimo bei komunikacijos modelius Pagrindinių darbo dalių trumpas turinys. Teorinėje darbo dalyje analizuojamas vizualinis identitetas bei korporatyvinis prekės ženklas, jo samprata, skirstymas, pateikti valdymo modeliai bei keitimo priežastys. Analitinėje baigiamojo darbo dalyje pateikiami ir analizuojami tyrimo rezultatai apie „Omnitel“ korporatyvinio prekės ženklo keitimą, tyrimo metu buvo atlikta dokumentų analizė ir anketinė apklausa. Projektinėje darbo dalyje suformuluoti tokie sprendimai: • Pateikti pasiūlymai, kaip kompanija „Omnitel“ galėtų pagerinti savo korporatyvinio prekės ženklo pokyčių pristatymą; • Pateiktas korporatyvinio prekės ženklo keitimo modelis; • Pasiūlytas modelis apibūdinantis kaip turėtų būti vykdoma korporatyvinio prekės ženklo pokyčių komunikacija. / Aim of the job. To analyze, how was performed changes of „Omnitel“ corporate brand and suggest corporate rebranding and corporate rebranding communication models. Content of the main parts of the job. In theoretical part of this job is analyzed visual identity and corporate brand, it‘s conception, models of management and reasons of corporate brand changes. In analytical part are analyzed and represented research results about „Omnitel“ corporate brand rebranding. Analysis of documents and questionnaire were used in this research In designed part were formulated such decisions: • Were given proposals how „Omnitel“ could present better it‘s corporate rebranding; • Proposed model of corporate rebranding; • Proposed model how should be done communication of corporate rebranding.