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Morning. Before we get started, I wanted to signal boost the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild's guidance for how you can support breweries impacted by Hurricane Helene. Here are direct links to their recommended local charity orgs if you're inclined to help.

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This series is a Beer Branding Trends Newsletter exclusive. If there's someone on your team you think would benefit from reading along, please forward this email to them or have them sign up here so they receive everything.

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Hi, there. 

Welcome to the second issue of our package refresh series. 

Last time we spoke, we laid out why package refreshes are such an important trend in the brewing industry right now. 

Today, we’re going to explore the line between package refreshes, brand refreshes and rebrands, why the difference between these processes matters, and how to ensure you're addressing the right problem in the first place.

Let’s start by laying out how we frame any conversation we have with our clients ahead of any revamp.

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Evolution vs. Revolution

We love the heuristic, “Evolution vs. Revolution,” because it helps to understand our client’s intent. 

Here's a passage on this from Craft Beer, Rebranded:

Are you completely reshaping your brewery’s culture and positioning? Are we throwing your logo out with the bathwater and creating wholesale visual change across the board? Or, are we building on decades of work and hard-earned goodwill to make subtle updates in a natural progression? Would it be a misstep to jettison the visual signifiers and concepts behind your company as it stands? Or, does it make more sense to build upon, hone and enhance what already exists?

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It’s okay if you’re not sure which path is correct at this point, but by sitting with this idea and debating it internally amongst your team, you can usually get a good idea of what problems you want to address and what you'd like to achieve through this process in the time it takes to enjoy a few beers.

Okay, now that we’ve got some fuzzy, philosophical considerations out of the way, let’s lay out some concrete definitions. 

Rebrand 

A rebrand represents a shift in your core messaging and positioning. This starts with upstream business and brand strategy considerations, including your long term vision—deciding what spaces you want to compete in, how your brewery is positioned, how you wish to be perceived, and defining your most compelling and ownable differentiator(s), brand values and key messaging pillars.

All of this Brand Strategy, once developed, drives the look and feel of your brand identity and packaging. (This would be “Revolution.”)


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(Below): There was a profound disconnect between Prost Brewing's brand identity and the beer they made every day. So in 2018, we rebranded this Colorado brewery to better tell this story and present on shelf. Their resulting growth has been fun to watch. Read CODO's original case study on this project here.

Brand Refresh 

By contrast, a brand refresh is more of a visual, surface-level identity update—call it a fresh coat of paint. In this scenario, your brand values and positioning (most of that foundational strategy stuff we're focusing on during a rebrand) still holds true, but your brand identity and packaging may just need some level of updating.

This work will build on, or evolve, your existing identity. So it’s not a sweeping change, but an evolution.


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(Below): Left Field Brewery was in need of a subtle brand refresh. So subtle that, according to our strategy work, "a fan might not even notice a change had taken place." This approach works well when you have a great foundation — positioning, messaging and voice, in particular. Read more about this revamp on our blog.

Package Refresh 

A package refresh, is when you update your packaging on its own while leaving your core brand identity as is. So the end result would be new packaging adorned with your existing logo and broader identity components.

These are tactical projects, and they can make a lot of sense when your brewery’s positioning, messaging and broader brand and brand identity are good-to-go and your packaging just needs a facelift. This process focuses more on addressing annoying pain points and inconsistencies than solving an existential crisis.

Package refreshes work well when:

– Your Brand Strategy (positioning, messaging, values, voice and personality) is compelling and aligns with where you want to take the business in the coming years 

– Your core brand identity is working well (your main mark is strong and recognizable and rounded out with a robust Modular Brand Identity System)

– Sales are flat, but not in a free fall, or…

– Sales are trending up, and you want to capitalize on, and maintain, that momentum 

– Your beer / beverages are as good as they can be (i.e. we’re not attempting to mask a sub par product with great visuals)

– You’ve got a squared away, energized team that’s ready to hit the streets and move some beer

– Market and competitive set changes have presented you with an exciting opportunity (e.g. a competitor closes up shop, wholesaler consolidation has affected you in some way, new advantageous legislation has passed, etc.)

If any of this criteria is met, then a package refresh can be a great investment, especially when compared to a more costly rebrand.

(Above): Fernson Brewing's Brand and brand identity were in good shape. But their team wanted to revamp their packaging to stand more on each SKU's own identity vs. their parent brand itself. 

Read a thorough case study on this package refresh here.

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Now that we've got a shared vocabulary, let’s explore some important nuances of the package refresh process.



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How big a swing can you take?

Our Evolution vs. Revolution heuristic applies to the package refresh process as well. 

Do you want to subtly evolve your packaging or take a bigger swing? And how should your visual and Brand Equity inform this decision?

Our usual caveat here is that every project, background context and competitive set will differ and therefor call for a different solution, however, I would offer a package refresh doesn’t have to be as limiting as a brand refresh.

In other words, don’t let the term “refresh” limit you here. 

You can change your packaging, even dramatically so, through this process. 

Assuming this is a true package refresh and we’re not updating your brand identity, then your logo, along with any sacrosanct visual equity (e.g. SKU colors, or a long-standing packaging composition) should provide enough continuity to ensure your update doesn’t push too far away from where you stand today. 

In this way, a package refresh can be an opportunity to take a bigger departure from where your packaging currently sits, so long as that aligns with your project and positioning goals. 

Our work with Fernson Brewing (shown above) is a great example of a package refresh that dramatically departs from their previous packaging's look and feel.
 

Your equity calls for a refresh. 

One counter to everything I just laid out — so, an argument against making too drastic a change — would be if your packaging has enough visual equity that you have to evolve this look through your update. 

We’ve explored visual and Brand Equity at length on this newsletter and podcast. In the interest of keeping this issue somewhat short, you can revisit some of our most popular pieces on these concepts below:

– What is Brand Equity, really?

– Defining your Brand Equity: Fast & Slow + Companion Podcast 

– When to jettison your Brand Equity


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The risk of pushing too far and not honoring your visual and Brand Equity through a package refresh is real. People can easily lose track of you on shelf, or become confused and/or alienated by the change. And with thousands of other options immediately at their disposal, they can simply move on without a second thought.

But if you see a big enough opportunity, or if that equity doesn't align with where you want to take your brand over the coming years, then don't be overly-precious about it. 

Again, your project context — your brewery’s Brand Strategy, your competitive set, your project goals, pain points and broader vision for your business — will all dictate whether or not this is a strategically-sound path. 

(Above): Our package refresh work with Tinker Coffee is a great example where, though there was a good amount of visual equity at hand, it didn't make sense to carry that through to the new look and feel. 

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Brand Strategy (to invest or not invest?)

I’ve hinted at this a few times and would like to address it head on now. 

If we had our druthers — and if budget and timeline were never a limiting factor — we would work through formal Brand Strategy on every major engagement. 

But one of the biggest reasons why your brewery might consider a package refresh is that you can occasionally get away with not working through formal Brand Strategy. This means you’re looking at a faster overall project timeline and can potentially save tens of thousands of dollars in Strategy work.

But back to our earlier point here, in order for this to work, you have to be 100% confident that your brewery's positioning, key messaging, values, brand voice and personality and identity system are all in a solid place and will help you build your brand over the coming years. 

You need to be sure that a package refresh is actually what’s needed to solve whatever problem is that you want to address in the first place. 

Where these projects can falter

The reason we push for strategy as often as we do is that without working through that process, there’s no mechanism for your team (or your design partner) to verify that you’re actually correct about your Brand and brand identity being good to go.

So you could kick off a package refresh, only to realize later on that there’s a deeper issue at hand. This will require a mid-to-late stage regroup. And even if your team is able to manage this and unwind the problem, this isn’t ideal. 

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Of course, you can be right. 

We’ve worked with some of the brightest minds throughout the beer and beverage industry — folks I wouldn’t hesitate to hire if given the chance. So this isn’t a critique of you and your ability to measure your brand’s effectiveness.

It's more a matter of perspective.

Working every day at the brewery means you’re closer to your brand and business than any outsider can ever be. And this closeness can hinder your ability to be objective about your business (or more germane to our discussion here, how well your Brand and brand identity are performing).

My advice here is to be open to using Brand Strategy as a diagnostic tool to make sure a package refresh will help you accomplish your goals. 

(Above): Brand Strategy doc we developed to build the Cold Drinking Beer brand. We'll dive more into the difference between Brand Strategy and Art Direction in the final issue in this series. 

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My biggest caution before you embark on your package refresh:

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Make sure you don’t need to solve a Brand problem 

This is so important that it bears repeating: A Package refresh can be a great investment IF your brand and Brand Strategy are on a strong foundation.

Are you facing a surface-level packaging (and portfolio and competitive set) problem? Or, is there a deeper brand problem at hand?

Some things that point to a more surface level issue:

– Your packaging is inconsistent 

– Your naming convention is inconsistent

– Several key competitors have recently rebranded or updated their packaging 

– Your packaging hierarchy is confusing

– Your packaging hasn’t been updated for several years 

– You’re seeing flat (to slightly declining) sales 

– Your packaging looks terrible (no need to sugar coat this)

Some things that point to a deeper, upstream positioning and Brand issue:

– You have no clear, compelling story

– You’re chasing trends (in beer and the Fourth Category)

– Your distributor and retail partners aren’t bought into your brand 

– You’re seeing a steep decline in sales 

– You feel like you’re reinventing the wheel with each new release 

– Your portfolio lacks focus and clear priorities 


If you’re dealing with problems from the former group, then a package refresh can be a phenomenal option to increase your sales. 

If you’re dealing with more existential problems from the latter group, don’t fret. These can be resolved as well, but it will take more than a package revamp to get you where you need to be. 

(Above): Grab a copy of Craft Beer, Rebranded Book Bundle if you're not sure whether a refresh or a formal rebrand is most appropriate for your brewery. (And don't forget to save $15 with the code above). 

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Wrapping up

A package refresh can be a great option if your brand identity and strategy are working well. But if they’re not, a refresh will likely not have the impact you’re after. And if that’s the case, you’ll likely end up worse off than if you had done nothing because you invested time and capital into this change (to accomplish nothing). 

Make sure you take stock of your identity and strategy before deciding that a refresh is the best course of action.

If you determine you’re not dealing with a Brand problem, then you can move forward and refresh your packaging in confidence.

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Thanks for reading along.

In our next issue, we’ll explore some of the finer points and best practices for managing your package refresh.