A slump in reputation can be the perfect time for a brand rethink. But the digital component shouldn’t be overlooked, says Vikki Chowney, editor of Reputation Online

Last month, I helped to judge Communicate’s Transform awards which, as I’m sure you all know, celebrate excellence in rebranding.

The shortlist has now been released, within which you’ll see the financial services industry well represented. Allianz Insurance, Zurich and Legal & General have all done well to shift public perception during a difficult economic situation that has affected every industry, but theirs most of all.

There was a host of other financial entries that didn’t make it however, many more than any other vertical. But that’s hardly surprising. For banks and insurance companies there’s been an almost critical need over the past year or so to shake up the way they’re perceived.

Edelman’s Trust Barometer for 2011 was released at the end of January, and reiterated the fact that public opinion of these industries is at an all-time low. Financial services sits at the very bottom of the list, with just 50% of over 5,000 people stating that they’d trust the industry in the top half of a 1-9 scale. Banks are only slightly higher at 51%, and then insurance at 52%.

The automotive industry rocketed up the league to second position (just behind technology), despite Toyota’s product recalls and Rolls Royce’s exploding engines.

Of course, financial services has faced an entirely different scale of ‘crisis’ – and Edelman’s trust survey is global – but it proves that when it comes to the way in which people feel about brands, audiences can be fickle.

‘These rebrands must have had an online context – but where was the proof?’

Plus I’d imagine that actually, this is the perfect catalyst for change. As a brand manager dealing with the fact that messaging or visual identity might have become stagnant or dated, it’s a great time to justify a rebrand.

Even for those with more of a direct connection to the financial crisis, it’s a chance to review the current state of their reputation and do something about it. Yes, it’s hardly an easy task to undertake (especially for an organisation like the Royal Bank of Scotland), but there’s a huge amount of opportunity there. It’s an optimistic view on the situation at least.

I was also slightly puzzled at the lack of online context to many of the financial entries I reviewed. In fact, there was a lack of digital work in many of them – often from some of the biggest brands and agencies in the world. I refuse to believe that, in this day and age, it’s not happening. So where was the proof?

Perhaps it’s a case of mindset. Maybe the idea of a rebrand has a very traditional context in the minds of communicators? Or is it the fact that many of the brands doing smart things online hand a lot of control to their customers, and therefore could be seen to be constantly evolving?

Explaining this shift perfectly, Zappos’ CEO Tony Hsieh explained his company’s approach to Mashable back in 2009: “Brand building today is so different from what it was 50 years ago. Back then you could get a few marketing people in a small room and decide, ‘This is what our brand will be’, and then spend a lot of money on TV advertising — and that was your brand. Today anyone can blog about it or Twitter about it and it can be seen by millions of people. It’s what they say now that is your brand.”

Over the past few months, we’ve seen both Gap and Starbucks take a beating online because of a change in logo. The wave of criticism because of people’s dislike for change led to a multitude of bad press (even though a lot of it was confined to the social media bubble), and a dent in some people’s short-term opinion of both brands.

It’s definitely a scary thing to face, and when some of the smartest brands in the world get it wrong, it’s no wonder some people are wary of integrating online into their plans.