Don't rebrand for the sake of it. A successful rebrand should be a deliberate move to signal a fundamental shift in your business, such as an expansion, a new mission, or a deeper commitment to core values like sustainability. It's an external reflection of an internal change.

While product differentiation is beneficial, it's not always possible. A brand's most critical job is to be distinctive and instantly recognizable. This mental availability, achieved through consistent creative, logo, and tone, is more crucial for cutting through market noise than having a marginally different feature set.

Michael Dubin didn't conduct market research; he found his business opportunity in his personal annoyance with the high cost and inconvenient process of buying razors from a locked case. This shows that powerful business ideas often hide in plain sight as everyday frustrations.

Defaulting to an uninspired name and logo (e.g., a family name with a roof icon) puts a business at an immediate disadvantage. In a saturated market, a unique brand is not a luxury but a foundational tool that provides marketing lift and prevents you from getting lost in the noise.

While many founders fear competitors, Michael Dubin views them as beneficial. He argues that rivals forced Dollar Shave Club to sharpen its brand identity and focus on its unique strengths. Competition validates the market opportunity and pushes the incumbent to work harder and be more specific about its value.

The company was almost named "Delicious Designs," a generic name. The breakthrough came when they realized their simple, descriptive tagline, "The Edible Arrangement," was the most powerful and memorable name because it clearly communicated the product's value proposition.

A business with a generic name, boring logo, and no personality is just a "company" and will always struggle to charge more. Building a memorable "brand" signals seriousness and investment, allowing you to stand out and justify a higher price point.

To name a brand effectively, first define the core emotional concept you want to convey. Founder Eric Ryan uses a 'jumping off word' to anchor the process. For his vitamin brand Olly, the word was 'friendly,' which provided a clear creative brief for an otherwise difficult task.

Adam White credits his company's success to its expansive name over his original, narrow idea, "Executive Report." A broader brand identity allowed for expansion into various verticals and sounded more appealing, which a niche, descriptive name would have constrained from the start.