In June 2024 Pennies from Heaven changed the name of its popular micro donation scheme to Microhive. It’s been a 9 month journey and now that we have launched our new brand i wanted to reflect on why we changed our name and some of the learning’s along the way.
Why did we consider changing our brand name?
It is no doubt one of the biggest decisions you can make with your business. Pennies from Heaven has created £8m of charitable donations so it is clearly working – why would we consider changing this?
The question I was asked by our brand partner, Brand Potential, early on, was what did our clients think of our name? If they thought our name was ok or not ok, there would be value to be gained from changing. After several client conversations I quickly learned that for some the name was creating some negative assumptions. People questioned if we were a religious or end of life care charity – not where we wanted to position ourselves and an assumption that was bound to be causing some people to dismiss us incorrectly. Time to change.
How did we come up with the new name?
I had no idea how we would do this! But we had worked hard to define our brand story, so we understood our vision, direction, and identity – we had clarity on what we wanted our name to say about us. After many creative brainstorming sessions we had a short list of 8 names and a score card to logically rank each one to find the one that delivered the most for us. It was interesting to learn that we were not going to fall in love with a name, we were going to find the one that worked the best and then build a whole set of branding around it to bring it to life. We have certainly done that!
What I have learned about changing a brand name
1. Embrace change with positivity and resilience
Change can evoke unexpected reactions, and that’s perfectly fine. Our responsibility is to help people understand the necessity of the change and why the new name, Microhive, is a better fit for our future direction.
2. Prioritise your current clients
Our clients are like a big micro-giving family, and it was crucial to involve them in the transition. We took the time to explain the reasons behind the change and the timeline, and we decided early on to allow companies to continue using the Pennies from Heaven brand if they preferred. They have invested significant resources in building brand awareness, and if it’s working for them, they should absolutely continue.
3. Meticulously plan the transition timeline
Planning the entire timeline ensures that all actions are captured and executed at the right time. This structured approach prevents feeling overwhelmed by the extensive work involved in a brand transformation.
4. Accept that it’s okay to be nervous
It’s natural to feel nervous, much like a bride standing at the altar! Bringing structure and logic to our decisions provided reassurance and confidence in the choices we made.
What advice would I give a company thinking about rebranding?
Listen to your customers, be clear about your brand story and know your limits. Bring in the professionals if you can, try and avoid home schooling!.
Are you ready to make a meaningful impact? Get in touch with us to learn how Microhive can work for you. Whether you're looking to set up a Microhive scheme for your employees, suppliers or pensioners or have a new, innovative idea for small change giving, we're here to help. Contact us today to explore the possibilities and start making a difference!