Your brand in 2026: Refine, Reset or Rethink?

Strength of brand is a massively important part of any business. It helps customers understand who you are, signals the quality of what you deliver, and makes you memorable in a world where attention is scarce. A strong brand builds trust before a single conversation has even happened.

Just like personal goals, the start of a new year is a great moment to take stock. To ask what’s working, what’s drifting, and what could be sharper. For most established businesses, brand goals for 2026 won’t mean throwing the baby out with the bathwater. More often, it’s about refining, strengthening and getting back to what matters.

Here are a few brand goals worth considering as you look ahead.

Tidy up and build consistency

Even with the best of intentions, brands can unravel over time. Different people touch them. Assets get created under pressure. Templates get “tweaked”. Before long, what once felt cohesive can start to look, frankly, like a bit of a dog’s breakfast.

Inconsistent branding doesn’t just look messy. It quietly communicates that things are a bit all over the place. That you’re small. That detail maybe isn’t your thing. And none of that is great for trust.

There’s also no real replacement for talent and a good designer’s eye. Internal teams often do their best, but brand execution is a craft. Without the right experience, judgement and attention to detail, the work can fall short of the standard the brand deserves. A strong goal for 2026 might be tightening things up properly. Fewer versions, clearer rules, better execution, and a level of consistency that signals confidence and credibility.

Make sure your brand reflects who you really are

This is a big one. We see it all the time. Brilliant businesses, with great people doing great work, held back by brands that don’t do them justice.

When a brand undersells the reality of the business, it chips away at confidence. Teams feel it. Leaders feel it. There’s a subtle reluctance to share the website, the deck, the work.

Your brand should reflect the best version of who you are. Not an inflated fantasy, but a clear, well-presented expression of your strengths. Think of it like a great personal makeover. Not changing who someone is, just showing them at their best. The Trinny and Susannah effect, but for businesses. A little lift, a little polish, and suddenly there’s a pep in the step.

Get clear on positioning

If there’s one foundational brand goal to tackle in 2026, this might be it.

Positioning brings clarity. It gives your brand something solid to stand on and guides everything from messaging to design to campaigns. But good positioning doesn’t need to be flowery, abstract or over-intellectualised.

As Mark Ritson and Byron Sharp often point out in different ways, effective positioning is simple, human and easy to understand. It’s not a mission statement. It’s not corporate poetry. It’s a clear articulation of who you’re for, what you offer, and why you’re worth choosing.

Is this the year to get that clear? To refine what you already have? Or to change something that no longer fits? If so, start here, because positioning informs everything else.

Build awareness, not just assets

An awesome looking brand has power in itself. When something looks sharp, confident and well-crafted, it naturally draws attention. People notice. They remember. They take it more seriously.

Of course, even the best brand still needs to be pushed out into the world. Awareness doesn’t happen by accident. A strong brand combined with smart campaigns, consistent activity and a willingness to show up is what really builds momentum.

The goal for 2026 might be joining the dots between brand and marketing. Not just creating assets, but actively using them to get noticed.

So, what are your brand goals for 2026?

Whether it’s tidying up, better reflecting who you really are, sharpening your positioning, or pushing your brand out into the world, this is a good moment to ask the question.

Does your brand feel fit for where your business is going?

Is it quietly doing its job, or holding you back?

Time to get fit, refine, or reinvent?