What happens to brand names after a merger? Do they have to change when a company name changes?

As mentioned earlier, often the company name is not the only brand acquired; many companies own additional brands. Companies often build brands by imposing their identity (through a visual logo or by sharing a product title, for example) on a series of different products. Conversely, sometimes a single, powerful brand owned by a company may become the company’s name or an important part of its description. (To this day, people define Alphabet as the parent of Google, as the latter is better known.)

In some cases, acquirers choose not to link their corporate identity with any of the brands they develop or acquire. Maintaining separate brand identities for their subsidiaries gives these acquirers more flexibility should they wish to sell the subsidiaries later. Autonomous brands that do not rely on their parents’ identities can change hands many times in the lifetime of a consumer, and the consumer will notice only the brand, not its changing owners. This brings the valuable element of continuity to the best product brands. See Exhibit 9-5.

How can an acquirer preserve brand identity during the postmerger integration process?

An acquirer can preserve brand identity by putting the brand first and integration second. The management of a newly combined company should not say, “Let’s combine our advertising efforts” (or other brand support), thinking that what works for one brand will work for another. This can bury a brand. Instead, managers should say, “Let’s build this brand.” In other words, managers should use integration as a means, not an end. In the process of building a brand, an acquirer should have special reverence for existing names and logos and what they mean to employees and others.