Mergers and acquisitions promise scale, efficiency and strategic advantage. But while boardrooms pore over forecasts, synergies and systems, one of the most valuable assets is often sidelined, the brand.

And that’s a costly oversight.

Because while legal teams finalise contracts and operational leaders plot integrations, it’s the brand, the perception held by customers, employees and the wider market, that determines whether a merger is seen as a bold step forward or a slow-motion identity crisis.

Handled well, brand strategy creates clarity, confidence and cohesion. Handled poorly, it leads to confusion, mistrust and eroded value.

Brand Strategy: The Overlooked Engine of Integration

Brand strategy in M&A isn’t just a design exercise. It’s about shaping perception, preserving equity and uniting people behind a shared future.

It starts with recognising the emotional and reputational value each brand holds, including customer trust, market recognition and internal culture. Strip that away too quickly, and you risk destroying what made each business successful in the first place.

Brand strategy also helps align disparate cultures and identities. While leadership may be focused on integration at a systems level, employees and customers are asking a more human question: what does this mean for me? A well-defined brand strategy gives them the answer.

And perhaps most importantly, it helps communicate the combined value proposition. Why did this merger happen? What does it unlock? And why should anyone care?

“When everything’s changing, brand becomes the one thing people can hold onto. It’s not a logo. It’s your north star.”
— Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft

A Familiar Scenario

Company A acquires Company B. Both have strong reputations, loyal customers and distinct cultures. But in the rush to integrate systems, no clear brand strategy is defined. The result? Confusion begins to creep in.

Six months later, customers are left scratching their heads by inconsistent messaging and mismatched visuals. Internally, staff feel increasingly disconnected, uncertain if their values still align with the business they've found themselves part of. And externally, the market starts to lose confidence, unsure what the new entity really stands for.

Sound familiar? It happens more often than it should, and it’s entirely avoidable.

Preserving Identity and Earning Trust

One of the most overlooked yet deeply felt challenges during M&A is emotional: the acquired company’s people often feel a strong sense of pride, history and identity connected to their existing brand. That identity is tied not only to visual elements, but to purpose, values and the story of how the company got to where it is.

When that’s swept aside without care, it creates resistance. People worry they’re going to be assimilated rather than integrated — that everything meaningful about the brand they’ve helped build will be lost. Worse still, they may have no idea who they’re really going to be working for, or whether the acquiring company shares their values and ambitions.

This is why brand strategy must go beyond messaging and architecture. It must listen. It must respect legacy while helping shape a shared future. And it must articulate what the combined entity stands for — in ways that both sides can believe in.

Handled with empathy and clarity, brand strategy can turn anxiety into alignment, giving employees and customers alike a reason to feel part of what comes next.

What Should a Brand Strategy in M&A Cover?

There’s no universal playbook, but a strong brand strategy during M&A should always begin with a clear-eyed assessment of both brands. This means digging into their strengths, market relevance, and the emotional equity they hold with customers and employees alike.

From there, leadership needs to define the brand architecture. Should you retain the lead brand, blend the two, or build something entirely new? The right answer isn’t about compromise, it’s about future ambition and strategic fit.

Next comes messaging. A merger isn’t just a structural shift; it’s a story that needs to be told well. Internally and externally, the business needs consistent, credible messaging that explains what’s changing, why it matters, and what’s in it for the people it impacts.

Communication needs to be early, clear and ongoing. Announcements, town halls, onboarding materials, every touchpoint should reinforce the same narrative and tone.

And finally, timing. Legal sign-offs can happen overnight, but brand strategy integration takes care. Culture, perception and behaviour don’t change on a deadline. A realistic and phased brand rollout, one that brings people with you, is far more effective than a big bang rebrand nobody’s ready for.

Four Common Brand Strategy Approaches and When to Use Them

When it comes to brand strategy in M&A, there are a few tried-and-tested routes. The best approach depends on your goals, equity, audience and market context:

• Back the stronger brand – If one has significantly more recognition and trust, this is often the cleanest, clearest route.

• Blend the brands – A hybrid identity can symbolise unity and evolution, but needs careful design and messaging to avoid compromise.

• Create a new brand – Sometimes, a fresh start is the most powerful statement. This works well when both legacy brands come with baggage or when the merger is about reinventing direction.

• Business as usual – In some cases, it makes sense to keep both brands running independently, particularly in decentralised structures or house-of-brands models. But it requires discipline to avoid drift or dilution.

  
  

Each option comes with trade-offs. What matters most is ensuring the choice aligns with your strategic vision, not internal politics or legacy sentiment.

The Business Case (Backed by Data)

Still thinking this sounds like a 'nice to have'? The numbers tell a different story.

A 2022 study by Brand Finance found that 36% of M&As fail to deliver expected returns due to poor brand management. According to Bain & Company, organisations that actively manage and integrate brand strategy during a merger consistently outperform those that don’t, delivering significantly higher shareholder returns. And McKinsey reports that companies who focus on brand strategy during M&A see a 10–20% increase in customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Put simply: brand strategy isn’t a soft asset. It’s a multiplier of value when handled properly, and a quiet destroyer of it when ignored.