As we come into the new year, everyone is talking about setting and keeping resolutions. How they can change for the better, be more compassionate, get healthier, lose weight, reconnect with friends or family…and the list goes on. Reevaluating and refreshing our goals on a regular basis is important, but even more critical is the tactical approach to achieving them. Putting these tactics in place and executing them properly is what helps us focus on a strategy and ultimately achieve our goals. The same thing can be said for a company’s brand.

As we reflect back, let’s take look at a few tactics brands have used to help refresh their image and messaging.

Refine the Experience

Instagram did a brand refresh this past year. As a company that focuses on social sharing, it relies heavily on its user experience model. As its users evolved, becoming increasingly vibrant and colorful in their posts, language, and sharing, Instagram set in place a few key tactics to embrace this shift and further empower their users. The brand simplified its visual identity, while being careful to retain its greatest asset—user experience. We saw the camera identity simplified to a flat icon surrounded by color. The user interface inside the app was desaturated and decluttered. These efforts to simplify the UI shifted the focus back to the experience, allowing their users to shine through. A simple set of tactics that will help the social media company to reinforce its relevancy moving into the coming year.

Revisit Your Purpose

We often get off course, lose focus … straying from those compelling truths that describe our core beliefs for doing what we do. When a brand refresh is on the table, revisiting your brand’s purpose can help determine if your product offerings are still on message. One such example is CVS Health. Leading into a brand refresh, CVS employed some bold tactics to help the company refocus on its key purpose: Helping people on their path to better health. With the rollout, one of their tactics to reinforce this message was the removal of all tobacco products from their stores. A bold move, but not exactly risky in today’s changing environment. Just another way to justify their commitment to their customer’s health and well-being.

Find Value in Your Audience

Lastly, we’re seeing lots of companies looking to reconnect with their customers on a personal level and promote brand awareness. While some explore how they can better relate to the customer, others are going straight to the source. Take GoPro for example. They enacted a content-rich social media campaign by putting cameras in the hands of their end users. Letting athletes, extreme sports enthusiasts, backyard warriors, and the like begin to create a rich media library. A brilliant move for a company that makes an innovative, wearable camera. Demonstrating that it is so easy to use that user-generated content powers their campaign as the brand evolves.

So, remember, the next time you’re setting resolutions and thinking about a refresh, a collection of well thought out, purpose-driven tactics are the fuel that sets your strategy in motion.