Facebook changed its name. The internet didn’t change its mind.

We unpack the 2021 rebrand from Meta, when the company tried to pivot from social network giant to metaverse pioneer. New name. New vision. Very shiny presentation. But public trust? Still wobbly.

With 68 percent of users telling YouGov in 2022 that Facebook felt more harmful than beneficial, we ask the obvious question. Can you rebrand your way out of a reputation problem?

We talk about the eye-watering $230 billion market value drop in a single day, the partial recovery through cost cutting and AI investment, and why a new logo doesn’t automatically equal a new narrative. Sometimes it just highlights what hasn’t changed.

We also contrast it with rebrands that actually worked. The kind built on trust, clarity, and a real shift in behaviour rather than a shift in vocabulary.

Because changing your name is easy. Changing how people feel about you? That’s the hard part.

About Simon and Danielle:

Simon and Danielle are both business owners, based in the East Midlands, who met through mutual business contacts and who share a love of all things business.

Simon runs Skylight Media – Award-winning experts in Website Design, E-commerce & Marketing running since 2003.

Danielle runs Goldspun Support – a multi-faceted support service for fractional directors and small business owners across the globe, running since 2009.

Since they first met Simon and Danielle have spent a ridiculous amount of time talking about the subjects that interest them – usually over a drink in the pub – and they decided that now was the time to bring these conversations to a wider audience and invite them to join the chat.

Both Simon and Danielle are successful business owners in their own rights with big plans for the future but will never lose their love of talking all things business… and the pub.