A rebrand can reboot a company’s presence, distance it from baggage, or align its visual communications with an updated strategy. Sometimes, though, rebranding can backfire… or does it?

At the end of August, IKEA sloughed its font of choice for over five decades, Futura, in favor of Verdana – and the resulting panic among brand experts, designers, and typography lovers spread quickly across the Web. Verdana was designed for Microsoft to be used on screen and at small sizes. It does this well, but designers and type designers seem to simply hate Verdana. Frankly, I think this is mostly because it stands for typography in the hands of the masses, and it’s not as sleek as Futura (which is WOW’s font of choice).

Earlier this summer, the 16 year-old Sci Fi Channel rebranded to SyFy. Apparently, the reason for the change was the fact that “Sci Fi” was not something that the channel could own or copyright as it describes a genre that anyone else can use as a descriptor. So, with SyFy, the channel can establish a wordmark that can be rolled out to its subsidiaries and projects. However, Sci Fi fans were incensed at what was considered an affront to their loyalty.

Tropicana had its own debacle earlier this year, as well. After nearly a quarter century, the company updated the “straw in the orange” with a minimalist design. The reboot of this iconic brand, however, was likened to the disastrous relaunch that was New Coke. Tropicana executives responded to the uproar – and possibly the impact on sales – quickly, and the branding has already returned to the loved straw in the orange design.

Holiday Inn has been rolling out a rebrand quite slowly – announced in 2007, the update will continue through 2010. The rebranding will start with the logo, which has ditched the well-known script and rising star graphic in return for cleaner, simplified Webby look. The goal is to reposition Holiday Inn more directly against Hilton and other properties geared toward business travelers. It’s not just limited to the logo: new signage, exterior hotel lighting and landscaping, lobby areas which include a “unique brand scent and sound experience” and clutter-free front-desk, and updates to room amenities. Response has been lukewarm, and franchise owners have noted that the timing is unfortunate (as the travel industry continues to struggle).

So here we’ve got four examples of rebrands with less than stellar reception. But they’ve all got something in common: people talked about them, either via petitions from loyal fans, or scathing reviews by branding experts. The takeaway here is that while a rebrand may not successfully accomplish the reboot that brand managers seek, there is likelihood that the move can raise awareness, regardless of positive or negative reception.

This is only brushing the surface, with recent, high profile examples. I’d love to hear your rebrand backfire stories.