Subject areaChannels and tools
Also known asrefresh
Restyling is the update of the look of a product, website, interface or brand that leaves its structure and underlying functions unchanged.
It works on the surface (colours, fonts, shapes) and differs from a redesign, which also rethinks how things work. In English marketing the more common word is refresh, as in brand refresh; restyling is widely used in Italy and in the automotive industry.
The Italian articles on this site recall an old restyling of the Gmail login screen that signalled the integration with the Google+ social network: a visual change announcing a strategic choice. The logical step is that a restyling always communicates something, so it should be decided together with the brand identity.
An example
A bank updates the colours, fonts and icons of its app without changing the steps to make a transfer: that is a restyling. If it also rebuilt the steps, starting from where customers get stuck, it would be a redesign.
Related entries
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Enrico Giubertoni. Licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0: you may quote, translate and adapt this entry with the author’s name and a link, stating any changes. For commercial use, write to info@enricogiubertoni.com
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