I have to be honest. I think logos are stupid. I do. I know, it’s brand heresy and I’ve probably just been written off by 5 of you…so let me rephrase.
I think way more time and money is wasted on logo design and re-design without concern for ROI than even the lamest social media campaign.
Since I’m such a believer in great content, I also secretly think, “Who cares what the logo is?”
Until I come to a site with a really bad one and my eyes ask me for an apology. Then yes, I am reminded what I know to be true…
Logos matter. But the 64 million dollar question is how much of the bottom line can be attributed to them?
First impressions are most important online and offline, with people, places or things including brand logos.
So what about logos that have been around for awhile. Ones you could pick out the crowd. You know, the logos that did their job – identified the brand and gasp, helped sell the product.
When does it make sense to change your brand’s logo?
The truth of the matter is, one of the biggest reasons for a logo re-design, short of a transfer of ownership, is due to someone high up deciding to put their mark on the world. They probably decided to “freshen up” or “reposition the brand” (some of you might have read my other article about Wheat Thins and know where I’m going with this).
The only thing I want to know is why. What will it do for you?
Someone please, please name 3 brands who have changed their logos to a standing ovation. (Even one – and I want it to be a big one, don’t stand up on your tippy toes to get it.)
The decision to re-design a corporate logo is a major one, since great logos define and identify corporations, and often more effectively than the company name. Perhaps the most notorious logo change of 2010 belongs to the Gap. After revealing their new logo, the Gap was hit with a backlash of epic proportions, and instead of standing behind their “more contemporary, modern” logo, Gap bent to the will of the masses, and reverted to the old logo almost immediately.
