In this weeks posting, I decided to follow up on a subject that is happening fairly commonly today. The evolution of corporate logos is a subject, which gets little attention and relates well with art and identity of self. At the bottom of this post is a web link, which analyzes various well-known logos and gives brief history of the company and logo. This post is intended not to look into the various companies changing their logos but to analyze he importance of changing the logo. The logo is the visual representation of a company and perhaps he first thing people notice about a company. The design and color scheme are all selected according to some type of realization that can vary. Do these logo’s attract consumers? Do these logo’s create the illusion of friendliness? Do these logo’s represent the company a whole, a product or an idea? These questions have multiple answers depending on the company being analyzed, however it is important, in my opinion, to note the significance of logo changes. For example, perhaps the most recent known design change was Pepsi’s brand logo update. The Pepsi Company has been linked to the logo for decades, however, the company decided to change the logo. When a company changes its logo, it must put in a ton of effort and thought into its final design because although only good intentions are to come from the new design, a consumer backlash can result in response to the change such as consumer dependency on tradition or confusion. The new Pepsi logo didn’t change much as the color palette is still there, but some minor changes were done to the design that has received various types of criticism. Sometimes a company changes its logo because of a traditional logo becoming outdated in relation to current times, but the main question that I would like to see some answers to in the comments are to why consumers feel the need to push or rely heavily on a particular logo for years or even decide to change.
http://www.neatorama.com/2008/02/07/the-evolution-of-tech-companies-logos/
At first I had mixed feelings about Pepsi’s logo change. However, after seeing the commercials and seeing the logo in stores, I like the change. Even the best companies need to keep their appearance up to date if they want to remain hip. Times change and designs can easily get dated.
ReplyDeleteWhat boggles my mind is that people get so bent out of shape about something so silly as a company changing their logo. Since technology is rapidly changing every week, you would think that people would start getting used to change by now. I applaud Pepsi for changing their logo and keeping it similar enough to make it recognizable while still keeping it fresh.
Although it is a good idea for companies to change their logos, I think that they have to be extremely careful about how often or how radically they change their design. One of the most important functions of advertisements is to create a 'brand' for the company, and make it recognizable. If the company changes a well liked and well known logo too much, they can destroy that brand recognition. Although it is stupid that people get so bent out of shape because of a simple logo change, the fact of the matter is that they do, and advertisers have to keep this in mind.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a really interesting post after just recently reading the article "The Rhetoric of the Image." I like that you chose the the apple logo as your example because it has evolved into a symbol that is readily recognizable throughout the world. The original logo of the apple has changed into a more technical logo. When people see this image they think of what it represents a opposed to what the actual image is. We don't relate the food to the product of computers. We see this often in corporate logos, the company works to create an image that becomes common in the advertising world.
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