At Blue Daring, clients often come to us requesting a logo. I often have clients tell me that what they want is a logo that is as recognizable as FedEx’s. That tells me that people don’t quite understand what a logo is, or for that matter, what its function is.
The FedEx logo is a simple typographic solution with a slight twist; the E and the X form an arrow, a representation of the transportation nature of their business. It’s certainly not groundbreaking. I know from experience that most companies would not be impressed by a simple typographic solution nor the purple and orange color palette. What makes the FedEx logo so well known is that it is attached to a hugely successful global company, one where the logo receives global exposure daily.
That said, when clients say they want a logo that is as recognizable as FedEx’s, what they’re really saying is that they want the brand equity and recognition; not just a nice logo.
Paul Rand stated it well: “a logo is a flag, a signature, an escutcheon, a street sign. A logo does not sell (directly), it identifies. A logo is rarely a description of a business. A logo derives meaning from the quality of the thing it symbolizes, not the other way around. A logo is less important than the product it signifies; what it represents is more important than what it looks like. The subject matter of a logo can be almost anything.”
A logo is only one aspect of a company’s brand. It serves to identify and set the company apart from other companies. The real goal of a logo is to convey the company’s personality and positioning by way of typography, color, image, graphic and/or icon. My job as a designer is to understand what the company does, what’s their value and determine what aesthetic they are looking for (the latter being just short of mind reading). It is all part of the process working with clients, building a strategy, and then translating it into a logo; something that visually captures the essence of the organization. Through successfully delivering for their customers and strategically marketing to their audiences, do they actually develop the equity that they seek [when they say “FedEx”, for example].
That is what we do for our clients. We not only understand the strategy and creative force that it takes to build a logo, but further know what it takes to build a brand.
Since an early age I have been a makeup addict. Even now in my adulthood I still have a soft spot for all things beauty related. This probably is the reason why a huge chunk of the twitter accounts I follow are beauty companies and bloggers.
A few weeks ago I noticed a nail polish company Zoya announce on twitter that they wanted to reach 5,000 followers in a little over 2 weeks. Seems ambitious but Zoya upped the ante with an incentive. If they reached their goal and you were one of their first 5,000 followers, Zoya gifted you with three free nail polishes of your choice. Zoya made their goal and 5,000 nail polish fans were more than happy to receive their free gift. Now a few weeks later they are still all the buzz in the beauty world as everyone is now tweeting about their orders arriving and what colors they received and loved.
Social networking is a bit tricky due to its tendency to be extremely popular one minute than die down the next. It takes some effort to keep things interesting online. A giveaway is a great way to keep your social networking fresh. Promotions like this one are beneficial because they not only encourage new followers but keep the interest of your current ones as well. They are effective because they provide an incentive but also promote word of mouth advertising which everyone knows is tried and true in all fields. This type of promotion is also a great way to interact with your audience and make them feel appreciated. Giving a little to your consumers will end up being a great reward to you as well.
I love baseball. I used to have a coach that always said, “Keep it Simple
Silly!” The same can be said in business.
While on a project in London for Discovery Channel, we found that
Discovery’s shows are pretty popular in Europe/Middle East/Africa. This
means a lot of money is spent translating them into numerous languages.
Every time a show was translated into a different language, a regional
Language House (in the target country) was hired to give the show an
authentic sound and feel. Not only did London have to ship the show on a
new physical tape to the Language House, but the Language House had to
ship back a new physical tape with the translation as well. After close
examination, we found that there was a potential $3MM per year savings if
we just cut out shipping physical tapes.
Briefly, here are the numbers.
. (SHIPPING COST X 2) + (Tape Cost X 2) = Equals Cost per Episode
. 15 Episodes Per Season on Average
. 20 Different Shows Per Single Network on Average
. 6 Different Networks (Animal Planet, Science Channel, Etc)
. 28 Different Languages
. $20 SHIPPING COST
. $10 TAPE COST
Our team recommended a video file transfer solution that would cost around
$500K to implement. No more tapes, no more shipping. We saved the
company 8.5 Million Dollars over a 3 year span, including the one-time
$500K technology investment.
In my 15 years as a consultant, I have found that sometimes the answer to
being more profitable is within your own walls. I liken it to the trade
deadline in baseball every July, where teams are scrambling to make a big
trade, but sometimes the answer is within their own organization.
For my project with Discovery Channel, the difference maker was within our
very own walls. As you can imagine, we hit a homerun…
My sister is all about working out these days. She is pretty fanatical about the gym and if she misses a day of working out I can read the panic all over her face. I’ve never been much of a gym rat so I always give her a hard time about it. “It’s just one day what’s the big deal?”, I say. This always triggers her to go into a whole shtick about the importance of consistency in a workout plan; as the younger sister I hate to admit she is right.
I’ve mentioned before how a company’s identity is much like a person. Imagine then that a company’s brand is the equivalent of a person’s physical appearance. In either case, time is invested to ensure that the appearance of said person (or company) is reflective of the person within. Let’s assume for Company X; this means professional, efficient, and intelligent. Great. Now let’s say an employee of said company sends a customer a proposal. They aren’t quite sure how to futz with the formatting on Word and send over a document with a logo thats been distorted just out of proportion. It’s just one document; they can fix it tomorrow, right? WRONG! Although the document can be fixed tomorrow, the impression made on the customer cannot. A strong brand identity means being consistent; no exceptions.
No matter how small, inconsistencies ruin a brand’s integrity and more importantly a company’s credibility. A company that shows a lack of detail and consistency in its own matters, is evidencing to its customers that it wouldn’t do much better with theirs. Further, with companies taking advantage of social media and the Internet (two channels that can easily run uncontrolled), setting guidelines to how your brand is represented cross media, is of even greater importance. Similar to missing one day in the gym; a company that fails to convey its brand consistently risks a wasted investment and even a risk. To you look good (and be successful); you have to work (consistently!). Doing so will give your brand power and a positive perception that is sure to differentiate your company from the rest.
This past weekend I went out to Denver where I had the opportunity to go to the Denver Art Museum. The building was designed by Daniel Libeskind, and was truly impressive both inside and out.
The special exhibit that was up was called “The Psychedelic Experience,” which showcased rock posters from the San Francisco Bay Area from 1965-71. There were over 300 posters that were done by artists who lacked any formal training but had an abundance of creativity and experimented with type, illustration (and potentially other things) in unorthodox ways. Some of the posters and images are now iconic of that decade, which was pretty amazing to see up close and personal.
Quote by Jacaeber Kastor:
“And that is why posters became beautiful and blossomed and flourished: because they had to say everything. They couldn’t just tell you the information about the show. They had to tell you what kind of people you might meet, what kind of far out trip you might have or perhaps even reveal the mysteries of the universe. Wow. Quantum mechanics, visual mud wrestling, Acid Test pop quiz on a phone pole!”
Something that I found interesting was that some of the artists purposefully used hard to decipher typography. It required the viewer to examine it a little bit longer and figure out who was playing which venue and when. This type of messaging was very purposeful to the target audience, the younger crowd of San Francisco, who were actively part of the up and coming music scene. To its credit this is exactly what good marketing does; targets a specific audience with a customized message and drives them to do something with a call to action. Figuring out how to connect with your target audience is still a key marketing principal today. Without it, the messaging could be lost; if it is too generic, people will most likely not read it or follow up with it.
The message that these posters conveyed was so concentrated and direct, that people heeded the call to action and went out and supported their community of artists and musicians. These poster designers were wildly successful in their marketing efforts and were able to communicate in inventive and clever ways. In doing so, they made a culture iconic.
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