A logo is not a brand. But a logo quite often represents the brand. It is the entry point to all of your products or services. That’s why it’s important that your logo is an accurate representation of your brand positioning, personality and mission.

What should a logo communicate?

• A logo should be simple and easily read without being boring.

• A logo should reflect your brand personality.

• A logo should embody your brand strategy.

• A logo should be flexible and have the ability to work in a variety of applications, from business cards to websites and packaging.

• A logo should look different than other logos.

Since your logo needs to do a lot of work, it needs to be thoughtfully designed. I believe in order to truly see the pure design, and not be influenced by extraneous elements, that all initial logo designs be created in black and white (and maybe shades of gray if necessary). This will allow you to judge the design for it’s unique qualities and emotional appeal.

Once the design is perfected, color can be added. By making this a different step in the process, you eliminate the need to worry both about design and color options. You’ve selected a design, now you’re selecting the color. It’s kind of like building a house—first you build the structure, then you decorate.

Now take a step back, look at your logo and see if it is communicating properly.

One of the most difficult things to deal with is saying goodbye and letting go. Recently it seems as if there have been quite a few goodbyes going around. Goodbye to beloved Summer, goodbye to my dear flip-flops and finally goodbye to two spirited Willow shrubs who have recently moved on to new opportunities. (Spain isn’t that great… okay, maybe it is.) Same thing goes for trends, they come and they go. (I state this as I eaves drop a conversation at the coffee bar about the hyped up “planking” and the little paper clip helper, Clippy, in Windows ‘98.)

This leads me to the thought that there is a time and a place for a brand overhaul. My question to you is when? What determines when to scratch the existing material, say goodbye and move on?

An article found on Ragan.com stated what they thought. If you have the time to read up on it, do you agree/disagree? Do any of the points hit home? Let us know your thoughts. If you want, you can also throw in some things that you’ve been saying goodbye to and we’ll offer a hug, if you’d like.

Google. Do you even remember when this word was not a part of your vocabulary? Whether it’s used as a verb (Did you Google that topic?) or a noun (I found it on Google), it’s part of our everyday lives and there’s just no ignoring it.

So how does Google do it? How does it constantly stay in front of us and not get old? One of the fun ways that I’m always reminded of it is through Google doodles. According to Doodle 4 Google, Google doodles are “the drawings that are designed on, around and through the Google logo on [their] home page.” These doodles were started in 1998 by Google founders Larry and Sergey to celebrate their attendance at the Burning Man festival. The idea was then handed off in 2000 to then intern, now Goolge Webmaster, Dennis Hwang to celebrate and mark worldwide events and holidays. You may recall the Mars Rover landing doodle or the more recent and one of my favorites Les Paul 96th Birthday doodle.

Since the Google doodle’s birth, over 300 doodles have been created in the U.S. and over 700 have been designed worldwide. There is a doodle team at Google dedicated to to deciding which events and holidays that will receive recognition via the Google logo and a team of designers create the doodles. However, the idea room for these doodles does not have a closed-door policy. The team is very open to outside ideas from Google users and the public and welcome submissions from them.

Now to what I think is absolutely amazing about the Google doodle concept. Being a marketing professional and a brand manager for various clients here at Willow, I find it crucial that brands and logos stay true to their original form in order to maintain their brand recognition. (You can read more about my thoughts on this in this post.) So you would think that this idea of changing Google’s logo every time an important event is recognized would make me cringe, but it doesn’t. And the reason for that is because Google doodles have become a part the the Google brand’s DNA. Users expect it to happen. In fact, there are crazy people (like me) who will go to Google’s home page first thing in the morning just to see what today’s doodle is.

An article by Google on this topic says, “having a little bit of fun with the corporate logo by redesigning it from time to time is unheard of at many companies but at Google, it is part of the brand. While the doodle is primarily a fun way for the company to recognize events and notable people, it also illustrates the creative and innovative personality of the company itself.”

So what’s your favorite Google doodle of all time? Or what is a corporate brand that you’ve found that does a great job of having fun with their logo while still maintaining it’s true identity?

Sources:
http://www.google.com/doodle4google/history.html
http://www.google.com/doodle4google/doodler.html
http://www.google.com/logos/

A few weeks ago I wrote a post entitled “Can I have your attention please?” In it, I asked readers what is the best way for marketing to get your attention? A message that tugs at the heartstrings? Something thought provoking? One that makes you laugh so hard you spray that mouth full of water across the room? (Or at least I hope it’s just water, otherwise you’re often cleaning up a real mess.)

Well, you responded (for which I thank you), and I must say I found your feedback quite interesting. Though not necessarily unanimous, the general consensus was that humor wins. Being the inquisitive person that I am, as you responded I only wanted to know more.

We all know, not everyone and everything that tries to be funny is actually funny. While I at first believed that my obsession with commercials was just an annoying job hazard, the madness over Super Bowl commercials proves I’m not the only one paying attention to what’s happening between my favorite shows.

Therefore, I now ask you, which humorous messages are your favorites? Do you die laughing every time you see the eTrade babies? Love hearing from the man your man could smell like? What advertisements – commercials, magazine ads, billboards, anything! – are your favorites and why?

Marketing can be used to achieve many objectives. A website can inform you about a company’s new products, a commercial makes you feel good about an organization supporting the fight against cancer, and an advertisement shows you the benefits of one product over one of its competitors. However, there is one thing that each of those tools – websites, commercials, ads – must do first. They must get your attention.

A website can’t teach you anything if you quickly decide it’s not worth your time and go back to surfing YouTube. A commercial that is muted while you’re making a snack can’t change your opinion about anything, and if you flip right past the magazine ads to read the celebrity gossip all you’re comparing is who has the crazier lifestyle.

So I ask you, what types of marketing tricks make you sit up and take notice? Is it the witty or clever ads that make you think? Commercials that tug at your heartstrings? Or the ones that are just plain funny? At a time when everyone and everything wants your attention, what convinces you to actually give it?