10 Not-So-Famous Logo Evolutions – The Growth Phases!

Time and again we look at famous logos and get mesmerized by their power and influence. But seldom do we think how these brands have managed to grow so powerful and famous. It is a known fact that brands are not made within a day. They are created after passing through several cumbersome growth stages. It may take years, maybe decades for famous brands to reach a maturity level and enjoy all the recognition. All famous brands like Nike, McDonalds and Coca Cola have a rich heritage of growth phases. Their logo is the hallmark for their corporate success in the eyes of the customers. When companies create a logo design, they must be prepared to make amendments to it with the changing trends of the industry. You must be wondering why I label the following logo evolutions as “not-so-famous” ones. Here’s the thing…somehow the growth phases of these brands haven’t been highlighted sincerely and we don’t find them much on net either. Therefore, today I intend to narrate the journey of 10 unforgettable brands and their unfamiliar growth phases.

1. Nestle The first Nestlé logo was launched in 1868 originating from the founder’s name Henri Nestlé that means little nest in German. Since then the logo has changed five times in 1875, 1938, 1966 and latest in 1988. Each time there have been minor modifications to the logo while the representation of a mother bird feeding her kids in a nest remained more or less the same.

2. BP The first logo of BP was introduced in 1921 showing “BP Motor Spirit”. Since then six versions of the logo have been introduced in 1922, 1930, 1947, 1958, 1989 and 2000. In four cases, the BP logo remained relatively same with the shield symbol. But the latest version shows a Helios symbol.

3. BBC BBC’s first logo was created by Abram Games in 1955. Since then, it has drastically changed several times. One of their famous variations was in 1988 by designed by famous logo designer Michael Peters. The current version was introduced in 1997 which is still in use to date.

4. Texaco The American oil selling company adopted its first logo design in 1909. It included the original five-pointed star symbol that acted as reference to the lone star of Texas. The Star symbol and Texaco font are Texaco’s chief brand distinctions. Since then, it has seen three logo redesigns in 1936, 1965 and 1981.

5. 3M 3M is a famous technologically innovative company that adopted its first logo design in 1906. It was originally called "Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co." But in 1955, the company changed its name to 3M and subsequently altered the logo as well. Another two variations of the logo design were launched in 1961 and the current in 1978.

6. Lego The popular Danish toy brand got its first logo design in 1936. After that the logo was redesigned four times in 1946, 1953, 1955 and 1973. Although the company does not have a particular design or symbol, its meticulous font is now remembered and considered as a trademark font of Lego.

7. Google One of the most viewed and recognized logo design of all time is Google. The search engine adopted its first logo in 1998 and since then has altered in twice with minor modifications. It was created by Sergey Brin. Irrespective of the redesign, the Google logo has remained constant with its multi color design.

8. Wal-Mart Wal-Mart started out with a simple logo design in 1962 that spelled only the company name in blue. Since then, the logo has witnessed five modified versions. The versions in 1964 and 1968 used the Frontier Font. This was discontinued in the 1981 version. The latest logo was introduced in 2008.

9. Kraft’s Foods Kraft’s Food has used three major logo designs in its corporate branding since its inception. The first logo was a trademark KRAFT sign that is still used on some Kraft food products. Two more redesigns took place with the latest being in 2009. Kraft is currently using their vibrant logo design with a flower symbol on the typography.

10. Wikipedia Wikipedia’s first authentic logo was originally submitted by Bjørn Smestad for a Nupedia logo competition in 2000. The second logo was introduced in 2001 again through a logo design contest. The next logo dubbed “Puzzle ball logo” was launched in 2003 and remained till 2010 with many variations. The latest logo was in force in May 2010.

Do you believe that logo evolution is indispensable in building of a strong brand? And if it’s true then why brands like Nike and Coca-Cola are so successful without getting any major make over for their logos?

11 Logo Design Trends of 2011 – Helpful Predictions!

Every year, several newbie corporations emerge with attractive and inspiring logo designs. However, new companies should be a little careful with the selection of their corporate logo. With the changing taste and preferences of consumers, change in logo design trends can be witnessed simultaneously. The designs that were considered famous a year ago may not be popular this year. So logo designers must adjust to the market preference and consumer flavors for designing the perfect corporate identities. Although it isn’t easy to predict logo design trends but recent developments in the industry help the logo designers create a trendy logo design. Logo Lounge has released logo design trends for 2011, based on the half yearly performance of the logo design industry. These trendy logos will guide the designers in right direction explaining the trends being followed and accepted in the branding business.

1. Childish Lately, there has been an increase in the use of juvenile figures in logo design. Reminiscent of the Hello Kitty logo, these logos are meant to promote a sense of cuteness, and adorability. We observe the example of the Twitter logo and see that society easily accepts any symbol bearing a smile. These symbols are also being used as gaming and social media mascots.

2. Dandruff The trend, marked as ‘dandruff’ by logo lounge, is the grunge style. This style proofs how a little disturbance in the logo design can create magnetism. A little crumble here and a little skew there create an ideal grunge style which has been admired for years. But this style is applied only to precise spots of the logo. This creates open negative spaces in the logos giving them a sense of purpose.

3. Fruit Nowadays, you will often hear brand names that are inspired by a fruit. Popular examples of famous logos are Apple and Blackberry. These allusions to the fruit depict a sense of freshness and sweetness for the brand identity. The fruit inspired shapes are now being considered as an iconic representative for brands to represent purity and wholesomeness.

4. Geological The Geological or Eco trend has been in the industry for the past few years. This is for clients who want to portray their company as an environment caring and friendly one. These logos use symbols that depict the earth and nature like leaves, flowers, animals and soil.

5. Gradients The gradient is a subtle style that has the power of mesmerizing the audience attention. A mild linear gradation allows the top logo designers to give a direction to the design. This allows designers to visually convey a message of motion or change without altering the symbol of the logo.

6. Interlope Another 3 Dimensional approach progressively being used this year is the Interloping effect. This includes interweaving a shape into an identifiable symbol. Other modifications in this trend are the inclusion of shadows and gradients.

7. Isometric Another noticeable logo design trend this year is the use of isometric shapes. Also known as the pixilated or cubic, this trend has been used across several industries to show an isometric, dimensional logo. These logos illustrate a consistent design and geometric accuracy.

8. Line Art Since the year 2011 has been dominated by delicate logos, the line art trend is also in full flow. There is certain grace in line art, and logo designers never seem to lose this. If not designed with scalability and accuracy, these logos can be tough on the eyes. But if perfectly made, it is sure to draw a host of viewers.

9. Oscillate With the escalating competition in the corporate world, designers are trying out attention grabbing techniques to make their logo design stand out. What was once considered as a mark of poor craftsmanship is now an attractive device to catch the attention of the viewers. The oscillate design in logo which causes visual vibration attracts a reader’s attention from long distance.

10. Rounds After the launch of Obama 2012 Logo, the concept of using rounds and ‘Os’ in designing is prominent this year. The full 360 approach of the O shape encapsulates the viewer’s attention. We have seen the rounds this year with some graphic differentiation including the support of shadows, bars, dot, stars, and stripes.

11. Swirls Another attention gathering technique rampant this year is the use of swirls. Multiple lines swirling into one another to create a rippling effect, has similar effect as the Oscillate design. Whether used as whole or part of the design, the swirls have a gripping impact on the viewer. It compels the consumer to confront the brand. They stipulate a reaction from the viewer.