The Evolution of Logos
Sagi Dar | November 2, 2022
Logos are everywhere. It’s common knowledge that logos are an incredibly important part of each company and make up the foundation of their brand identity. Brands should try to maintain their brand identity through their logos, creating a sense of memorability and strong brand recognition. However, most brands instead choose to evolve their logos over time, drastically changing their brand identity from what they started with. Sometimes this can bring positive results by bettering public perception of the brand. Other times, it can be detrimental and cause adverse impacts, decreasing memorability and success of the brand as a result.
Boo… Change
Although not as drastic, an example of a logo evolution yielding unfavourable reactions is the Windows logo in 2012.
Evolution of Windows Logo, 1985-2012
Evolution of the Microsoft Windows Logo. (n.d.). UneMarque. Retrieved 2022, from UneMarque.com.
Windows's design and brand identity changed drastically in 2012, going from a bright and colorful design reminiscent of a flag to a flat, bland, monocolor design created for their new operating system. Although they managed to maintain one aspect of their original brand identity (the square split evenly into four pieces), their logo and brand identity changed so radically that it ended up bringing negative reactions from the general public. According to TechRepublic, a renowned trade publication, available responses from the public have been downright negative. Public opinions of those who embraced this change far outnumbered by almost 3 to 1 those who considered it “looks forced” and hoped it would be a placeholder for another design (Shinder et al., 2012).
Yay! Change
Although public reactions might become negative, a logo change is a good idea - it can update the brand identity to reflect modern times or evolve alongside the company. Cue… the Starbucks logo!
Evolution of the Starbucks Logo, 1971 - 2011
Vorobyeva, N. (2019). Logo history: The Evolution of Starbucks. Medium. Retrieved 2022, from https://medium.com/@nathali4k/logo-history-the-evolution-of-starbucks-c2dd7a42f4fb.
Like a fine wine, the Starbucks logo has subtly aged in time and evolved since 1987 when it adapted its iconic mermaid and green color. The logo changed again in 1992, emphasizing the mermaid symbol, which has grown to become synonymous with the Starbucks brand itself. The Starbucks logo changed for the last time in 2011 when they decided to ditch the words “Starbucks Coffee” altogether and focus entirely on the mermaid. Evidently, the mermaid symbol is the logo's most iconic and memorable part, even though the official statement put out by Starbucks stated, “the company was moving beyond just coffee products” (Entis, 2015).
Notably, both companies' logos evolved to become only their most iconic element. In Starbucks' case, the logo evolved only to contain the color green and the iconic mermaid symbol. In Windows’ case, the logo grew only to incorporate the color blue - and the admittedly more straightforward - four squares symbol. This has become a modern trend in design for brand logos called minimalism, where most detail is taken out of the logo, leaving only the original logo's most recognizable symbols and brand identity.
Now, we will compare two different brand logos and see how they have developed together.
Evolution of Pepsi Logo, 1898 - Present
Rogoza, R. (2020). Evolution of Pepsi Logo. Logaster. Retrieved 2022, from https://www.logaster.com/blog/pepsi-logo/.
Evolution of Firefox Logo, 2004 - 2019
Lavrov, I. (2021). Evolution of Firefox Logo. Turbologo. Retrieved 2022, from https://turbologo.com/articles/mozilla-firefox-logo/.
Aloha - Minimalism!
Both Firefox and Pepsi held detailed logos at the beginning that accurately represented their brand identity. However, in Pepsi’s case, they hadn’t settled on their current logo design motif until 1950. Firefox and Pepsi started with a more intricately detailed logo, evolving to become more simplistic, adapting the original version's original shapes and colors. Pepsi’s logo changed around the 2000s and became three-dimensional with gradients and text. Similarly, Firefox followed the same path as Pepsi—emerging with the globe and the fox surrounding it, with a gradient that made it look three-dimensional. However, it eventually evolved into simplistic flat shapes and colors that resemble the original logo while following the minimalist design trend, thus appealing their logo to a modern audience.
Both Firefox and Pepsi held detailed logos at the beginning that accurately represented their brand identity. However, in Pepsi’s case, they hadn’t settled on their current logo design motif until 1950. Firefox and Pepsi started with a more intricately detailed logo, evolving to become more simplistic, adapting the original version's original shapes and colors. Pepsi’s logo changed around the 2000s and became three-dimensional with gradients and text. Similarly, Firefox followed the same path as Pepsi—emerging with the globe and the fox surrounding it, with a gradient that made it look three-dimensional. However, it eventually evolved into simplistic flat shapes and colors that resemble the original logo while following the minimalist design trend, thus appealing their logo to a modern audience.
Of course, brand logos exist to benefit the company, but it must adhere to its primary attributes and functions. A logo must be legible, coherent, adaptable, reproducible, memorable, timeless, and simple. Moreover, it must offer information about the brand and convey emotion to the person viewing it (Turkish Studies Social Sciences, 2019).
#ExcellentExample
Winning the award for effective logo evolution is *drum roll* Twitter!
Logo Evolution of Twitter, 2005 - 2019
Oliver. (2019). Evolution of Twitter Logo. Looka. Retrieved 2022, from https://looka.com/blog/best-and-worst-logo-evolutions/.
Twitter’s logo has found and maintained its brand identity since 2010. It has remained in the public eye as being timeless, simple, and memorable. Much like all logo evolution, Twitter’s logo has followed the minimalist design trend, all while maintaining its original brand identity.
All in all, companies decide to change their logos to reflect their brand offerings and values more accurately while attempting to fit in with the new and modern era. Brands tend to use a minimalist design trend with their logos as it makes their logo simpler and more memorable, using simpler color schemes that can be adaptable to different scenarios. The evolution of logos of popular brands over the years has been fascinating, and it is exciting to see how they will evolve next.
References:
Entis, L. (2015, September 11). Why we hate logo redesigns. Entrepreneur. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://www.entrepreneur.com/growing-a-business/why-we-hate-logo-redesigns/250559
International Balkan University. (2019, October 20). Turkish Studies Social Sciences. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://acikerisim.gumushane.edu.tr/xmlui/bitstream/handle/20.500.12440/1801/tammetin.pdf?sequence=1
Shinder, D. L., Staff, T. R., Branscombe, M., Crouse, M., & Kimachia, K. (2012, February 21). The new Windows logo: It's not as bad or as good as you think. TechRepublic. Retrieved October 25, 2022, from https://www.techrepublic.com/article/the-new-windows-logo-its-not-as-bad-or-as-good-as-you-think/