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Tag: redesign

  • What message will the redesign convey?

    The Anchor: 5 things brands must keep in mind while opting for a logo/design change

    By Rajesh Varma

     

    Times change, people change, and outlooks change too. Things which were contemporary yesterday are passe today. Hence, to walk with changing trends, logo redesigning becomes obvious. While redesigning our logo, we should keep the following things in mind:

     

    Storytelling:

    A logo should tell a story. About the activities of the company. What they are into? The over all personality of the brand should be conveyed through its logo.  A brand could be sober, a brand could be jazzy, it could be serious or cool, and there is a long list of personality types a brand can pick from.

     

    Similarly, logo also defines business. This brand is all about educational endeavours, that one is all about creative industry, I do this and you do that. Consequently, while redesigning a logo one should script a story very prudently.

     

    Simplicity:

    A logo should be simple. A simple logo design allows for easy recognition and allows the logo to be notable.

     

    Positioning:

    A logo should establish a clear brand positioning. Like “We are Dynamic and flexible.” The logo should create a brand offer in such a manner that it occupies a distinctive place and value in the customer’s mind.

     

    Versatility:

    An effective logo should be able to work across a variety of mediums and applications. A logo should be such that it can be scaled to any size. The logo should be able to work in all formats.

     

    Uniqueness:

    A logo is an identity. It expresses individuality. Therefore, it should be unique. Like human face, it’s the face of a company. One should recognize it as a different identity from others.

     

    Rajesh Varma is Founder Director at CRI Events

     

  • Elephant Design's Ashwini Deshpande on 7 design points to keep in mind when refreshing a brand.

    The Anchor:Ashwini Deshpande on 7 points to remember while refreshing brands

    #1 If the CEO is “too busy” to attend a re-branding meeting, don’t do it. Branding is an important business tool. Branding has the power to create far more value than the goods it can sell. If the CEO seems reluctant to acknowledge the power of branding or rebranding, it may at best be a whitewash exercise. Just cosmetic.

    #2 Express only what you believe you can deliver. Visual expressions can make your brand younger, sexier, fun, dynamic, innovative… There is no limit to what graphic design can do. But express only and exactly what you believe you will be able to deliver through every touch-point, every time.

    #3 Rebranding is for creating Gods & Angels. God is the person who unhesitatingly pays a premium to buy the brand you created. Angel is the person who goes to the next shop to buy it if it’s not available here.

    #4 Be sensitive to the culture, geography and economy. Some colours and icons are considered inauspicious in certain cultures, magenta fades in our harsh sunlight, special colours are not economical and/or feasible to reproduce in tight budgets… Know the limitations and possibilities before you begin.

    #5 A brand is multi-sensorial, multi-dimensional. It is not just a logo. Today’s technology allows for infusion of sound, smell and touch, over and above visual expression… Go beyond the visual to create an experiential delight.

    #6 A logo refresh is not a quick-fix solution for bad balance sheets: It requires long-term conviction and dedication from all stake-holders to get the brand embedded in the hearts of its intended users.

    #7 Acknowledge (others’ and your own) good and bad work, and learn from it. There is no need to discard all for the sake of rebranding. Take ahead what worked for the brand in the past. Also learn from other brands that are loved or ignored.

     

    Ashwini Deshpande is Director, Elephant Strategy + Design