Intersting Bit on Corporate Brands

Yahoo put together an interesting bit on the way company's name their brands. It is entertaining.

http://news.yahoo.com/who-knew/doomsday-predictions-is-2012-really-the-year-of-the-apocalypse-27942490.html

Don’t Encourage the Public to Help You Fail

“Never under estimate the power of a first impression. If you look successful, the public will assume you will be successful and often support you. If you look amateurish, the public will assume you will fail and HELP you”.

There is great power and truth in this quote. Have you ever walked into a new business and immediately concluded that they were destined for premature failure? I certainly have and I have always been right! The interesting thing is that this conclusion may have nothing to do with the quality of the product or service that they offer. But rather it is the IMAGE...or lack thereof...that they portray!

Recently, in the town in which I live, there popped up a restaurant that we decided to try. They bought an old fast-food restaurant building and simply painted it a basic color scheme...brown. Their outdoor signage was hand painted on bed sheets and stretched between two stakes (this was put up after our visit). Upon walking into the building, they utilized the old furniture and they simply stripped off the former branding from the walls and left it plain. They had no branding of their own and if felt like I was in a glorified garage. That was not their theme, but rather their lack thereof! The food was dipped out of crock-pots that they apparently brought from home. Their menu was really rough and hand written. The whole operation screamed AMATEUR! Needless to say, they are no longer in business.

I have discussed this behavior with similar other small business owners and their reasoning is very consistent. They do not want to invest too much money into branding in case they don’t make it. The problem is that this way of thinking is a self fulfilling prophecy. Because they fail to create a brand that makes them look successful, patrons perceive that they will fail, and they, along with others, WILL refuse to do business with them. And the prophecy is fulfilled.

However, if that business owner invested a small amount of time, effort and money into looking like they are already successful, those same patrons would be much more inclined to continue using their products or services. By refusing to implement some basic branding techniques, you might as well take out an ad and ask the public to stay away!

6 Ways to Ruin Your Corporate Identity

1. Have a Complicated Logo Too many colors. Too many lines. Too much detail that it is simply a complicated illustration or worse the actual use of a photo as a logo. All of these things will either be very difficult or expensive to reproduce consistently or the company will start making alterations to some reproductions to save costs. This will lead to have a wide variety of logo variations.

2. Have an Amateur Looking Logo Too many times I have heard the story that small business adopts their business logo by deciding to have a “design contest” among the company’s employees, friends and family. in turn, they offer a small monetary prize to the winner. On the surface, this sounds very prudent. The owner gets many more designs to consider than if they hired a professional and the cost is a tenth or less than the cost of a professional. Let’s look at the logic of this. Would you have a contest among those same folks on who is going to fix your computer? Or how about a contest on who is going to rewire the building expansion. What about having a contest for... and he list can go on and on. We simply wouldn’t do it with any other aspect of our business. So why leave it to rank amateurs to create the image that will be the face of your business? Your prospects makes instantaneous and subliminal decisions about a company upon FIRST IMPRESSIONS. Do allow your first impression to be that you skimp on quality! If they perceive that subliminally – they will move on to the next company!

3. Have an “Clipart” Looking Logo You’ve seen these logos. They simply look like a dozen others. The problem? You need to stand out from the crowd! That means that you need a logo that jumps off the page. That cannot be done by using a generic globe or a simple initial in Helvetica. You need a logo that is unique, powerful and has meaning to your company!

4. Allow Vendors to “Make Improvements” Vendors want to impress upon you that they have a creative staff that can rival any ad agency or graphic design firm. So what they do is to “tweak” your logo, name, font or colors to give you a “new look”. But what they are doing, if you let them, is to destroy the consistency that you have created.

5. Having too Many Variations I know of a company that I am very close to that has so many logos that it looks like they have personality disorder. Right now this company is close to being a half billion dollar company and they have at least 3 completely different logos....and variations of those! They seem to trot a new one out every time they have a new “event. Any company, regardless of how large or small needs only two variations: Its logo in a horizontal format and one in a vertical format. These two configurations should be almost identical with the exception of the relationship of arrangement of the name and symbol.

6. Not Protecting the Integrity of the Corporate Image I don’t know how many times that I have seen a logo pulled off of a website and enlarged for a print job. This will NEVER work. You must always have your logo in a vector image format for reproduction. Also, give any printer the format and the specs that they ask for because they are trying to watch out for the quality of your brand.

In short, in order have a Strong and Powerful Corporate Identity you need three things:

1. A unique and bold logo that will stand out in a crowd.

2. It needs to be used consistently EVERY TIME.

3. The integrity needs to be protected so that it is reproduced crisp and clean...No exceptions!

New Logo for One in a Million Company

A new Art Gallery, with designs on promoting new and promising artists, realized that the best way to get noticed themselves was to stand out from the crowd with a Powerful Logo. They chose the name, “Blue Lobster Gallery” because a blue lobster appears in nature one in 2-5 million. They wanted a logo that was unique and bold and that fit the one-in-a-million meaning of their name. The logo that they chose is a simplified bird’s eye view of the head and claws of a lobster. To add impact and individuality, the logo utilizes a positive/negative effect which creates a dramatic feel.

“The professionals at VIVIDesign Group took my limited ideas and gave me a logo that I would put up against any corporate logo out there hands down. Very professional and methodical approach to design. Great work”. - Jon Walker, Blue Lobster Gallery

New Logo For Cats-N-Hounds

Cats-N-Hounds, a high-end, on-line, pet gift shop realized that they needed a professional image to compliment the business that they had established. They contacted VIVIDESIGN Group for assistance and we were able to create a strong, powerful, effective Logo for them.

The Cats-N-Hounds Logo is a Name Mark which graphically symbolizes the name that the owners had chosen. Therefore at the heart of the logo is a stylized dog and cat. Surrounding them are two orbiting “arms” which signifies the love that the owners have for those special members of the family.

Once a logo project is concluded, VIVIDESIGN Group does not disappear from the scene. We continue to assist and advise all clients to ensure the proper and consistent use of their logo.

Congratulations Cats-N-Hounds.

Second Takes

One of the most common mistakes that small business owners make in regards to their logos is trying to make it say too much. Many businesses are diversified in their product offerings and so having the logo showcase “What you Do” is next to impossible. So what should a good logo do then?

The other day I was driving down the road and my wife saw a political sign and pointed at it and said “look”. Everyone in the car turned and laughed and for 5 minutes we discussed that sign. The sign was in the back of a pick-up, up-side-down. While I would NEVER recommend including an obvious flaw in your logo, this event does illustrate a valuable point. That sign caught my wifes attention! It caused her to share it with all of us! It made us want to look and caused 5 minutes of conversation. That politition EFFECTIVELY branded his image into our minds. It made us think of him. It informed us that Mr. Higdon is running for Mayor. We do not know all of his positions on the issues, but we know that he exists.

That is what a logo should do effectively. A great logo does not have to say everything about your company. But if you can acquire a logo that will capture attention and make people want to perform a second take, you have branded them and you are now at least on step above the competion!

Corporate Vandalism

What would your reaction be if you took your Mercedes Benz into the shop for an oil change and when you picked it up there were yellow flames painted on it? No big deal or you ruined my car? After asking the shop owner about the unauthorized alteration, you find out he was trying to “help you out” because HE thought your car looked a little boring. Most people would not sit still for that kind of “vandalism”. However, many business owners tolerate vandalism to their logo like this on a regular basis.

One of the most harmful things a business can do in regards to its branding or corporate identity is to use it inconsistently. So many business owners allow various vendors to “tweak” and play with their logo when using it in assorted applications. The problem is, that every time that logo is used differently the effectiveness diminishes. Soon a business can have so many different variations of their logo that the impact of repetitive views by clients and prospects is simply not noticed.

So how does one protect the consistency of their logo? A corporate standards manual. It is a simple document that shows vendors the dos and don’ts of how to use your logo. Take control! Have your logo designer create a standards manual for your logo and stop the madness of vendors vandalizing your valuable asset.