Now the first thing that popped out to me was the almost universal dominance of the brand name in the logo. Even the Rolls and BMW names are there even though not too prominently. The second thing: Seven of the 12 logos used reversed type (light colored type on a darker background). Third thing: except for Prada and Chris Craft, they used traditional type faces, and none used a sans serif face. Fourth thing: half of the samples use capital letters exclusively in their names. And fifth, Except for the Tiffany logo with it’s “Tiffany blue” background, there’s not much color represented in luxury logos.

As far as a small-sized logo is concerned, I’d vote Brooks Brothers being the worst of the bunch because of the lack of color contrast, the very fine lines of the type swishes, and the strange icon on the left that loses any recognition as it shrinks in size. Rolls comes in second. The only thing that saves it is the familiar RR configuration.

Now to address “anon’s” question, can a logo for a luxury brand stand out?. I’d say there are three or four examples of dominant logos in the group above, led by Prada.

Prada has the advantage of a short name which inherently leads to a clean and bold look when the typeface used is bold. Tiffany stands out primarily because of their traditional and world-famous use of  the “Tiffany blue” background. The Broadmoor with the “small” A does not diminish no matter the size and is distinctive. Finally, the Chris Craft logo is distinctive and the type face imparts speed even in a much smaller size.

So in this small sample of luxury brand logos you have some that dominate and some that don’t. I’m not sure that this proves that the logo isn’t important, but I think it does state that for this class of brands there are many attributes more important than the logo that contribute to their success.

But if I may be so bold as to make a suggestion to luxury brands, get out of your “me-too” rut and dance to a differnt drummer if you want to differentiate the brand.

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Does your logo stand out in a crowd?
2. Get your Hyundai luxury car before they’re all gone.
3. Brands deserve a palette of color
4. Bashing designers is not my hobby
5. Good logo design means legibility first.

That doesn’t mean the tagline can’t accompany your logo, and you can even make it look as if it’s a single element in selected cases.

But please reserve the right to separate them and use the logo as a stand-alone element where necessary. I blogged about the logo standing out when grouped with other logos – Does your logo stand out? It just won’t stand out if must carry along a tagline.

For my own company logo, I integrate logo and tagline where I have a full line devoted to the two elements, but elsewhere I separate them and usually only use the logo itself. Below are examples.

First, logo and tagline associated:

Then the logo alone:

So, logo and tagline are separate elements that can be integrated as appropriate. The thing is, be sure you have the flexibility to do either.

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Why taglines go astray
2. What makes a strong tagline?
3. Good logo design means legibility first.
4. Naming Tips – Number 41 in a Series
5. Does your logo stand out in a crowd?

It’s a good way to determine just how well your logo stands out in relation to others, including your direct competitors. And two things become painfully evident to those with poorly designed logos.

NOTE PROPORTIONS OF LOGOS THAT STAND OUT

First, their logos don’t scale well. By that I mean they become illegible when reduced to a small size. A logo should at least be legible even if it doesn’t stand out when made small. A good logo will carry its own weight in this environment as well as when enlarged to fill a 24-sheet billboard.

Second, their logos are out of proportion. An ideal logo will usually be horizontal, but the proportion between horizontal and vertical should be no more than two (horizontal) to one (vertical). This is important particularly in a grouped array as above. Normally the layout designer will treat all logos the same, usually scaling all of them to a predetermined height. The higher the logo is, the smaller it will appear in such a matrix.

Even if you never find your logo presented in this way, placing a newly designed logo over such an array when evaluating the logo’s effectiveness is instructive. If it works in this environment, it’ll probably be effective in any media.

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Can luxury brands stand out?
2. Good logo design means legibility first.
3. Should your logo include your tagline?
4. Branding Basics – Step 9
5. $25,000 logo junked.

But be warned: they can be so absorbing and fascinating that they tend to be time eaters. But if you’ve found just the right combination of compatible colors, it’ll be worth every minute.

Color Schemer Online – choose a color and receive a color scheme; lighten or darken the color scheme, and get the color hex codes.

HyperGurl Website Color Match – scroll down to the bottom half of the page to play with the color tool. ColorShades – lighter and darker Web color hexidecimal codes and swatches.

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Three-color palettes sufficient to define a brand
2. Brands deserve a palette of color
3. Brands need more than a single color to express a mood
4. BRANDING & COLOR – Number six in a series
5. Color & Branding –Number 3 in a series

Once you have established what attributes your brand should convey, you can then, and only then, ask a graphics designer to develop a palette for your brand. As I’ve stated before, the palette not only colors your logo, it should be used within promotional literature, store fixtures, delivery trucks and other touch-point objects associated with the brand.

Today I am going back to the handy little book, Color Image Scale by Shigenobu Kobayashi, where his three-year research with the Nippon Color and Design Research Institute is presented. They had “matched 130 basic colors and over 1,000 color combinations to 180 key image words, allowing you the expression of any mood, lifestyle, or taste through the creative use of color combinations.”

Using the book’s index I looked up the term “vigorous” as a mood I might want to impart to my brand. Listed were three different color combinations which I’ll attempt to match the designated colors below.

Note: Color matching the printed cmyk 4-color ink process to hexadecimal screen color designations is tricky, so the examples may vary from those actually printed in the book. And they may look different on your monitor than they do on mine, even if I stay with “web-safe” colors.

But here goes: three combinations to help me express a vigorous brand image.

There are several web sites that provide color-matching models that can be used for developing brand palettes. Though not as authoritative as Color Image Scale, they can be helpful, particularly if your brand is web-based.

Next blog on color will list them for you.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975
 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Brands deserve a palette of color
2. Brands need more than a single color to express a mood
3. Online color scheme tools for branding
4. Naming Tips: Number 12 in a Series
5. Colorful Branding – Number 1 in a series

But I was unclear about one thing: the logo need not be more than one-color.

I got a comment concerning the Coca-Cola logo being just one color, so I must be “full of it”. Well, I may be. But I was referring to a brand’s palette.

First of all, I recommend that for your logo  get a one-color version so it can be reproduced in a newspaper ad or on an “ad specialty” item. You may find in today’s world of digital printing and web-based brands that you can afford to use a multi-color logo quite often. But it’s good to have the flexibility to go black on white.

Now, what is a brand palette?

It’s a set of colors to be associated with the brand. It could be a palette of two, three or more colors depending upon application.

If it’s a product, it may be the dominant package color. If you differentiate members of a product family by package color, all those colors are part of the palette. Color is only one way to differentiate – you may opt for large type or a visual instead. But color can be effective in this context. You’ll want to co-ordinate the colors you use with the logo color as well. This may dictate a black-ink logo, or perhaps a reverse of white.

The color of the actual product may also be part of the brand palette, particularly when packaging is transparent or non-existent.

If you’re branding a clothing store, an airline or an amusement park, your palette is an important and integral component of your “trade dress”. Along with type selection for signs, counter design and placement, uniforms, and several business-specific elements, integrated colors for interiors, exteriors, equipment, fixtures, vehicles and uniforms comprise trade dress.

But if yours is a service business, you may want to pay attention to your brand’s palette. If you provide clients with recommendations, reports, proposals in a professional folder or binder, pay attention to the color. Even the colors selected for your office walls is part of your brand’s palette.

So there’s more to color consideration for your brand than the color of your logo.

Oh, one more thing: as far as a brand palette is concerned, consider white to be a color. The Coca-Cola red is always associated with white: it’s the consistent background that sets off the familiar red of the logo and the can.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975
 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Three-color palettes sufficient to define a brand
2. Brands need more than a single color to express a mood
3. Online color scheme tools for branding
4. Color & Branding –Number 3 in a series
5. Color & Branding – Number 2 in a series

I grouse about reverse type, or type laid over a non-contrasting background.

I dis designers who immediately want to incorporate the initials of a company name in their logo designs.

Then there are the designers who use nearly-illegible type faces just because it’s “trendy” in Wired or some underground art magazine. And those who want to impart the latest fad illustration technique even knowing the style will date the brand.

But I must say, most designers do not make the mistakes just described. They’re looking for unique ways to present a brand while maintaining the style the brand naturally requires, and not resorting to fad-like, the-latest-thing me-to-ism.

It’s just that some designers do get carried away. My advise: tell them what you require – design that will last a while and represent the true core of the brand. Most will “get-it”. A few will not. When you run into one of them, don’t be intimidated – fire them.

There are plenty of good designers who know the importance of brand and how to design for the long haul. Seek one out.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975
 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Branding Basics – Step 9
2. Good logo design means legibility first.
3. Borrowed Interest Ads Are a Waste
4. Who Owns Your Brand?
5. Brands need more than a single color to express a mood

I can’t help it. There are so many of them and they stand out because they cause discord and disharmony. (And don’t give me the old story that any notoriety helps your brand. Not when with a little care and attention good vibes can be achieved for the same amount you’d spent on lousy branding.)

 Anyway, today I’m here to praise.

I saw an ad for a tattoo removing solution in last week’s USA Weekend. A 3/4 page, modestly colored ad with the headline “Finally…TATTOO REMOVAL. Beneath the headline a picture of the box was tied to the tagline, “It’s easy as opening this box.” The copy, a column on the right interspersed with visuals, speaks to the product’s advantage over laser procedures and a risk-free guarantee. Then an 800-number and an “ask for order” with bonus close.

Now I can’t vouch for the product, nor am I a prospect. I dodged a couple of “lets go get a tattoo” episodes in my college days. Sometimes I wonder how I survived those days, but that’s a subject this blog will not explore. Ever.

Anyway, the product’s name is WRECKING BALM.

Isn’t that a great name for a tattoo fading product? See the tension? Isn’t it memorable? Won’t that be the kind of name people will enjoy repeating to friends and associates? 

The logo goes well with the name even though it smacks of patent medicines of a hundred years ago. Yet it does depict a character, Doc Wilson, who may or may not be real. Nevertheless his name lends some credence to the product.

The color palette, a faded rust and black, provides contrast and seems appropriate. If Wrecking Balm ever makes it to store shelves, it will display very well.

All in all, I’d say this was a first-class branding and advertising effort.

Now that this product’s on the market, perhaps I’ll look into getting that tattoo I nixed 50 years ago.  Nah.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975
 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Branding Basics – Step 10
2. Branding for Referrals? Tell a Story
3. Branding Basics – Step Seven
4. Branding Basics – Step 8
5. So what do I know that you want to know about branding?

This is a color of mixed messages and associations.

First, red is powerful and aggressive. It tends to dominate other colors in combinations. We all know it’s a warm color. And at its most intense, red is associated with hot. It invokes excitement and action.

Red is the color of blood and violence. But it’s also the color of romance and valentines. And Santa Claus wears a red suit. It’s the traditional color of fire engines, rescue efforts and traffic signs/signals meaning “stop”. In nature, healthful fruits and veggies are often red.

 

We speak positively of red-letter days and the red carpet treatment. Negative expressions include: seeing red, being in the red, red tape, a red flag and a red herring.

Red’s cultural meanings and associations vary worldwide but are generally positive. Brides in Hindu, Islamic and Chinese cultures usually wear red. In India, a red mark on the forehead purports to attract good luck. Red in Singapore symbolizes joy. It is associated with good fortune in China.

Because red is vibrant and powerful, a little dab might be all you need to convey a message of action and vitality.

Green is the complement color to red. Orange and purple are analogous to red. Names for different shades and hues of red include scarlet, crimson, maroon, burgundy, ruby, flame, vermillion.

If you are looking to associate your product/service/organization/event with a festive, forceful, hot, bold, and/or dynamic color, red would be first choice. Brands associated with sports, energy supply and youth often look to red.

Those people who prefer red are usually impulsive, athletic and sexy. They are optimists and passionate about their activities. They want to experience life to its fullest, even though they will have swings in their emotional natures.

Although red is a popular color for branding, there are some darker shades that are not used as often that will also impart the associations provided by bright reds.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975

 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Color & Branding – Number 2 in a series
2. BRANDING & COLOR – Number six in a series
3. Color and Branding – Number 4 in a series.
4. Brands deserve a palette of color
5. Branding and Color– Number 5 in a Series

This blog’s subject: purple.

Or is it lavender?

Or perhaps violet?

Like the other primary and secondary colors – the purple family belongs to the secondary class – there are various shades and mixtures and intensities that can be included in any particular class. So I’ll discuss all itsdesignations under the class called purple.

As a secondary color, purple and it’s mates reside between red and blue on the color wheel. Therefore, it is a little “schitzo” with attributes both hot and cool. Often, especially on the web, it’s difficult to differentiate a deep purple from a dark blue, or a violet from a wine-red hue.

Purple is traditionally associated with nobility, spirituality and magic. There’s also a suggestion of prosperity.

In researching for this blog, I was surprised that fewer companies had adopted purple as a primary corporate color. There are few negative connotations. Just purple prose and purple haze show up. But there is an association with death in Latin America.

The only brand I’ve discovered that actually revels in purple is the “purple pill”, Nexium.

 

Another user of purple is FedEx and I’ll comment more about that. Initially the FedEx colors were purple and orange. Today that combination refers to its overnight air express service. For their corporate colors they’re substituted gray for orange. Then for their ground service, it’s lime green and purple, for “Trade Network” it’s gold and purple, and for the FedEx/Kinko stores, purple and sky blue. As you can see below, the “Fed” word is always purple and the logo retains its typeface in each variation. Well done, FedEx.

As already stated, purple imparts dignity or nobility in its darker tones. When more toward lavender, the color is feminine and fashion oriented.

Across the wheel from purple is the primary color, yellow. As it’s complement, they make a contrasting and complementary pair. The analogous colors are red and blue.

Those people who favor purple are likely to be creatives or eccentrics. They enjoy being unique from others and can be temperamental. They are also sensitive and observant, and enjoy fantasy. I’ve read that comic books with purple on their covers sell better than those with another color dominating.

Anyway, if you’re looking for a color for your brand that hasn’t been already used to adnauseam, you might explore purple and its associates, violet, mauve, lavender, lilac, orchid, plum, et al.

Martin Jelsema
303-242-5975
 

Post from:

Source of info and strongly-held opinions about branding and positioning

Branding related posts:

1. Branding and Color– Number 5 in a Series
2. Color & Branding – Number 2 in a series
3. Color & Branding –Number 3 in a series
4. Colorful Branding – Number 1 in a series
5. Brands need more than a single color to express a mood