A strong logo is a vital tool for building the success of any business. Often, your artistic showpiece must be tweaked, altered, or adjusted to keep up with the wacky world of design, or even with internal changes within the company logos change for a reason). This is usually a bit more of an issue for companies who have been around for a long time, longevity seems to cause more of a problem when it comes to logos (not a bad problem to have though, let’s be honest).
However, it is worth stating that the logo you designed back during the Reagan administration is probably not going to be at the forefront of the social conscience in 2020. Besides that, there may be other reasons for you to want to re-evaluate your logo design, giving it a good polish and, perhaps, upon further inspection, realizing that it does need a full redesign.
It’s easy to put the task of designing your logo at the bottom of your priority list, but making the effort and commitment to rejuvenating something that has been at its peak for a while but now may be looking a little lackluster, can easily work in your businesses favor. However, before you take apart your existing logo, tear it away from its original concept and look to inject every new fad, style, and meme you can think of, try looking at these 5 key questions to ask yourself. These are all worth giving some thought to and should inspire you to move a little further afield and take a few risks before giving your logo the complete overhaul.
Has your business environment altered recently?
Have you expanded recently? Opened some new offices, employed a new influx of staff, suddenly said, ‘yes’ to bringing in new interns? Well, perhaps it’s also the time to change some other aspects of your business.
Launching an entirely new range of products can lead to an entirely different brand image and business strategy if all the perfect conditions are met. Such a case may lead one to want to change its logo to reflect its newfound success. If your company has expanded in any significant way, it may be time to consider looking at a new logo.
Are there any new boys in town?
Perhaps when you first started your business your competitors were sparse and thin on the ground. But today with social media and massive opportunities being generated from internet businesses, competitors have come about, thick and fast. Competitors can be intimidating, true, but they aren’t going anywhere. They want your business and they will fight to get it – so you need to fight back.
If your competitors are giving you the feeling that you need to update your brand image and show your existing customers that you’re a modern and up-to-date company who is worth looking at just as much if not more) than they are – a logo redesign is a great way to do it.
Is there a new audience for you to connect with?
So, you have spent years and years building up your customer base, and their loyalty has been amazing, but now you’re ready to speak to other demographics as well. Redesigning your logo may be just the service you have been looking for.
If your logo is redesigned correctly, with a wide enough target audience in mind, you could also connect with – and maintain the relationships with – an entirely new audience.
What are your brand values or your mission statement?
Values, in most cases, will change and evolve as your business grows. Where once you may have never considered reaching out to help the community, due to lack of funds and influence, perhaps today a large-scale community aid project may be feasible.
If you have noticed a change in the personality of the business and that your company’s mission statement is more expansive and influenced further, then it may be time to reflect on your logo and see if it needs a few positive changes.
Is your logo out of date?
Now, we don’t want to make any assumptions here about your logo, we’re sure it’s very well designed and very well evaluated…for its time. It’s always a question worth asking yourself, ‘If my logo was created back in the ’80s, is it time to give I a bit of a revamp?’.
The aesthetic of your logo may be a little tired, making a redesign a useful idea. Also, the current state of your logo design perhaps isn’t compatible with all the other technological devices that will be able to showcase your new design; tablets and mobile devices, etc.
Redesign? Or Refresh?
If you have been nodding along to the above questions, then you may indeed need a new logo – or get the same one redesigned. There is more than one way to give your logo to rejig that it so sorely needs. Think of it like a visit to the dentist; you can either have a quick check-up on your teeth (a refresh) or you can go in for full dental treatment (redesign). One will give you a bit of aesthetic rejuvenation, the other will be a more comprehensive rebuilding of your current logo.
Refreshing your logo is the less dramatic and more low-key approach. Think of it like one of those TV makeover shows, but for your logo instead of a fat woman. During this process, the designer will make small altercations and updates to your logo design by adding messaging, increasing color quality, simplifying the entire look and feel of the image.
For example, MasterCard’s 2016 logo update is a superb example of a successful refresh. The multinational credit card company retained its signature circles and colors, and simply brought the name into the forefront with modernized typography.
A logo redesign, on the other hand, is like dramatic dental surgery. This approach can include a whole new color scheme or possibly even a new take on your company’s current name (like how Federal Express changed to FedEx).
What elements need to stay?
Perhaps you may think your logo needs a complete redesign and every facet of it needs to be changed and improved, from the ground up. But before you start tearing everything apart and rebuilding, we would advise that you consider the elements of design that are already present and which ones have already done a stellar job at representing your firm up until this point. No one wants to throw the baby out with the bathwater, so be sure to keep an eye out for specific color schemes, font or type styles, or even how your company name is written or capitalized.
Are your customers interested in this?
Or more to the point, ‘Will your customers be happy you have done this?’. Following on from the previous point of not throwing the baby out with the bathwater, if your current customer base has already built up a visual connection with your current logo.
It would be worth taking some time to look over this aspect of your company’s marketing, how do your customers relate to your current logo and what do you need to preserve about its current state to ensure that no customers lose their link with it. Your hope, of course, is not to confuse or irritate your current customers in your pursuits of attracting new ones, so it is a balancing act that you will have to consider on your redesign journey.
Only you will know when it is time to redo your logo, but hopefully we have given you a few light bulbs to light your way down the dark corridor of business marketing. Whether you decide to go down the route of refreshing your logo or giving it a full revamp, ensure that your customers are your primary reason for implementing change.
