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When it comes to your business’ branding strategy, establishing your company’s logo is one of the most critical tasks. Your logo will be pervasive throughout all of your marketing campaigns, and it’s one of the most prominent branding elements that people will think of when someone mentions your company. Your brand’s logo should be memorable, versatile, and consistent, all the while giving your audience a sense of what your brand is all about. Unfortunately, many companies haven’t exactly done a great job of keeping those goals in mind when establishing their logo, learning the hard way what it takes to create a positive brand experience through their logo.

Not sure what it takes to create a killer brand logo? To give you a better idea, here are 10 companies that have either failed or flourished in the logo department.

KFC’s Unique Logo Redesign & Launch

In 2006, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) launched a new logo, changing the Colonel’s appearance so he was pictured with a new, red apron. This was a big deal for the company, as its logo hadn’t been changed in over a decade. So why did they make the decision to revamp their logo? They wanted the image of the Colonel to be clearer and more energizing. The new, rejuvenated logo demonstrated an excitement and readiness to cook and serve.

Even better, KFC launched its new logo with the help of a HubSpot customer, Synergy Events, who constructed the logo from 65,000 1-foot-square tiles laid out in the Mojave desert, which can be seen from space. 

Marketers should take a lesson from KFC. They took a beloved icon, made it more lovable, and gave even more meaning to a symbol. Instead of just an image of a Colonel, the logo became an image of someone welcoming you into the restaurant, ready to serve you great food.

Gap’s Logo Redesign Disaster

In 2010, Gap decided it wanted to change its logo into a more modern version and abruptly announced a new logo. The clothing company was greeted by backlash from thousands of angry customers in social media, who were attached to the recognizable blue box with ‘GAP’ written in the center. For Gap, the saying, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” would’ve been sound advice. Its customers were already loyal to the original logo.

As marketers, it’s important to include your customers in important decisions like changing your logo. Setting up a focus group can help companies view things from their customers; perspective and make more educated decisions. If Gap had taken some of these steps, they might have avoided the social media backlash.

Apple’s Perfect Logo Rebrand

Today, we think of the Apple logo as a simple but sleek design, representative of the Apple brand. But it wasn’t always that way. The logo originally had a picture of Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree. Eventually, it was changed into a rainbow picture of an apple. And finally, it changed into the logo we know and love today.

Apple is often the model for a great brand experience. The logo demonstrates something that every company wants to convey: simple, inviting, and beautiful. All of the Apple products focus on giving its customers a great experience through a sleek interface.

Google’s Successful Rebellion Against Logo Design Best Practices

Surprisingly, the Google logo actually goes against a few standard branding rules. It uses colors that seem to clash with each other. There is a slight drop shadow, which is something logos aren’t supposed to have. It even uses a serif font, which is hardly unique, and very rare for a logo to have.

That being said, the rest of Google’s applications have fantastic branding, and they really demonstrate what each different Google product means. Furthermore, the different logos closely resemble each other, so it is recognizable that they are all part of the same company:

 

PIXAR’s “Out of the Box” Brand Alignment

The 1986 short film Luxo, Jr. inspired the new Pixar logo, which shows the lamp (Luxo, Jr.) as the “I” of Pixar. The animated version of the logo appears at the beginning and end of most the Pixar movies and has become adored by Pixar fans. There is also almost always an animated short at the beginning of Pixar films, another signature experience of the brand.

Marketers can take an important lesson away from the Pixar logo. If you create something that people love and admire, it’s memorable. Moreover, Pixar made its logo an experience for its audience by incorporating bonus animated shorts before its expected movie screenings.

Starbucks’ Confusing Logo

The Starbucks logo has always had the text “Starbucks Coffee” surrounding an image of a twin-tailed mermaid, also known as a siren in Greek mythology, which is indicative of the company’s heritage from the Pacific Northwest. For those who are unfamiliar with the Starbucks logo, the addition of these words has always helped to explain what the logo represents. However, in 2011, Starbucks updated its logo to get rid of the words and leave the mermaid, in hopes that they had enough brand recognition.

Marketers should remember that, no matter how big their company gets, there will still always be people who don’t recognize your brand or understand the brand sentiment they’re supposed to feel. Even though most people know the Starbucks brand, they do not always understand what separates it from other coffee companies. Having an image of a mermaid depict the brand is not enough to demonstrate what sets Starbucks apart. Before you read this post, did you wonder why the mermaid is Starbucks’ logo? Our point exactly.

FedEx’s Fantastic Double Meaning

The FedEx logo is genius, but many people don’t realize why. In fact, the FedEx logo says much more than the company’s name in purple and orange text. There is also a hidden arrow inside the logo that symbolizes the speed and reliability of the courier service.

 

Did we just blow your mind? FedEx’s logo is a great example of a simple, easy to remember logo that also expresses the mission of its brand. By creating a logo that has a dual meaning, such as the FedEx logo, it is a great way for your company to stand out against the competition and emphasize your value proposition.

Pepsi’s Boring Logo

Over the years, there have been quite a few changes to the Pepsi logo. Most recently, Pepsi removed the company name altogether and left the image of the ball.

As a result, the company received a lot of backlash for the new logo, which was said to look like a fat belly more than anything else. And truthfully, as Pepsi competes against other, healthier beverages, it needs to get away from that image. 

As a marketer, look at your competitors’ logos as inspiration. Pepsi has also received a lot of backlash because Coca-Cola has an elegant logo, whereas its logo doesn’t have as nice an appeal. Listen to your audience and see what they are loking for from your brand. Then use that inspiration to design your logo.

Amazon.com’s Interesting Hidden Meaning

Amazon.com has created such a recognizable brand that, when anyone needs to purchase something, they will often go to Amazon first. Although they have strong brand recognition, they also have a logo that reiterates just how much Amazon sells. The arrow in the logo points from the “A” in Amazon to the “Z,” symbolizing that they sell everything from A to Z. It also looks like a smile!

Amazon follows two great rules of logo design. First, it has a hidden meaning that reiterates its mission: “to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online.” Second, it’s simple and doesn’t confuse customers with its message. Those two rules are a great model that marketers should consider when creating their brand logo.

Animal Planet’s Poor Redesign

Animal Planet is known as the go-to place to learn about animals. But its redesigned logo doesn’t imply that at all. Animal Planet’s new logo gets rid of the elephant and uses only text, with the letter “M” in animal oddly positioned on its side. Not only does this take away the important image of the elephant, but the new positioning of the “M” also looks awkward.

Animal Planet had a recognizable logo that was fun and playful, like the channel, but also made people understand that the shows on this particular channel would be about animals around the world. If you have a good logo that people understand and appreciate, leave it as is. The older logo was a simple explanation of a beloved brand. As talked about with Gap, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

What are some other examples of fantastic — or failed — logos?