Meaning in Brand Logos:

4 case studies.

• Brand logos have a bi-directional way of creating meaning:

• 1. The way logos look affects how we think about them.

• 2. What we think about them affects how we perceive the logo.

• We’ll focus on the first kind of meaning in brand logos.

- The circles represent coins, which are symbols of wealth.

- The lines between them represent movement of the circles from one place to another: The movement of cash from one account to another.

MasterCard recently updated their logo to this:

This was a move away from the blocky look of the lines in the original logo, a design device more closely associated with the 80s and 90s than this century.

The new logo also widens the symbolic meaning. It’s no longer about just coins; it’s about different scenarios overlapping.

What this new logo says is ‘Where ever you are, Mastercard will be there too and will work with you to help.’

The logo implies that you and Mastercard are worth more together than you are apart.

The Gucci logo similarly uses a circular motif.

This time, however, they avoid using primary colours. Primary colours feel coarse and unrefined compared to silhouettes.

Premium branding often works off the idea that something truly desirable doesn’t need to draw attention to itself. ‘Understatement’ is what Gucci is going for with its thin lines and lack of logo colours.

The Gs are, firstly, the first letter of Gucci, the company’s founder.

They also resemble a clasp, bringing to mind handbags, belts, jacket fasteners.

The Gs are reflected, which implies a sense of inwardness about the brand. They don’t need to look elsewhere for approval, they’re content with their own reflection.

Also reminiscent is the infinity logo, a reminder that the brand will always be classic.

Finally, the combined effect of sharp angles and arches reminds the viewer of classical Greek designs. It reminds the consumer of tradition & sophistication.

Starbucks is a great example of a logo that did not match the company. We see evidence of this mismatch in the progression (or regression) of the logo. It becomes increasingly simple over time, dropping elements from the logo.

The logo begun with a two tailed mermaid with bare breasts, meant to represent the seaside town of their origin and the ‘seductiveness’ of their product. The breasts were covered in an updated logo.

A later log then cropped out the tails, a meaningless symbol for the increasingly urban demographic. These days, the crown continues to represent quality – they’re the leading coffee brand.

The beautiful woman represents a kind of passivity reminiscent of the understatedness of premium brands (this is mirrored by her passive facial expression).

The band around the outside (removed in the most modern update) reminds consumers of seals of quality.

‘Penguin’ was chosen early on in the company’s formation because the animal is ‘flippant but dignified.’

This created a sense of experiment but also of high quality. It also created a brand personality that allowed quality books to be cheaply priced.

Earlier logos showed the penguin dancing, pushing harder on the experimental end of the brand spectrum.

The penguin was later stood straight, when their books because more about being ‘classic’. Orange was added to the logo; an infrequently used colour.

Blacks, greys, gold, navy blues represent traditionalism. Bright reds yellows and greens represent modernism.

Orange is somewhere in between, a connection between history and future. It’s also a nostalgic colour, more often found on products of the past than the present.

The Penguin’s eye is large and fixed; a reminder that literature can be attention-consuming and exciting. But the unusual eyes represent two more things:

The attentiveness of the writer, who absorbs the world around her.

And a certain startled nature that amplifies the uniqueness of the penguin.