What’s in a Name Logo?

Recently Google changed its logo and there was so much of discussion about it all over the web. But to be honest, I was a little disappointed as I expected some big change in the design and colors and something extraordinary as per the Google Standards and what I found was a small change in the font style. But when I read in detail about it, I realized that maybe that change wasn’t so small. May be it seemed small but the thought behind the change was very big and significant.

I am sure there are many others out there who always judge the book by its cover and logo by its design but trust me there’s more to it than just the design. So let find out the “More” part by taking a look at logo transformations by big companies and their significance.

Google

This is not the 1st time that Google has changed its logo and according to Google not the last either. But now let us discuss why was it changed this time.

One of the major reasons for change in the logo is to make it look good on the small screens. The new and simple font does not only look playful but is supposed to scale better to smaller sizes, making the wordmark more distinct and easier to read. It’s also supposed to be easier for Google to display on low-bandwidth connections: Google says that it’s made a version of its logo that’s “only 305 bytes, compared to our existing logo at ~14,000 bytes.”

Also, now say bye bye to that small g icon that you saw while opening new tabs as now that too is replaced by four color G that matches with logo.

hare your thoughts on this new Google logo and enjoy below the stories behind the logo transformations of other brands.

Apple

Not many people of this generation will know that Apple’s 1st logo was that of a man (Sir Isaac Newton) sitting under an apple tree. The borders of the logo read: ‘Newton… A mind forever voyaging through strange seas of thought… alone’

The logo was changed in that year itself and we should really thank Steve Jobs for that as he hired Rob Janoff to design the new logo. Imagine the 1st logo on the back of your iPhone.

Rob Janoff said that the bite on the Apple logo was just to let people know that it was an apple and not a cherry whereas the rumors suggested that it was inspired by the death of Alan Turing, the revolutionary mathematician and computer scientist, who committed suicide by eating a cyanide-laced apple in 1954. The rainbow color conveys the message of Thinking Differently.

The current Monochrome logo came up as Apple was introducing Mac computers with a metal casing and a rainbow colored apple did not fit well with that.

Won’t you people love to see this as Apple’s new logo?

McDonald’s

When I say McDonald’s I am sure most people can see a big yellow M and the words I’m lovin it (If you are hungry you might see burgers and fries). We all associate with I’m lovin it logo but McDonalds had its share of logo evolution too.

McDonald’s initially started as a Barbeque restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald. Keeping the fast food theme in mind they promised speedy service and to convey the message they designed a chef like character speedy that delivered the food on time.

The next logo with identifiable M was inspired by the first franchised outlet of McDonalds

In 1952 the McDonald brothers asked architect Stanley Meston to design their first franchised outlet. According to architect Alan Hess, the initial idea for the golden arches came from a stylised sketch of two half-circle arches, drawn by Richard. The brothers brought in a sign-maker, George Dexter, to design two giant yellow arches that were added to both sides of the building.

Viewed from a certain angle, the arches formed the letter ‘M’. However, it was Ray Kroc, who bought the business in 1961 who suggested incorporating this architecture in logo.

After that further small changes were carried out every now and then in the big yellow M until the I’m lovin it campaign became a huge hit in 2003 and since then they have continued with the current logo.

Mozilla Firefox

Mozilla Firefox was initially known as Firebird resulting in the 1st logo that you can see in the image but due to some trademark issues the company had to change its name which resulted in the name Firefox. The company obviously could not use the old logo with the new name and hence a new logo was created by John Hicks. If you see carefully the new logo, you’ll see a fox on fire engulfing the whole world that also signifies the global reach that every company strives for.

Nike

A simple logo with a strong message and that has to be Nike. The logo was designed for just $35 by Caroline Davidson in1971. One of the major reasons for its popularity is that the simple and fluid Swoosh logo symbolizes success is its extraordinary ability to make us see movement in particular ways.

Initially the logo had a swoosh and Nike overlapping each other which seemed to me like an error. But thankfully it was redesigned again after 7 years where the text was seen clearly.

In 1985, Nike changed its color to red and white as red color exemplifies passion, energy and joy, whereas the white color stands for the nobility, charm and purity of the Nike brand. And as the years passed and company was recognized the company dropped its name from the logo so now its just the swoosh.

Every logo has a story to tell. If you have come across any do share with others through the comment box below.