So you want to redesign your logo, you notice certain things that might have been done wrong with the original design or your just looking for a little change and change can be good if done right. Now that you are sure a new look is the direction you want to go in, what are the do’s and don’t of redesigning a logo?

WHY REDESIGN A LOGO

As graphic designers  we might from time to time be approached with the task of redesigning a logo and the first thing we must determine is why is the client requesting a redesign. We need to know why a client is looking to change the look or why the client wants to redesign their current logo. Personally I think one of our jobs as great designers is to give our professional opinions to our clients, prevent clients from making the wrong decision and not just take their money.

Every aspect of yours or your client’s business will evolve over time, your website, your technology and yes your logo! If the business has evolved and the logo doesn’t represent the business’ core values or strength it might be time for a redesign. Clients or customers want to see that a company they are thinking about purchasing from or have been a customer of is changing with the times and if your competitors are redesigning their logos it’s probably best practice to make some changes of your own. As your business grows it is important to make sure your logo stands the test of time and if it doesn’t it’s time to think of redesigning!

 KEEP IN MIND

When redesigning a logo there are a few guidelines to follow to guarantee a successful redesign and not risk a failure. Redesigning a logo can have you or your client walking on egg shells, it’s needed but it needs to be done right and one little minor error could be a complete catastrophe.

DO YOUR RESEARCH

As I said earlier on in the post you must ask yourself whether the redesign is needed, you must know specifically what issues the business is facing and come to a conclusion that a re-branding is the answer. There will be no worst problem then redesigning a logo that shouldn’t have been touched and creating more problems on top of the ones the business already had.

FIT THE BRAND

As a designer or client you want to make sure the redesign fits the brand and stays true to the company’s story. If the new logo design shy’s away from it true purpose to represents or gives a feel of the businesses true core values or it’s promises to their clients it will start to lose it’s client’s trust.

REPUTATION IS IMPORTANT

You don’t want the redesign to lose your current reputation, if you are know by your clients to be of high quality and your logo represents that, you don’t want a redesign to make your business look cheap or similar to a brand of less quality. As I said the logo must fit the brand and must represent the brands quality.

INTEGRATING NEW BRAND

You don’t want to be inconsistent with the new branding, make sure all parts of the business is now representing the new brand, redesign all media such as business cards, letterheads, brochures and advertisements. Make sure that all physical locations are now showcasing the new design and branding. Inconsistency can hurt client trust and give off a feel of a inferior business structure as well as commitment issues.

SUBTLETY TO KEY

When redesigning a logo you want to make subtle changes and stay away from drastic changes. If you decide to turn away from the original design to much the logo may no longer represent what the business stands for and it might no longer be recognizable by the market. Let’s say for instance McDonald’s decided to change the looks of their signature arches, how many people would remember them as the food chain and how much business would they potentially lose from the confusion. Let’s also look at it from a appearance stand point, loyal customers would lose interest just because the arches everyone has grown to love was taken away, people would be angry, feel lost and provoking the wrong emotions can make current clients or customers turn away from your business.

This is by no means authentic, it is merely to showcase if redesigning a logo for McDonalds went bad. How does it make you feel about McDonald’s?

BEST LOGO REDESIGNS

There are many companies or graphic designers that get it right, redesigning a logo that stays true to the brand, increases trust in their clients and gives a feeling of the company maturing with time. Below are some of those designs to give you a feel of what should be done when redesigning a logo and why sometimes it is necessary.

Pizza Hut’s redesign doesn’t stray from the original design, still recognizable and has a modern feel.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers logo has more depth, it’s vibrant and the skulls looks more sinister but overall the design keeps the originals dedication to the brand!

The Olive Garden logo redesign remain true to the original design, cleaner and less complicated then the original.

WORST LOGO REDESIGNS

Then there are the logos that just didn’t cut it and completely went in the wrong direction. Turned away from their businesses core values and failed to properly represent their brand while keeping their current trust with clients.

The Black & Decker redesign doesn’t remain true to the original design and is generic which will make it hard to know what the company makes if you didn’t already know.

The JC Penney logo has change several different times which gives off a feel of inconsistency, leaves confusion and hurts client trust.

The name Yahoo to me was a word the expressed excitement and the original design did that very thing, expressed excitement, The new design is a bore and makes me regret being interested in YAHOO!

TO SUMMARIZE

Remember when redesigning a logo keep it subtle, keep the logo’s best attributes ( don’t change what works), strive for simplicity, stay with the color scheme that best represents the business values, change with the times or trends but keep the classic traditions, remember to design with market position in mind, redesign other corporate identity along with the new logo design and making the design easier on the eyes.