Last Wednesday, Twitter abandoned its many recognizable icons and adopted the little blue bird mascot as the “universally recognizable symbol of twitter.” This means there will be no more logo text or the lowercase ‘t’ icon to represent twitter. Instead, the social network will simply be using just the bird as their new trademark.
If you check out their blog, here is what they say about the reasoning for the bird and how it came to life:
“Our new bird grows out of love for ornithology, design within creative constraints, and simple geometry. This bird is crafted purely from three sets of overlapping circles — similar to how your networks, interests and ideas connect and intersect with peers and friends. Whether soaring high above the earth to take in a broad view, or flocking with other birds to achieve a common purpose, a bird in flight is the ultimate representation of freedom, hope and limitless possibility.”
As a designer and lover of logos, I think it is neat to know the concept behind the bird and how they arrived at that particular logo. The story brings the blue bird mascot a whole new complexity and I think that is why it works. I also like the idea of the simplicity of its creation. (Although, I am sure it took many hours and reiterations to come to this iconic result.) But the concept of the circles that create the figure is right in line with what twitter is all about. Simplicity. Twitter is the company that wants you to make a statement in less than 140 characters. I think by paring down and picking a single branding image Twitter is finally following it’s own advice and concept. As we all know, a company’s logo is the most prominent and stable element of it’s marketing and it should truly reflect the company. Twitter has finally done this.
This is a great lesson to learn when you are rebranding or even just starting up your company. You want your identity to be on target. It should communicate who you are and what you stand for as a company. Here are 3 things that you might want to consider when choosing a logo:
1. Image style
A logo represents you as a company. How it looks tells potential customers/clients what kind of business you are and what you specialize in. Make sure your logo adequately represents you and what you stand for. For example, if your business deals in finance you should aim for something conservative, contemporary, or even high tech. Creating a more casual or playful design could instantly take away your credibility as a company. You need to really consider your company’s philosophies and your customer/client profile when choosing a logo.
2. Originality
Your logo is a very important tool for branding your company. It should have a uniqueness all its own. When choosing a logo design try to pick one that will stand out from a the crowd. It should be visually pleasing and have more to offer when looked upon longer. It even helps to have a story behind your logo. A mistake we often see is businesses deliberately trying to mimic others in their industry to try to communicate a similarity to, or competitiveness with, a well-known company. This almost never works to your advantage. Forging your own road that’s reflective of your own characteristics and practices is a much better strategy.
3. Appeal
Before deciding on your logo, make sure you are completely satisfied with your selection. It will be with you for as long as you’re in business. As years go by you may opt to update your logo but it should always have the same basic feel to it. After all, this is how people identify you. I think this is why the new rebrand of twitter works so well. It is still part of their original branding but it has been refined. It doesn’t cause the consumer to feel like it has to learn something totally new. Sure there are exceptions to this rule and times when a logo needs a complete overhaul because your company has reinvented itself but it is best to try to get it as close to perfect as you can the first time.
~ Bethany Howell, art director
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