When good logos go bad, who's to blame?

The original logo design I created in 1999.

In 1999 a local coffee house, MoonBeans Coffee, asked me to create a logo for their new business. One of the main requests, by the company owner, was that the logo appear as if the company had been a well established franchise. With that in mind, I dove into my research and worked closely with my client while developing sketches.

At the end of the entire process, the client choose the logo that you see here. I developed a full brand identity system for MoonBeans that included stationary, disposable cups, menu boards, etc. I even painted a mural on a wall and helped design the interior of their original establishment.

After months of collaboration and hard work, the client and I slowly stopped working together. He concentrated more on radio advertisement, which is a media that I do not work with. Days became months, and months became years. On a rare occasion, the coffee house owner and I would get together and work on a small project but our business relationship never blossomed again.

Flash forward to 2 1/2 weeks ago (1-15-11). I walked into a local burger joint and saw that same logo I created 12 years ago on a T-shirt, but it had been (how can I put this kindly) revised. As soon as I saw the altered logo, my first thought was, "Somebody changed it, and it doesn't look good." Honestly, I would have had the exact same thought whether I had designed the original logo or not. Knowing what the original logo looked liked and seeing what it became, makes me think that "the change" did not improve the logo or my ex-client's business. It seems that whoever altered it had a very specific audience in mind. Or absolutely NO audience in mind.

Altered logo.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't feel bitter about this at all. No designer should expect their artwork to live forever without being adjusted after so many years. As a general rule, graphic designs rarely last more than two years, due to changing trends. Most well designed logos will last 8 - 10 years before someone changes "something" about them.

So who's to blame here? Me for not keeping up with the client? The client for allowing a negative change to his image? The designer who made the change for not having a broader audience in mind?

I've passed by the coffee house many times. Each time, I see the exterior light sign that still bares the original logo. That gives me hope that not all branding efforts are lost for my ex-client. Maybe it's time to stop by for a cup of coffee???

-Pete C.
Brainwerx Design

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Gap's new logo (for a week),  Logo Design Case Study: Arriba! Mexican Insurance

Creative business card design

Everyone knows that marketing and branding go hand in hand. I'm a firm believer that every point of contact your business has should make a statement. It should say exactly what your business is about and it should be memorable.

When I began sketching design concepts for my business cards, I knew that emphasizing the gears (or one gear as it would turn out to be) would compliment my logo. It would also make a statement about my work process, which I touched on in my previous blog article, Logo Design Case Study: Brainwerx Design.

I wanted my potential customers to have an "interactive feel" to the card and "moving the gear" (opening the card to reveal my contact information) would convey that feeling. For this to work properly, I had to keep the gear graphic to a specific size so that the information below would still be at a legible font size. Doing this would keep the logo on the front of the card, smaller than most start up companies would care for. Many companies would rather have their logo or company name as large as possible. That's part of marketing and advertising. I wanted my customers to "feel" what my work is about. That's branding.



Now, there are hundreds of ways that I could have dealt with the main gear graphic in the front of my business card. I could have used metallic inks, foils, even casting actual metal, but all those options are quite expensive. Anyone that has ever created their own business cards and wanted to do a custom die cut (the use of a metal template to cut away a specific shape) has found out that this is a very expensive process. So what's my big cost cutting secret? That's simple - having a very steady hand.

When I had decided to treat the gear graphic as a die cut, I knew that I could do the cut on my own for a very low cost. I bought a 1/4" hole punch, a 1/2" hole punch and very sharp X-ACTO knife, all for approximately $20.00. Whenever I have some free time, I sit down in front of the television and cut and hole punch the cards. I've never thought of it as a tedious project since I enjoy being constructive away from my computer. Plus it reminds me of my final semester at the Art Institute of Houston, preparing my final portfolio presentation.


 Pete C.

Brainwerx Design

If you liked this article you may also enjoy: 

Looking for a "Creative" advertising agency,  Marketing your business starts with a Marketable Name

Logo Design Case Study: Brainwerx Design

In mid, 2010 I created Brainwerx Design as a way to market myself as a freelance graphic designer. Truly creative designers spend hours upon hours sketching the perfect logo for themselves or their clients. I do the same...usually. When designing a logo, I normally do not pay attention to my first few sketches. I consider those to be a starting point and know that they will lead to something greater. Those first ideas have so much room for improvement. Even after you settle on a concept, it can still be developed so much further.

Although I had sketched out several different logo ideas, I kept coming back to one of my first concepts, the design that you see in this blog post. Why would I do that? Well, allow me to refer to one of my previous articles (Looking for a "Creative" advertising agency) where I wrote: "Advertising agencies, design firms and freelance designers need to see themselves as their potential customers see them. They need to be aware of the market they are in, and market themselves accordingly." That's the key... market yourself accordingly.

I live and work in the very southern tip of Texas. For over a century the economy in this region has been well behind the rest of the US. It has only been in the past 25 years that there has been an explosion (revolt?) of high school graduates going on to graduate from college. And only in these past 10 years, has this area begun to grow to the metropolis that everyone knew it had the potential to become. Don't get me wrong, we have made great strides here. We have upscale boutiques, interior designers, etc., but I strongly believe that I could not successfully market myself in this area as an upscale graphic design service. Therefore, I could not use a logo that was too abstract. What I needed was something that was clever, creative and instantly memorable.

The image of the head profile with gears lends itself well to the Brainwerx Design name. They both emphasize the creative process. Aside from the final artwork that I produce for my clients, the "process" is what I want them to understand and hope come to appreciate. I want my clients to see that I create new images and not simply copy-and-paste objects onto a template. I custom create their logos, websites, advertisements, etc. I actually think about their business and their branding efforts.

Pete C.

Brainwerx Design

If you liked this article you may also enjoy: 

Looking for a "Creative" advertising agency,  Logo Design Case Study: Arriba! Mexican Insurance

Logo Design Case Study: Arriba! Mexican Insurance

In 2004, I was asked to create a logo for a new company named Arriba! Mexican Insurance. The company provides travel auto insurance for those driving across the border into Mexico. The president of the company did not have a preference over which type or style of logo I was to create, and was given free reign to come up with the design concept.

There are three basic types of logos: Iconic, like the apple on my Mac; Logotype, like the stylized text used by Disney; and combination marks, like the text “McDonald’s” used together with the symbol of the golden arches.

I began to research this insurance niche and found that the majority of the companies that deal solely with Mexico auto insurance only use plain text to identify themselves. A few companies use clip art images along with their names, but there were less than five Mexico auto insurance companies that had an actual logo. Out of those companies, there was only one that had built an actual brand. That's what I was shooting for. I wanted to make sure that I created something that was more than just a logo. I wanted to give the company a design that could easily become the first step in developing a brand.

Idea is too corporate/Americanized

With a name like "Arriba!", I knew that I could create a fun, loose logo design. I began concentrating my sketches on more abstract designs, but did stray a bit to more “corporate” looking ideas. At one of my stopping points, I automatically discarded anything that looked too “corporate” and especially the ones that looked to "Americanized." This logo had to work beyond certain borders, just like the product.

When I went back to do more research, I saw that there was a large increase in Mexico insurance companies over the previous 2 years. This information certainly got me thinking in a different light. Arriba! had to jump into the market and establish themselves very quickly. With that in mind, I needed to create a logo design that was less “abstract” and more "in your face." The logo also had to be more versatile, something that could go from a combination mark, to a bold icon.

Not bold enough

I started to work on a topsy-turvey design that I had previously sketched, but was convinced that it would not be bold enough for this project. However, I had incorporated a jumping exclamation mark into that design and felt that I had hit a key point. The exclamation mark would either make this logo, or open the door to the final concept.

Needs further developing

After several revisions, I put aside the idea to work on a different concept. I started working with the letter "A." I drew one sketch that showed the exclamation point coming out of the letter. This led me to draw a silhouette figure at the top of the letter and having it "hold" the exclamation mark, using the "A" as the legs of the figure. I felt that I had reached another key point towards the final logo concept. I further developed the figure holding the exclamation mark toward the audience. After several revisions, I went back to the topsy-turvy text idea, made it more legible, and added the figure.

On December of 2004, I was presented with a gold advertisement award by the Valley Advertising Federation, a division of the American Advertising Federation, for my Arriba! Mexican Insurance logo design.

Pete C.
Brainwerx Design

Gap's new logo (for a week)

On Monday, October 4th, Gap quietly unveiled a new logo design which stirred many harsh criticisms. 
 

Gap’s iconic “old” logo featured a blue square containing the company’s name in all caps. The “new” logo shows a small gradated blue box over the top right side of the name. Graphic designers and Creatives worldwide tore apart this new look. One of the most common expressions was that the new GAP logo looked like it was taken straight out of a clip-art gallery. 

Within 24 hours of the unveiling, a Twitter account (@gaplogo) was created in hopes of obtaining new followers. This is a parody account, from the new logo’s point-of-view, being used as crowd control and even to backlash at posted comments. It’s first Tweet being: "I have feelings too, jerks."

Not to be outdone, the old GAP logo created an account (@OldGapLogo) and posted: “In the middle of the night, I was moved to a large windowless conference room filled with Old Navy mannequins. Send help now.”

To pour more fuel into the fire, posted on GAP’s official Facebook page on Oct. 6th was:

Thanks for everyone's input on the new logo! We've had the same logo for 20+ years, and this is just one of the things we're changing. We know this logo created a lot of buzz and we're thrilled to see passionate debates unfolding! So much so we're asking you to share your designs. We love our version, but we'd like to see other ideas. Stay tuned for details in the next few days on this crowd sourcing project.

Gap’s fan page was instantly filled with angry comments, such as:

“It looks like a cheap gas station logo... or better yet something Wal-mart would change to.”

“You want a new logo? Quit asking for free designs (and I pity the designers who fell for this and sent serious submissions) and hire a professional designer/firm to create one for you. Your "crowdsourcing" ploy is nothing short of SPEC work, and completely disregards the contributions that designers have to business and culture.”

“…they are just trying to get people to waste there time on creating a "free" logo and this whole crappy new logo design is just a major publicity stunt. Everyone’s talking about it, mission accomplished GAP.”

On Oct. 7, 2010, president of Gap North America, Marka Hansen, sent out a press release stating: "... Our brand and our clothes are changing and rethinking our logo is part of aligning with that. We want our customers to take notice of Gap and see what it stands for today. We chose this design as it's more contemporary and current. It honors our heritage through the blue box while still taking it forward..." (Read full article here.)

On Monday, Oct. 11th just one week after launching it's new logo, GAP Inc scrapped the design after reading over 2,000 negative comments on its Facebook page. It became painfully clear to Hansen that GAP Inc had missed an opportunity to engage with the online community.

When asked about the reinstatement, on Twitter, the original GAP logo modestly commented: "I think good design has prevailed. That makes me (and many others) happy."

From the start, I had hope that this was all just one big hoax to get free publicity. Companies spend millions (and billions) of dollars throughout their lifetime in branding efforts to expose their logos worldwide. Would GAP really throw all that away? In this manner and with this "new" design? Many companies out there, like Coca-Cola, have been able to maintain their brand for well over 20 years without changing their logos.

It’s interesting to me, how such a small word and a blue square have come to effect so many. It goes to show how color, size, placement, fonts and type styles affect us as consumers and brand followers. And how two, seemingly simple elements can portray the “feel” of young-middle-class-socialites, or of  generic-MS Word-template.

Although there are many talented graphic designers that are struggling for recognition or to land a job at a reputable advertising agency, crowd-sourcing is not the answer. I've seen many of the design work in these websites and can say that crowd-sourcing breeds mediocrity. It is nearly impossible for a talented designer to submit  unique, creative designs, when 95% of all submissions are sent out to every single job posting that fits it's criteria, without changing any elements other than the company's name. The majority of designers in crowd-sourcing websites are not creating new and unique designs for their potential customers, they are creating templates. And no company should pay an extraordinary amount of money for a design that is going to be sold over and over again, without their knowledge.

-Pete C.

Brainwerx Design

Marketing your business starts with a Marketable Name

Every organization in the world goes by one name or another. Now, you can call your company "AAA Tax Services" and still be able to market you company’s name; however, the majority of your marketing plan will be based on phone book advertising and promotional calendars. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this. Many companies do well by doing just that, but when it comes time to expand your business and market it creatively, you'll already be limited by your company's name.
 
For the past 15 years I've used the name PC Graffix whenever I was marketing myself for freelance graphic design work.  I thought it was clever. "PC" stood for the letters of my initials, as well as for personal computer (no, it does not stand for a Windows based computer). And "Graffix" as in graphics but with the subliminal "fix," to convey that I could fix my potential clients’ advertising needs.

As clever as I thought the name was, I kept thinking that it was too limiting. Of course potential clients would know that I was a graphic designer, but would they make the connection to website design? What about laying out entire books? Yes, this was a long time ago and the public has come a long way in understanding the capabilities of a graphics designer. However, I was never completely convinced that I had chosen the proper name for myself, but I stuck with it because I had an emotional connection to it.

Often, choosing a company's name is based on emotional attachments, especially for small businesses. A friend of mine once told me that there should be a story behind a company's name, but I personally don't agree with this. Above all, I believe that a company's name should be memorable. No one will ever know the story behind your company’s name (besides your friends and family), if they can't remember it. At least until you make it really big and the media is beating down your door, wanting to tell your story.

Just recently I decided to “retire” PC Graffix and market myself as Brainwerx Design. The main reason for doing this is because I felt the new name was less limiting than the previous one. Just like before, I thought the name was clever but more importantly, I felt that potential clients would easily remember it. And a simple word change, from Graffix to Design, instantly broadens the ability to market the name. There was absolutely no story behind the name, no emotional attachment to it either.  All "Brainwerx" really says about me is that I'm "cerebral." It says something about my thought process when I design logos or websites. But that's not much of a "story," is it?

In my professional opinion, when it comes time to choose your own company’s name, consider how well your potential customers will be able to recall the name after just a few times of being exposed to it. Pick out a name that will broaden your marketing abilities, even if you don’t have the capability to explore every avenue from the start. It would be ideal if the name you chose for your company happens to tell your entire story, or just happens to make an emotional connection that will drive you to make your company succeed.  If it doesn’t, do not let a name hinder your business before it even starts.

Pete C.
Brainwerx Design

Brainwerx Design website has gone live!

Hello!

My professional on-line portfolio, www.brainwerxdesign.com, is now alive and kicking. This portfolio features just a few of the graphic designs, logos, illustrations and advertisements that I've created over the years.

I have 15 years experience in branding and logo design, along with an extensive background in marketing, advertising and website design.

Some of the graphic design work you'll see in my website has been honored with advertisement awards by the Valley Advertising Federation, a division of the American Advertising Federation, and other noteworthy organizations.

Please, feel free to comment on any of the graphic design work this portfolio contains.

Also, be sure to follow this blog, dedicated to all areas of graphic design and advertising. Here, I'll be posting my design work and sketches, as well as feature others' work in my "Wish I'd Done That!" post. Stay tuned in for graphic design tips, tidbits and inspiration!


Thank you,
Pete C.
www.brainwerxdesign.com

My website has been delayed!

I was hoping to get my website up and running this weekend, but it looks like it's going to take me a bit longer. I've been extremely busy working on several projects.

 Keep checking www.brainwerxdesign.com, I'm not too far from finishing my professional graphic design portfolio.

Brainwerx Design Blog Coming Soon!

Hello, I'll be starting a new blog soon. My blog will be dedicated to all areas of graphic design. I have 15 years experience as a graphic designer working in advertising agencies, sign shops, newspapers and magazines.

My new website will go live within the next two weeks, so be sure to check out www.brainwerxdesign.com and follow this blog for tips, tidbits and inspiration!