Company’s work hard to get their product out there and to become recognizable with the public.  They are seeking that recognition to be a good thing and not a bad thing.  They want them to be able to recognize what their product is with just the logo.  Consider if I mention a blue bird, you’d automatically think of Twitter.  Because they’ve branded themselves in such a way that you know them by their logo.

 

 

Ok, so it may not be the logo, it may be the taste of the product.  Coke found this challenge when they had everyone addicted to the old brand and then brought in the ‘new’ brand and it flopped.  Everyone wasn’t as impressed with their new formula as Coke was.  It didn’t take them long to figure out what they had mad a major mistake, were losing sales and went back to their old formula and I dare say with tails between their legs.

 

 

The latest of these to dive into a new style is Instagram.  They took their product from a warm and toasty feeling to one of ‘slam ya in the face, know that I’m here’ style.  Is that a good thing?  It’s questionable at best.  Person after person is most unhappy about what they’ve done.  I had trouble even finding their platform because of it, no doubt many others did too.  So the question is was it a good thing.  With Facebook being their parent company, it’s not likely that they will change and go back to the old format.   After all, Facebook has the reputation for not caring what it’s users think, want or need.

 

 

Will the change in logo make a difference in the long run for Instagram?  Well, that still remains to be seen, but if the initial outburst is any indication, Facebook made a major mistake on this one.   Here are some companies that didn’t handle this transition well in 2015: Lenovo, Verizon, CBS Sports, TBS, Quest Diagnostics, Best Western, “M”, Daimler and Merck.

It’s Not All Bad!

If your company is considering changing its Logo, consider these companies that made that change successful in 2015: IHOP, OpenTable,  Turner, Sabarro, Emerald, The Ritz-Carlton, Google Ventures, Johnnie Walker, Spike and Google.

The bottom line is to make sure that you have a group of people around you that can give you honest feedback as to if it’s a good thing.  Take it to the social media platform, throw them a bone (free shirt, gift certificate or some other company product) and see what people will think of your new logo.  If there’s a resounding outcry then it’s probably not something that you’re going to want to change to.  If on the other hand it’s positive, then you’re making a good move.  And remember, changing your logo isn’t mandatory.