Nearly 75% of consumers instantly recognize a brand from its logo. That gives you a strong reason to reevaluate your logo design. With this, you can be sure that it is the best your brand can have. But how do you know if you need to revisit your logo design? In other words, how do you know that it is time to invest in contemporary logos?

Signs That Your Old Logo Is Craving for a Change 

Ask yourself the following questions and if you answer “yes” to one or more of these, it means that it is time to spend on logo redesign.

1. Is there too much visual clutter? 

Visual clutter often misleads viewers and it either does not convey the message at all or conveys the wrong message. You would not want either of these to happen. Considering the hundreds of dollars you spend on your logo and the hundreds of locations where you place these logos. 

Logo designs that look crowded will not be easy on the viewer’s eyes. So a cleaner logo that focuses on your brand name would be a better alternative. 

2. Do you have a very old logo? 

The logo design you created when you launched the business would have been based on the sentiments of the customers back then. But sentiments associated with a brand change with time. So, there are chances of the logo design looking cliched or outdated. 

And as your business grew, you would have gained new customers. And your old customers would have become more tech-savvy. They will also have hundreds of fresh-looking logos and interactive designs in front of them. Or sometimes, it could be because you now offer a whole lot of new services and products. 

Will your old logo still make the same impact on them now as it did several years ago? The chances are pretty low. So, consider a logo redesign if you have not changed your logo the slightest bit over the past years.  

3. Is your logo in line with social media design trends? 

Your brand’s graphic designs might all be created separately. But they are not individual entities. They do not have much value on their own either. The key is to create graphic designs that go well together and help create your brand’s image. 

Your logo is no exception to this rule. There are chances that your logo was designed when your brand’s digital presence was almost zero. Or when social media marketing was not a priority. If that is the case, then you should reevaluate your logo design. You need to be sure if it will look good on your business’s social media pages.

Kimp tip: From the color to fonts, every aspect of your design looks different on social media than it does on print ads. An outdated design makes your brand look dull. In the highly-competitive social media realm, you need not just your ad but also your logo, the face of your brand, to shine. So, if the last time you changed your logo design was before the social media era, now is a good time to give it a new look. 

Wondering how to create a social media-ready logo design for your brand? Get in touch with Kimp and kickstart your logo redesigning project right away. 

4. Does your logo look as refined as your brand? 

When you launch your business you might have an idea of how your brand would be. In the enthusiasm of launching it, you might create a logo that looks seemingly fun and lively. But as your brand matures and grows into an authoritative name in the field, will this logo still reflect your brand’s persona and position in the market? Probably not. 

The logo redesign by the fashion brand FatFace shows how a logo change will support your brand’s drift towards new strategies. In the beginning, this brand was about funky fashion merchandise. But now the brand focuses more on several mature aspects like the use of environment-friendly fabric in its clothes. The new and refined logo design clearly resonates with this change in the brand’s personality. 

An All-new Design Vs. Retouches to the Existing One

Your brand name and logo are the two main elements with which people recognize your brand. So, dropping the old logo altogether and picking a design that looks nothing like the old one does come with a few cons. You do not want to come up with a design that your old customers do not resonate with.

Considering these risks, the following are situations where you might find a whole new logo to be a better option than a retouched old one. 

• If there has been a recent merger you would need a new logo that incorporates the best elements of both the brands. 
• When your business expands globally. As a result, you might feel that your old logo would not be relevant to the global audience. In that case, a fresh new design is what you need. 
• Has your business taken a new direction? In that case, you might feel that the old one is not in line with what your business currently does. So, go ahead with a new and optimized logo design. 
• If your logo has been subject to criticism for some controversial interpretations. Or if the brand name is changed due to various reasons then a fully new logo will do the trick.

For example, one of the brands of Quaker Oats that formerly went by the name Aunt Jemima was criticized for being racially stereotypical. And so it was rebranded as Pearl Milling Company with a whole new logo as well. 

Unless there are such pressing reasons to go for a whole new logo design try to incorporate some of the visual elements from your logo so that you do not lose your existing customers. 

Tips to Refresh an Old Logo Without Losing Brand Recognition 

Sometimes brands become major players in their industry or people get too attached to the logos of these brands. So, changing the whole thing means hurting the sentiments of the loyal audience. But then you cannot ignore the design trends altogether or your logo will end up looking outdated. 

So, what can you do? You can simply redesign the old one. For this, identify all the elements that make the strongest connection with your audience. 

If you have not already read the pulse of your audience you can simply conduct a quick survey through your email campaigns. Or use your social media pages. With these insights, pick out the logo elements to retain. That will be much better than working merely based on assumptions. 

The key is to refresh your logo without losing your audience. Here’s how you can work on your current logo and explore the merits of contemporary logos.

1. Retain the color scheme 

Above is the image of the logo transitions of the popular coffee and doughnut company, Dunkin (formerly Dunkin Donuts). The recent logo was redesigned from the old one dropping “Donuts” and the coffee symbol. This rebranding was because the brand scaled and now caters to more than just coffee and donuts. When you compare the logo designs, what do you notice? The brand has retained the color scheme and the typeface. As a result, the logo is instantly recognizable though it has changed. 

Kimp tip: The color of your logo can make or break the look and feel of it. A thorough understanding of color psychology and analyzing what the color means in the geographic region you wish to target can all provide useful cues in choosing your logo color. 

Unsure about the right colors that will resonate with your brand’s character? Talk to the Kimp team about the nuances of logo design for your brand. 

2. Only change the problematic areas 

Only updating the actual elements that called for the logo redesign decision, while leaving everything else untouched, will be the easiest way to change your logo.  

When Amazon had to refresh its logo over the controversial comparison of its logo design to the face of Adolf Hitler, it simply changed the shape of the blue tape at the top while retaining everything else. The design change was so subtle that some users hardly noticed the change but still, the brand changed its logo and came out of the controversy. 

3. Reuse the typeface 

When you change your logo because you want to adapt to the design trends of using flat logos or because you want to improve the visibility of your logo over different backgrounds in social media posts, you can retain the typeface and trim off the extra details that make the logo skeuomorphic. 

Rolling Stone Magazine switched to a new logo by removing the shadow detail and maintaining the typeface. 

Kimp tip: We can stress enough about the impact of typography in logo design. Every typeface and every font style within it has a different tone, a different style. You should be sure that this style matches your brand’s unique style. Only then your audience will be able to connect with your brand right from the first time they spot your logo. 

You can create stunning text-only logos by using the power of typography. Want to know how? Book a call with the Kimp Team today. 

4. Reuse a combination of two or more visual elements 

When you are skeptical about changing the logo, you can pick two or more elements like colors, fonts, symbols, or mascots in your logo and then combine them all into a whole new design. 

If you look at the different versions of Pizza Hut logos, the typeface, and overall design has changed significantly over the years. But the color scheme of red and black has been retained and the signature hat symbol has also been included making the logo more recognizable. 

Tips to Create a Whole New Logo Design for an Existing Brand 

Due to some unavoidable reasons if your brand is in a situation where you should scratch out the whole thing and start with a new logo, here’s what you can do to be sure that your customers still know that it is you-

Have a clear definition of the design objectives 

Changing your logo is a big step so an awareness of the ultimate goal is the first way to get the design right. You should create a clear design brief that outlines the core purpose of the logo change. 

For example, the new logo should align with your brand’s purpose or your portfolio of services, as you see in the above image. This will be a good objective to define for the logo design. Similarly, you can come up with specific goals for better designs. 

Compare your competition 

Whatever the reason behind the decision to change your logo, now that your business is getting its facelift, use it as an opportunity to identify where your business stands in the industry. Evaluate your competition and if a competitor’s logo has helped the business grow, you can take cues from the design trend adopted there. 

Use unique imagery in your logo to make your logo stand out. Look at the below logo design for example. 

Pick an old logo and build over it 

Sometimes if you do not know how successful a fully new design would be, you can reuse an old and more successful logo or some of the primary components from it. Doing this will strike the right chord with your old customers and the feeling of nostalgia it kindles will be good for your brand. It will also be a way to show that you embrace the roots of your business and appreciate consistency. 

MEC or Mountain Equipment Company recently showed how reusing an old logo can actually be a good facelift for the brand. The new logo is almost similar to the old one that existed between the 1970s and 2013 except for changes in the font and the subtle change in the company’s name. 

How to Approach Logo Redesigning for Your Business

Way back in 1998 when Google had its first solid logo, Sergey Brin, co-founder of the company used GIMP, a free graphics editor, to create the logo. Back then, the competition was less and this strategy might not have been scrutinized too much. 

But considering how competitive businesses are today and how small businesses are willing to spend around $500 for a logo design alone would show you why logo design is a critical part of your graphic design budget. If you need reliable support in designing your logo, you have the following choices. 

1. Work with an in-house graphic designer 

This is one of the first ideas that most businesses think of. But your expenses go beyond the designer’s payroll. You would need the right graphic design tools and their licenses. These might be hefty expenses for a company that is not involved in graphic design-related tasks. Outsourcing the logo design might be a more cost-effective decision. 

2. Work with a graphic designer 

Brands can now hire designers easily from freelance project sites. You will find designers for a one-off assignment as well. But, when you work with a freelance graphic designer it becomes difficult to gauge whether the work delivered is worth the price you pay. 

There are no industry standards when it comes to logo design prices and the costs vary based on the type of logo you need, how quickly you need it, and other aspects. So, your expenses might go beyond your budget. And if you want to go back to the designer for changes, there is no assurance about the designer’s availability. 

3. Work with a graphic design company  

When you work with freelance designers there is one small problem. After you receive the logo if you want to make small revisions to it, the chances of finding the same designer again might be less. But with a design firm, you can always go back for design changes, but based on the design contract the number of design revisions allowed would differ. Sometimes you might have to pay extra money for small changes in your logo design. 

But, at least you can make an extra payment and get the revisions done by the same company that originally designed the logo. Before you finalize the company for your logo design, you can also get a brief idea about the logo styles the company can design by looking into their portfolio. 

4. Work with graphic design subscription services  

With graphic design subscriptions, you get all the benefits of working with a logo design company plus the extra perks of having a majority of your graphic design requirements met at a flat rate. You will have predictable monthly bills for graphic design in place of different bills for logo design, social media graphics, and ad visuals. 

And with the same firm handling all your graphic designs you can also have your logo and other graphics fine-tuned to the same style so as to create a unique brand identity. 

So, if you have plans to work on your logo, pick one of the above options. Once you have the final draft before you freeze the design do look into our logo design checklist to be sure that you have created the ultimate brand emblem to strengthen your brand identity. 

Design Contemporary Logos For Your Brand With Kimp

A new logo for your brand can be that much-needed push in the competitive world of marketing. For a logo that shows customers your brand’s personality, a refreshing new design that will make your brand look good in both print and digital spaces, work with Kimp’s graphic designers. Sign up for a free trial now.