Name: The hidden meanings tucked inside famous logos | BBC Ideas
Uploaded: 2020-10-27T19:55:16.000Z
Duration: 4 min 39 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

from the toothpaste we use in the morning,

most of the products we see and use are branded with some form

Logos aren't just a label that shows who's responsible

people often choose products based on their perceived value

Think of the celebrity who drives an Aston Martin instead of say,

Skoda has often been ranked Car of the Year in many European countries

and delivers much better mileage at one tenth of the price.

But it's Aston Martin's identity that creates images of luxury and status

and that is what usually clinches the sale.

and the environment in which the logo is displayed.

that draw attention to a brand name on its own.

The type design often gets a custom twist

to capture the essence of what the brand does

That could be the loose, flowing feel of Cadbury's or Coca Cola

or the more traditional vibe of The New York Times

Visual tricks such as the use of negative space

can be applied to add little design magic.

An example is the hidden FedEx arrow that conveys direction and movement.

that are usually initials of longer names.

These are about turning a mouthful into something

Another form a logo can take is that of a graphic symbol.

Still representing the core of a brand's service,

it's often used where space is at a premium -

or that little area beside a website URL.

anything else becomes almost unnecessary.

Symbols are particularly well suited for incorporating subtle messages

that act as talking points and heighten memorability.

The bear in the Toblerone logo is one example -

it adds meaning because the bear relates to an old coat of arms

that represents the town where the Toblerone chocolate

It takes its meaning from the entity it represents

This is why, when logos first enter the world,

the mark gets filled with every association people have

whether that's positive, negative or something in between.

That's exactly how religious symbols work.

but it's about what those shapes have come to represent

in the minds of the people who are looking at them.

Another form of logo is that of a combination mark -

essentially a wordmark and symbol together.

This lets you communicate messages in a slightly different way.

Look at how the Amazon logo has it all from A to Z

and even adds a little smile into the mix.

So how can you tell a good logo from bad?

I judge the strength of an idea on the following criteria -

By appropriate I mean the design needs to be relevant

in shape and form to the client in question.

For example, a logo for a toy maker may need to be fun

or a logo for a car racing team may need to appear sleek and dynamic.

By simple I mean that the design can't say too much.

so it's adaptable enough for use in all applications

from on a billboard or the side of the building

to a social media avatar or a website favicon.

By memorable I mean that the design also needs to be distinctive -

A good way of testing this is to describe the design to someone

and see if they can sketch a fairly accurate likeness.

Some of my favourite logos aren't particularly well-known

but they've stuck with me because they all share those same traits.

Telling a relevant story with simplicity and distinction.