Brandmark Creation: New (revolution) or Redesign (evolution)?
Few brands enter adulthood with the same face they started life with. Financial pressure and budget constraints at the birth of a brand often do not allow for the use of a professional designer. A friend or relative or somebody artistic (most of the time with no skills except art as a subject at school) is given the task of creating a brand (designing a logo). Bad designers, the personal taste and interference of a non-designer ("I want to show it to my wife/PA and ask her opinion") also cause mistakes along the way.
Uninteresting, rigid and dull shapes such as squares, circles and impractical long, thin horizontal or vertical formats are often a problem. The size of the name in relation to other graphic elements and pay-off lines or slogan might be out of kilter. Taste, trends and fashions change, and so may the elements of your branding.
A type design in vogue 10 years ago may have fallen from grace since; one of the dangers of using type which have been overused and hence become tired and passe. A classic type design or, better still, a type designed for your brand is much better. It does not date, is unique and gives your brandmark some insulation against mercurial fads.
There is nothing wrong with correcting and refining the visual elements to stay in line with the brand positioning, but do it in moderation. Evolve your brandmark and position it for tomorrow to avoid unnecessary changes. Subtle changes are not easily noticed and a facelift is sometimes welcomed, whereas a revolution could cost your brand its life.
Sure, if the brandmark reflects a dated, old-fashioned image, the best time to update it is right now. The longer you wait, the more it will cost, and the more you will speak with a forked tongue. But do understand the cost implications.
Things have to be really awful to justify a revolution; like a nuclear power station that had a prompt reactivity excursion. A revolution is also bloody and costly because you will have to start from the beginning, from scratch. Kill the old brand and create a new brand. That means spending all that money, time and effort all over again, and then some more. This all done while your competitor is taking advantage of your self-imposed handicap. Remember Lenin and Stalin? Be warned, you might be a casualty of your own revolution.
