Identity Concept Workshop

To help coming up with good ideas and brands for the Info- Kits that we have to produce, we went into looking at Concepts.

Preparatory Task:

We needed to find 5 examples of a logo or branding, each of them being different from the others. They need to be brought in or printed off in colour in order to present it to a group of people.

I wanted to use examples that I could find myself rather than things I could easily find on the Internet so that I would be able to see how they are used in real life and how effective the brand/identity is.

Found Logo's and Brands

I found:

• Paul's Boutique Label
• Coca Cola Bottle Label
• Impericon Clothing Tote Bag
• Aldi Guide
• Queenie's Cafe Business Card

For the session, we had to present the logos and brands that we had found and have a discussion with the rest of the group about them. I was in group 6.

Joe's Brands and Logos

Joe's Brands and Logos:

Tate and Lyle:

• Long stems and squares to produce the typeface- Connotes sugar canes and sugar cubes
• Typeface could be a Military Stamp like on bags of sugar brought over to the country
• Colour choice reflective of the type of sugar 

Nutella:

• Inoffensive sans serif font- reflective of modernity style
• Red and Black colour choice- black 'n' draws attention to the use of nuts

Herschel:

• Italicised slant used alongside the handwritten style to produce a smart and professional aesthetic

Monster Colours:

• Icon and Name together- don't seem to connect together
• Typeface has slanted serifs- like the marker itself has been used to write the name of the product

JD:

• Minimal and Slick- trying to get away from the 'chav' reputation, trying to get more fashionable

Will's Brands and Logos

Will's Brands and Logos

Burger Factory:

• Textured background gives homemade, rustic appeal
• Emphasis on the word 'Burger'- encourages the advertisement of the product
• Cog relates to factory name connotation- assembling, custom makes and bespoke- putting the burger first

Southern Comfort:

• Heritage of company and western aesthetic
• French influence due to New Orleans influx
• Looks like a belt buckle/ bar signage
• Cream and Red colour scheme- signifier for drink but warmer feel

Stussy:

• Signature of the company owner gives it a personal touch

D & A D:

• Layout and Placement of letterforms- 3D approach
• Connotes different directions and disciplines that are encouraged within the competitions

The Mule:

• Block and script font with stamp- rustic appeal and gourmet
• Use of language choice 'Public House'- attracting a higher class of consumer 

Issy's Brands and Logos

Issy's Brands and Logos

Snorkey's:

• 'S' makes for the fish image shape
• Blue and white dusky colour scheme- connotes the cold iciness of the sea

Down Under Steak Company:

• Country depicted by steak image- keeps the heritage of the company strong within the identity of the brand
• Capital letters suggest a loud tone of voice- brand name consistent with the identity of the country being used

Seafactor:

• Logo of aeroplane and scissors- integration of the imagery to make the logo
• Does exactly what it says on the tin- shows the purpose of the company instantly

Academy:

• The way that the 'A' and the 'Y' are symmetrical links them together- the use of symmetry in the logo is reflective of this

Trivelent:

• The term means a set of 3 electrons which are connected- Triangles are all connected together acting like electrons

Sam's Brands and Logos

Sam's Brands and Logo

Sony Vaio:

• Analog and Digital waves- the integration of audio and video in one
• Futuristic impression- using an illustrative approach to typeface to give the look of an electronic, digital look

Zulu Safari:

• African Missionary for a tribe- the use of the letterforms give the impression of an African pattern shape
• The 'z' and 's' look like 2 snakes

More 4:

• Colour scheme revitalises the brand identity
• Aimed to appeal to a younger audience (teens to 30) 

Museum of London:

• Bright colours and clear typeface to encourage families and tourists
• Shapes and colour is to show how London has expanded over the years
• Shapes are reminiscent of a geographic map- highlighting how London has developed over the years showing how the Museum doesn't just cater to learning about the history

Malen Nach Zahlen:

• Icon includes all 3 first letters- interchangeable identity

Rinesh's Brands and Logos

Rinesh's Brands and Logos

The Hundreds:

• Simple illustration for a logo- makes for a quirky yet iconic logo
• Gives the impression of being quite fun and not too serious when approaching fashion design
• Black and White- bold 

Supreme:

• Barbara Kruger inspired- recognisable
• Simple and strong- colours stand out

Fed Ex:

• Incorporation of the arrow into the typeface- infers the companies purpose with the corporate design- reflection in aesthetic
• Timeless logo despite any changes to the colour

Gp:

• Personal brand of graphic designer- shows the designers work style 
• Dissection of letters- use of apostrophes is simple yet clever

Lightbox Theatre:

• Simple design yet complex- has a lot of connotation
• Reflective of the company name as well as the purpose of the company
• Emphasis within the logo due to the white and black colour scheme

My Brands and Logos

My Brands and Logos

Coca Cola:

• 'Spencerian Script' font gives a handwritten aesthetic
• Red colour on white- stands out and makes the consumer feel thirsty- 

Paul's Boutique:

• Capital letters suggest boldness and a loud tone of voice
• Gold colour could suggest quality or brashness depending on the audience

Queenie's:

• Illustrative, hand-drawn style logo gives the impression of being intimate, quaint and homely
• Typeface and logo is slightly feminine- friendly
• Use of crown on the coffee- adds personality and character to the brand- makes it individual

ALDI:

• Rectangular shapes suggests rigidity and structure- uncompromising
• Block capitals suggests strength and efficiency

Impiricon:

• Typeface is metallic, industrial and sharp- suggests power and strength
• Lion roaring is quite masculine- a motif of dominance
• Black and white colour scheme- bold and overwhelming

Adam's Brands and Logos

Adam's Brands and Logos

Marks and Spencer:

• Lots of negative space and room between the letterforms- makes the letters seem larger
• Thin typeface designed to modernise the brand of the company 

Ty Teddies:

• Bubble writing choice of typeface is Childish and inoffensive
• Audience towards younger children and being family friendly

BBC Radio 3:

• '3' reflective of sheet music- infers the purpose of the radio station
• Appeal to an older audience

Boots:

• Blue and white colour scheme gives the feel of being towards healthcare and medicinal
• Circle shape is reminiscent of a pill, vitamin or supplement

Oak Furnitureland:

• Acorn's used to depict wood- natural, organic resource intended to give impression of products to consumer

Study Task:

From the logos and brands that we had all collected, we have to find out more information on one or more of the logos, either your own or of someone else's, to understand the design choices and concepts for the brand. We have to include our first reactions to the brand to see whether the design was successful. The first reactions can be seen from the group discussion notes I have listed.

Fed Ex:

From my first reaction, the Fed Ex logo comes across as quite business-like and job-focused due to the use of sans serif letters and how close together they are, making it appeal as it seems like a timeless brand.

"Fed Ex" (1999) by Landor Associates

Landor Associates (1999) "Fed Ex" [Internet] Available from http://landor.com/#!/work/case-studies/fedex/ (Accessed 10th October 2013)

The intention behind the Fed Ex brand was to convay a sense of speed and accuracy which was to reflect the company promise of always delivering on time. The original name of the company was 'Federal Express' but Landor decided to shorten this to make the brand appear modern, innovative and technologically savvy. The typeface is an original, designed specifically for Fed Ex, combining a mixture of Univers and Futura in order to get the necessary spacing and shaping needed to include a hidden arrow icon within the positive spacing, adding emphasis onto the companies direction and urgency as well as adding consistency. Orange and Purple were original colour choices, however, this has become inter-changable over the years to emphasis different areas of the company.

I think the brand for Fed Ex is successful as the intention of Landor Associates and thier design reflects the company values of Fed Ex which comes across as being in a strong position in a global market due to the connotations of speed and efficiency within the design choices.

Museum of London:

My first reaction to the Museum of London logo is that it is directed towards families and child friendly due to the colour choices as they seem quite strong and overlap each other. It doesn't seem to take itself seriously therefore coming across as somewhere fun to explore.

"Museum of London" (2008) by Coley Porter Bell

Coley Porter Bell (2008) "Museum of London" [Internet] Available from  http://www.cpb.co.uk/museum-of-london/ (Accessed 10th October 2013)

The idea of the shaping behind the logo is to resemble a thumbprint to highlight the way that London has made a mark on the world and how the people of London have made their mark on how London is today. The layered map geographically represents the ever-changing nature of the city, visually showing its past, present and future physical forms as well as the layers of heritage, tradition and history  surrounding London. The fact that the logo is bold and distinctive as an identity is to present the city as a living entity which reflects the diversity, ambitions and scope of the capital. The logo type is used to reference the iconic street signage and underground typefaces around London, making it clear and easy to read for tourists.

In a way, the logo is unsuccessful because at first, it isn't very clear as to what the design is suppose to be- it is only when you research into the background choices for the design do you start to realise what it is. Despite that, the actual concept is interesting and thought out but could have maybe executed in a different way so it was a bit clearer.
                          
Coca Cola:

My reaction for the logo for Coca Cola is that it is quite outdated in regards to the appearance of the typeface yet it has never changed so the consumer automatically thinks of Coca Cola.

"Coca Cola Logo" (1886-2012) by Frank M Robinson

Coca Cola (2010) "The History of the Coca Cola Logo" [Internet] Available from http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/125/history-of-coca-cola-logo.html (Accessed 10th October 2013)

The name 'Coca Cola' came about after deciding that, as a marketing and advertising ploy, the use of having 2 C's together would look visibly attractive. In regards to the choice of typeface, experimentation was carried out in different ways, with the 'Spencerian Script' chosen due to the way that it looked elaborate and fancy, with it also a reference to the history and heritage of the brand as the font was a popular characteristic to traditional writings. It wasn't until later on that the red and white colour combination came into use. Red is usually associated with the psychological reaction that the body is hunger or thirsty whenever it is seen to encourage people to buy the product. The white line or swirl underlining the brand name was introduced to highlight the contours of the product bottle.

This logo has been successful as it is an internationally recognised brand identity which is unique to Coca Cola. The fact that it has updated over the years whilst keeping its tradition is the main intention of the brand so it is modern.

Southern Comfort:

My first reaction to the brand is that it is quite traditional and classy due to the details added to the design. It seems to be appealing to an older, more mature audience due to the aesthetic of the brand.

"Southern Comfort" (2013) by Design Cue

Design Cue (2013) "Southern Comfort" [Internet] Available from http://www.designcue.com/work/southern-comfort-rebrand/ (Accessed 10th October 2013)

The logo is quite bold and confident to highlight the pureness of the alcohol and the premium quality of the company. The design of the logo is intended to reflect the heritage of New Orleans and the familiarity that consumers already have, but making it more modern in order to make it more relevant to a current consumer market. The choice of shape for the label is quite unusual yet it is to accentuate the shape of the products bottle. Added elements of iconography refer to the city of New Orleans. The choice of cream, gold and red as a colour scheme adds a richness and genuine authenticity to the product.

The logo is successful in regards to showing the heritage and tradition behind the company, keeping it honest and authentic whilst keeping the familiarity and commercialism of the traditional logo presentations and design.