Visual Thought is 400 Times Faster Than Verbal – What is Your Logo Saying?
The brain's response to imagery is complex and instantaneous. Logos have never been more important with the amount of online information – not to mention external advertising - we wade through daily. Your social media icon has to say a lot in a very small space. To put it into some perspective, the Coca Cola logo is recognized by 94% of the world's population. Online, users have been measured making aesthetic decisions about their overall impression of a website in as little as 1/20th of a second.1 This rapid processing is known as affected or visceral response, and is related to the part of the brain that governs the basic instincts of sex, food, fear, etc. In short, it tells you if something is good or bad – extremely fast.
I believe as part of a thorough branding process, the investigation of the essence, personality, and positioning of a company injects the process of graphic design with subtleties that can provide longer term (reflective) processing for additional meaning and memorability. So a ‘smart' logo and a web or app home page at first glance should communicate what type of product or service you are offering, and upon further examination, should have some symbolism or subtlety that adds value through meaning. Colour and typography are crucial, but it is the art of tying all of these together that makes design a very specific and complex skill – it is first and foremost an intellectual process.
What is the difference between a logo and a corporate identity and a brand identity?
Although these terms are often used interchangeably, they mean different things. A logo is short for ‘logotype’ and refers to the combination of a typographic style with or without a symbol. While Nike has a very memorable ‘logo’ that now is recognizable even without its brand name, it has taken many years and a great deal of marketing to make it so. What it stands for as a brand is understood in large part because of that outstanding advertising, but also the products themselves.
A corporate identity is the process of designing the logo to work in a variety of applications from signage to vehicle livery to uniforms, etc. It is part of a lengthier process to plan and map out the company’s assets so that the identity is consistent whatever the media.
A brand identity is a larger scope wherein the company’s very essence and meaning for existence is explained and documented with guidelines for use in not only visual format, but also social media, public relations, etc. with examples of imagery type and the written ‘voice.’
Gitte Lindgaard, Behaviour and Information Technology.