Logos Of The Top Companies Over Time And Brand Strategy

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Top brands change their look over time – take a look at the Microsoft, Apple, Coke, Amazon logo for just a few prominent examples.

Logos are one of the best way for a company to showcase their branding as well as to attract and familiarize potential customers with your brand. Logos represent a very short and decisive message to send to customers. This is what we stand for, this is what were about, and this is why you should remember our brand. The tough questions for many business owners and brands around the world is knowing when they got their brand right. Brands are always tinkering with their logo trying to make it as appealing as possible to their customer base.

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C+R research, a marketing research firm located in Chicago recently took the time to track logo evolution for some of the most iconic brands in the world to see if there was a direct correlation between logo changes and revenue for the brand. In doing so they uncovered some interesting trends that marketers and business owners can learn from.

A few of the more interesting notes from the research:

  • Microsoft grew its annual revenue by $73 billion on the back of a single logo between 1987 and 2012. They had previously changed the logo 3 times between 1980 and 1987 and saw flat revenue growth. Since then they have grown by roughly $85.3 billion dollars and have not changed their logo since that time.
  • Between 1994 and 2000, the Amazon logo changed just over six times, but has not changed it since. During that time period they went from being a barely known online bookseller to one of the most powerful, market-shifting companies in the history of the planet. Few today probably even remember that Amazon started as an online retailer to sell books. Since the current Amazon Logo came into effect in 2000 their company revenue has grown by over $130 billion. If you looked at the initial Amazon logo (seen in the infographic below), you would probably never guess that to be from Amazon.
  • In 1977, Apple completed what must be the most extreme logo makeover in history…you’ll have to see it below to believe it. Since then they’ve changed their logo roughly five times, mainly adjusting color schemes in the iconic Mac logo that you will recognize today. A company that was valued at $407 million in 1977 is now valued at over $215.6 billion dollars today. Their initial logo also looks nothing like it does today.

To see the full analysis from C+R research, check out the full infographic below to see how logos have evolved for some of the most iconic businesses in the world. There have been some companies like Levi’s, Coca-Cola and Shell that have changed very little over the course of their history. Then there are other examples like Airbnb, Apple and Amazon who have constantly been tinkering and adjusting their logo to what the market dictates.

evolution of logos

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