Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Google's New Mini Icon

A BBC article entitled “What’s with Google’s new mini icon?” from last month discussed Google’s multi-colored, ever-changing home page logo. A visit to www.google.com on any given day shows a variation of their logo to match a specific holiday or theme chosen by the company. This article in particular highlighted their new favicon, the icon that appears in the address bar of a web page next to the web site address, which is yet a new spin on the company’s logo.

The interesting point that the author brought up was that Google is changing the way companies market their brand on the Internet. Smith contends that Google is rewriting the way branding has been typically done in the past – the tried and true method of using the same logo over and over again. Google has shown that it is not the size or design of the logo that necessarily matters, it is how often you use it and put it in front of prospective customers. As described in the article, “the world’s leading search engine…has achieved web domination without ever having had an actual logo.”

When you think of Google, it is easy to picture the letters displayed in primary colors. Instead of an actual logo, the company touts a “logotype,” around which they continually change it to fit various themes. While there is no “universally recognized icon” and many think this would dilute a brand, Google actually is moving with the theme of the Internet age – ever-changing, unfixed, and constantly morphing. “Logos are set to become fluid, ever-changing, customizable, even personalized entities and Google is the first global brand that understands this,” says Steve Plimsoll, the head of digital at brand consultancy FutureBrand. As the article emphasizes, the fast-changing nature of Google’s digital world dictates it.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/7839744.stm

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