Ex Creative Leader at Nike, Microsoft, Salesforce. Now your very own brand expert consultant! Level-up your offerings' perception.
When unifying two brands, you merge colors and fonts first… the symbol is last. https://lnkd.in/gfBp5TrA I have been in countless brand mergers, and the go-to technique to unify two companies' visual languages always starts with matching colors, which is quickly followed by matching fonts, iconography, illustration language, and all the other sideline graphic paraphernalia… The logo (and symbol even more so than the logotype) is usually last, which, more often than not, is a combined name of the prior brands that will usually shed off one of the two over a few years... or it becomes a portmanteau. Why is this? Quick answer: Color is both the most noticeable (by sheer visual “real state”) yet among the least controversial brand attributes to change … A perceptible hint that “something is anew and worth paying attention to.” Any rebrand effort is an act of measured change, attempting to be seen in a new light by a desired prospective audience yet still familiar to your existing loyal base. If there is too much innovation on your brand, your existing customers will cry foul (“Dont change what we already love!”), If there is too little, your new message will never be noticed outside your self-reflective echo chamber. Color is a happy mid-point step in what is always a multi-year strategy. UC Berkeley seemed to have a split personality for a long time, with the academic side being known as “Berkeley” and the sports side as “Cal.” Somehow, the success and reputation of either side were diluted and did not reinforce each other. Quote: “We want people to know that the university with 26 Nobel Prize winners is the same university that has claimed 103 team national championships.” Bringing both names together, I suspect, is a long-game effort that has started with hues and fonts. I remain curious about the next calibrated steps. If I were a betting man, I would put my money on the name “Berkeley” slowly growing its scale and prominence over the more generic “Cal” … but I am sure better sport-savvy folks than me might differ: Any strong arguments on the opposite? #brand #branding #logo #naming #berkeley #cal #ucberkeley
Ex Creative Leader at Nike, Microsoft, Salesforce. Now your very own brand expert consultant! Level-up your offerings' perception.
6mo... It seems my prediction is not that off the mark: https://chancellor.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/berkeley_cal_identity_task_force_recommendations_3.pdf "Evolve and elevate Berkeley as the principal campus brand" "The research shows that in both reputation and awareness, the campus’ strongest identity is “Berkeley.”