The use of appropriate colour in a logo can be critical for the success of the logo and the brand it represents. Take the following two examples: one for a bank and one for a recycling company. It is important that colour chosen communicates those attributes with which the company would like to be associated. Blue is associated with conservatism and is a very safe colour. As such it is a very popular choice with banks and other institutions.
On the other hand the use of green in an eco-friendly company’s logo is a somewhat obvious choice given the association of green with the green movement.
However, colour is not the only important attribute for a successful logo. The most interesting features of two of my favourite logos are not really colour related at all. First, consider the Fedex logo.
When I ran a software company in the 1990s I used FedEx a great deal; however, I didn’t notice the white arrow embedded in the logo between the E and x of the logo. Of course, this arrow beautifully represents what the company does – the arrow represents movement and speed. There is a very interesting interview with the logo’s creator, Linden Leader, that you can read online: http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000273.php
I also very much admire the Amazon logo. Like the FedEx logo it is clean and simple and that is part of its success. However, it has two other interesting features. Firstly, the arrow below the text cleverly goes from A to Z – reinforcing the message that you can purchase anything from A to Z at Amazon. However, the arrow is also finely crafted to appear like a smile, reinforcing the idea that shopping at Amazon will be a happy experience.
As a graphic web designer , I’m glad to find that someone thought to post this topic.
Many people just don’t understand what all is required in this field, and I think also we’re many times not appreciated enough
or taken for granted. Never the less I’m immensely glad to see that you may feel the same way I do , thanks so much for this post!