January 4th, 2011
Far too often, companies make the mistake of thinking that a visual refresh of their logo, website, collateral, etc. is the key step in strengthening their brand. A logo is a visual reminder that represents your company. It is not your brand (see #364). Changing your logo is like dying your hair; you may look different the next time someone meets you, but you still have the same personality, mannerisms and beliefs.
In fact, changing your logo is likely the last step (if done at all) when trying to strengthen your brand. Improving your brand is a thoughtful, planned decision that takes effort, research and commitment. Brand development looks for the customer pain points in your organization and undertakes to turn them around. This typically requires functional changes, revised procedures, training programs, organizational development, and other process improvement efforts long before any changes to your brand identity. If the changes to the organization are truly significant, a change to logo or tag line might be worth considering.