AlinaWheeler-DesigningBrandIdentity

Brand identity idealsMeaningThe best brands stand for something: a big idea, a strategic position, a defined set ofvalues, a voice that stands apart. Symbols are vessels for meaning. They become morepowerful with frequent use and when people understand what they stand for. Theyare the fastest form of communication known to man. Meaning is rarely immediateand evolves over time.Symbols engage intelligence, imagination, emotion,in a way that no other learning does.Georgetown University Identity Standards ManualNike was named after the Greekgoddess of victory. Nike’s logo, anabstraction of a wing, designedby Carolyn Davidson in 1971, wasmeaningful to a company thatmarketed running shoes. In 1988,Nike’s “Just do it” campaign becamea battle cry for an entire generationof athletes. When consumers seethe “swoosh,” as it is called, they areinspired by the bigger idea to livethe slogan.Apple customers quickly becomebrand zealots. When they see theApple logo, they think innovationand delight. The logo, designed byRob Janoff in 1976, is an apple witha bite out of it–a friendly symbolof knowledge, and as lore has it, asymbol of anarchy from the PC world.The original logo was filled withrainbow stripes, but now it is a simpleone-color icon.When the Mercedes-Benz logowas originally created by GottliebDaimler in 1909, it consisted of asimple depiction of a three-pointedstar that represented the company’s“domination of the land, the sea,and the air.” Now this brandmarkstands first and foremost for luxuryand for the fastest cars on the road.The symbol has been dramaticallysimplified over the last century andremains highly recognizable.This symbol was designed forBarack Obama’s U.S. presidentialcampaign in 2006. The O, createdby Sol Sender and his firm, SenderLLC, symbolized the dawn of a newday. Obama’s messages of hopeand change charged the symbolwith a deeper level of meaning thatresonated with citizens the worldover, and became part of the largestsocial media campaign in history.34