Why do we love logos?

A brief history of logos and humanity’s fascination with representing ourselves through visual means.

As we discussed in the previous post, logos act as a representative for your brand. So how did logos become such an essential part of society and business? Depending on how far down the rabbit’s hole you want to go, logos have evolved from simple symbols to indicate ownership to ultra-stylish graphics which are updated frequently to reflect design trends.

From ancient civilisations to modern times, logos have played a role in how we view people, businesses, and their role within society. The earliest form of logos can be found in ancient civilisations where hieroglyphs and other visual symbols were used to claim ownership or authorship of creations. Religious entities also adopted symbols to aid recognition among their followers. Some of these symbols, such as crosses, are still used today.

Fast forward to around the Middle Ages and it had become commonplace for trades to mark their goods. They also hung signs with common symbols to assist the illiterate population identify what type of products or services were available in their shops. Some of these signs are can be seen in films with historical or magical settings – think of Harry Potter and Diagon Alley. 😉  

Additionally, during the Middle Ages, it became popular for royal and noble families to create coat of arms and crests with specific colours and shapes to represent them and convey their societal status. Sound familiar? Yep, branding was on-point in the 1300s+

The 1600s saw the start of regularly produced newspapers – which featured advertisements! Trades would advertise their specific shop so customers would seek them for specific products or services instead of just walking into the first store they came across.

You can basically thank what we shall call the Bridgerton era for the birth of logos as we know them today. The arrival of the Industrial Revolution (18th century) and the changes in technology which allowed mass printing, lead to an increase in advertising and colourful packaging. The rising middle class had spare cash to spend, so businesses grew and realised that their branding, in particular logos, helped with memorability and customer loyalty.

Found on thedailytop.com

Found on thedailytop.com

Jump to the 1950s as brands realised that logos played an important role beyond merely identifying their business. By the time the 1960s rolled around, standardised graphic design education and training had begun. Later in the 20th century, businesses sought unique logos which helped differentiate their business from the competitors and ensure customers remembered them. Logos now had to work extra hard and convey meaning.

By the start of the 21st century (2000s), graphic design tools and software – such as Adobe – had become readily available to people. Access to such tools allowed logo design to quickly evolve into sophisticated, creative graphics which could be digitally updated to remain on-trend – remember the 3D and animated logos of the 2000/2010s? 😉

Overall, logos have played an important – if often understated – role in society. While we no longer have coats of arms to represent ourselves – unless of course, you wear your Hogwarts jumper – we use logos to help customers remember our businesses as part of our branding.

Like most things in life, logos age quicker than they used to – thanks to technology and fluctuating design trends. If you feel your small business’s logo could do with a 2021 facelift, give me a buzz and we can chat about how your small business’s logo can become a 21st-century star.