Here’s a little followup to a couple links I shared in the past from Toxel.com. It’s another interesting look at large brands only this time asks the question: what if they swapped logos? This is sure to put a smile on your face!

Companies Swapped Logos at Toxel.com

Similar Posts:

Keep It Simple, Sparky (Simplified Logos)

Fun Link: Honest Logos

I know, you probably wanted me to go with the original KISS meaning ending with “Stupid,” but hey, I make the decisions around here! I came across the following post that had some “simplified logos” and in each case I was able to tell who the logo belongs to. There are a couple lessons that can be learned here.

First of all, here’s the link: Simplified Logos

Finally, here are the lessons:

Number one: branding can be incredibly strong. These logos are an extension of each companies brand, yet they don’t outwardly include the company name. Think of ways you can effectively use branding to strengthen your business.

Number two: it is always best to be concise. It is possible to get your message across using less. Work at what you would like to say and then work to simplify, simplify, simplify.

Parting note: I know that we’re probably not giants like the companies featured at the link, but we can still take a tip from and gather inspiration from them. After all, they started out small too!

Be sure to check out my latest article in The Mandala. In this article I offer advice on the necessity of building, strengthening, and constantly using your own original brand.

This issue also features the cover story on The Academy of Magical Arts Awards, and other articles by Shawn McMaster, Lou Serrano, Rich Cowley, Keith Dion, Tony Clark, Paul Romhany, Brent Geris and Tom Burgoon. Also, look out for Turnover, a fictional story crafted by Gavin Inglis that revolves around magic and is expertly illustrated by Hannah McMaster.

The Mandala May/June 2011

Take a look at these products and tell me if you can tell who created them. Go ahead… I’ll wait. Did you get it?

Who is the creator of these products?

If you guessed Jay Sankey, you win a prize! You win twelve aardvarks and a broken snorkel! Ok, I’m just joking. Who needs a broken snorkel anyways? The aardvarks are debatable, but I’m all out.

So why are you able to tell “who” just by looking at these these cropped images? Mr. Sankey has very strong branding. Let’s take a closer look at his brand and I’ll point out a few things that make it work so well.

Jay has made a number of decisions as to what his brand should look like and implements it everywhere. First of all, he has a strong logo which is easily identified with him since he’s used it so much.

Jay Sankey has a very strong brand that he uses everywhere.

He’s also chosen specific colors, fonts and a particular style that all work together to visually create his brand. For his main colors he uses yellow, black and white. When he uses other colors with these they are always loud, bold, vibrant colors, but these are almost always accompanied by the main colors.

These display Jay's use of color within his brand.

Jay uses a nice heavy font that has an edgy texture to it. If you’ve seen enough of his material, you could spot a Sankey product by the font alone! Take a look at the product page on his website, you will see it in use on 90% of his products along with his logo and colors.

This stack of DVDs show Jay's effective choice of font. You could spot a Sankey product by the font alone!

Finally, he has a certain style to his brand. He uses mysterious yet bold imagery. You will find high contrast in all his designs, everywhere from the photographs to the colors to the contrasting sizes of the type.

Jay has established a definite visual style to his brand.

So there are some of the basic ideas that Jay uses in his branding. Of course, there is one more very important thing that I’ve only mentioned in passing so far. It is that in order to have a strong brand, you have to use it. Everywhere. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. It’s almost magic! We’ve already seen that Jay incorporates his brand on his business card, website and product packaging. He also incorporates it into his DVD menus, transition screens and where he shoots his videos.

So what has this helped him achieve? Well, for starters, he is very recognizable within the industry. People see him as a professional and since he hasn’t changed his brand, people have learned to trust him and know what to expect from him. This, in turn, has helped him to build a community around his products and contributions to the magic industry.

So let me ask you, how is your branding working for you and what can you do to strengthen it? I’ll tell you one thing I now know: I have more Sankey material than I thought…not that that’s a bad thing!

A fun circumstance happened to me today while I was at work. My wife was out with my daughter and she sent me this photo of her while they were at lunch.

Even though there is no logo or signage in the photo, I was able to tell instantly what restaurant they were at. Have you figured it out?

They had lunch at Del Taco.

Even more impressive is that I had never been to that particular location. See how strong good branding can really be?

So, why was I able to figure this out? First of all, they make all of their stores look the same. Everything from the tile work to the chairs to the tabletops are the same from restaurant to restaurant. You’ll also notice that the colors used are the same colors used in their logo, print advertisements and TV commercials. Everything works together to strengthen their brand.

So how strong is your brand?

Is there consistency in your promotional materials or could your website, business card and brochure look like they each come from a different magician? If that’s the case, you might rethink your designs.

Everything should have a consistent look across every piece, even down to what you  wear when you perform. When you look at everything together they should look like they belong together. Decide on a look and stick with it. This way when somebody comes across your business card then goes to your website, they visually connect. Next, they see your ad in a local publication. It immediately connects with what they saw before, further strengthening your brand, and this consistency starts to build trust. This wouldn’t happen if all your pieces were disconnected. Basically, in every point of contact with your potential customer, you want them to know that it is from you and not be mistaken for anyone else. This can only be accomplished through strong and consistent branding.

Tonight take a look at all your materials that you’ve put out. Don’t leave anything out. I’m talking business cards, brochures, letters on letterhead, websites, ads, social networking graphics like avatars…everything. Look at it with a critical eye and ask yourself what you can do to tie everything together and strengthen your brand.