Abbreviated symbology: technology is driving brand evolution.

The digital revolution is crunching brands into smaller spaces. Channel operators, phone applications, favicons and social media slots are driving format and, in the case of iPhone applications, configuring logos into Apple formats. Let’s call this process abbreviated symbology.

Icon evolution

You might have noticed that Logos are being stretched across many formats and have to work harder to stand out. We’ve noticed that technology channels are driving brand identity and accelerating icon evolution.

Small is emerging as a dominant form of brand identity, so getting it right as a Microformat is key – Yahoo, Twitter and Facebook. (Y,T,F) have all effectively abbreviated. In time we believe many brands will inevitably adopt abbreviations as their lead format.

And the winners are:

The most effective brands distil and shape their online presence using the fundamentals of shape, colour and font into a mnemonic or logotype: see Coca-Cola, Facebook, Yahoo or Nike symbols.

Some, like Greenpeace, Disney and Pizza Hut are chaotic; while others, like McDonalds and Cadbury corporate are more cautious of social media. Either way we are observing technology change the face of brands and rewrite the rules of identity and control.

Links

www.twitter.com/saatchidesign
www.saatchidesign.wordpress.com
www.twitter.com
www.facebook.com
www.yahoo.co.uk

Filed under: Digital, accessiblity, audiences, brand positioning, Digital, evolution, identity, interfaces, iphone, microbranding, online identity, social media