How Do I Look?

Can you identify the following logos?

click on the logo to see if you're correct 

  

Having a distinct and consistent aesthetic is important for any company but essential  for larger companies/brands who have a vast portfolio of products. 

A recent Fast Company Design post, "A Rare Peek At The Guidelines That Dictate Google's Graphic Design" gives a really interesting and detailed look at how Google stepped up their game after Larry Page took over as CEO and started sweating the small stuff when it came to Google's digital aesthetic and consistency. 

Below is an example of how particular they were when looking at their new consistent look - they even specify the shadowing for icons. 

Companies, brands, even individuals would be wise to take Google's example and set umbrella guidelines for how you will appear to the world - just make sure to set this in place earlier than Google did. As marketers, your dream is to have a product that is easily recognizable. That share of mind is invaluable. If you don't have a consistent aesthetic across all your products, the customer must work harder. This is rarely a good strategy.

Some things to keep in mind...

• You want your appearance to match your company/style/products/emotion you're trying to convey. 
• Simple is better - limit colors, fonts to as few as possible
• Ensure it is representative of brand and product

When you boil it down and do everything right, the customer should be able to recognize your brand from just a logo or even partial logo. We are able to intuite just from the coloring of the Google Wallet logo that it is a Google product. 

This should be the aim of everyone company. The easier it is for a customer to recognize a product, the higher the potential likelihood  that the customer may buy/consume/hire/download it.

For a deeper look into Google's design guidelines, you can find them here:

Google's Visual Assets Guidelines - Part 1

Google's Visual Assets Guidelines - Part 2