For any business entity, the hardest thing is to keep corporate logos  relevant. This is because consumer preferences alter on a daily basis. The identity that once used to appeal to your target audience may not attract them after a few years. Even though it is not advised to change your business logo every now and then, some circumstances push a corporation into rebranding its identity.

Redesigning your Logo – When & Why?

The hallmark of successful corporate logos is that they are everlasting and have a longstanding effect on the customers. We have a perfect example of Nike corporate logo that has hardly ever changed since its inception in 1971 by Carolyn Davidson. With the exception of a few minor tweaking, the Nike Swoosh has remained steadfast over a period of four decades.

Redesigning corporate logos is not an easy task as a lot of factors are at stake. Issues like consumer loyalty, relevance and public reaction are some of the many things that hinder a revamping effort. That is why it is imperative to read the signs confirming that a logo redesign is necessitated.

1. Confused Identity:

The purpose of a brand identity is to make the target audience aware of your business and clear any confusion that they may have regarding your entity. But if your identity is considered to be confusing and vague, then it a futile practice altogether. Case in point is the London 2012 Olympics Logo that has been criticized as being perplexing and irrelevant to the Olympics brand identity.

2. Change in Ownership:

In the competitive world of business, corporate mergers are commonplace. Every year, companies collaborate or merge in order to survive in the business environment. But when this happens, it means your customers must also be signaled about this change in ownership with a redesigned logo. When JPMorgan and Chase Manhattan Bank joined forces, it merged with a new name called JPMorgan Chase. This also resulted in unveiling of a fresh corporate logo in order to inform the customers of the merger.

3. Change in Focus:

When a company seeks to expand its operations or change its area of focus, it must also aware its customers of the transformation too. For instance, an increase in product line or brand extension will lead to a modification in company’s business purpose. Case in point is Starbucks, who unveiled a redesigned logo on its 40th anniversary. The reason for the corporate identity revamp was that they were introducing a variety of new products. Hence, it required a fresh identity that can reveal its change in focus.

4. Customer Objection:

Customers are the biggest source of brand power. They have the ability to greatly influence the mechanics of every entity. Hence, you cannot afford to make your customers cross over any unwanted changes. If customer’s start objecting to your corporate logo, then rest assure than there is some overhaul to be done. Consider the example of Gap, who redesigned their logo after 40 years without proper market research. The brand lovers started revolting against the new identity hence Gap had to revert to its old logo.

5. Widespread Imbroglio:

For a corporate entity, reputation in the market is a crucial quality to protect and preserve. It is an extremely sensitive business as the slightest of mistakes can cause a company to get stuck in a widespread imbroglio. There is no better example than British Petroleum that tarnished its corporate image by creating an enormous oil-spill. The oil-refining giant has faced several controversies and has had to redesign its corporate logo in order to revitalize its lost image.

A dragon is a mythical creature that is famous in many cutlers of the world. It is classified alongside serpents or reptile creatures. It is most familiar in Far East countries like China, Japan and Korea. These legendary creatures are considered to be strong and ferocious in nature. When employed in a logo design, a dragon implicates a cultural feeling to the identity. You must have seen many dragon style logos on Chinese and Japanese Food Restaurants. Through this, they symbolize their culture and beliefs to their customers.

For corporate logos, these legendary and mythological symbols portray a sign of richness and cultural respect. Moreover, they show a company’s strength, power and vigor. Designing oriental style logos is quite intricate job for logo designers. Not only must they incorporate the mythical symbolism, they must also associate it appropriately with the brand values of the company.

Here are 20 fabulous dragon logos that truly exhibit the culture and oriental nature of its respective companies.