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.

Integrity Spirits	Dragonheart

Sparx	Far East Gifts

Parts Dragon	Welsh Choice

Norbert Mierzwa	Brazen Rose

Put ME	pizhou dragon garlic

Gimme Sum China Grill	Amour du dragon

Angry Dragon	The Mighty

Shanghai Dragon	Dragon

Deal Dragon	Spice Dragon

Virago	Dragon v3

In a couple of days, the curtains will drop on yet another year. It seems like just yesterday that 2011 started. With every coming year, come new challenges for small business and start-ups. You can never be too sure about financial conditions of an economy for the business environment. Inflation, unemployment and recession are some of the few indicators that hinder the growth and progress of any small business.

Most small business failure is attributed to lack of planning and forecast. Since small business owners aren’t skilled in risk mitigation techniques and crisis management, they often fail to analyze the imminent threats to their business in the long-run. Today, I wish to emphasize 8 healthy tips that will help you bring your small business and start-up on track in the year 2012.

1. Keep SMART Goals:

In the next year, instead of setting objectives which are unrealistic and impractical, keep SMART goals. That is whatever business targets you wish to accomplish in 2012 must be Specific, Measurable, Active, Realistic and Timely. Small business owners make a mistake of going wayward with their future prospects. Rather than going for an all out approach, set a few but achievable goals for your business.

2. Run an Identity Check:

Customer preferences are erratic and prone to change over a period of time. That is why it is crucial for a company to run an identity check on their corporate logos and ensure whether the current identity system accurately reflects the values to the customers. It isn’t always necessary to redesign your logo every year. Just a minor tweak and adjustments can also do the job. So make sure that your brand identity is not outdated for the year 2012.

3. Blue Ocean Strategy:

Every year, companies try to compete with one another for an already existing market space. But they often overlook the huge unidentified gaps left in the market that can be served. Finding this unknown and uncovered space in the market is called blue ocean strategy. This is the strategy that you must follow in 2012to gain leverage over your competitors and increasing your client base.

4. Acknowledge Your Mistakes:

Human beings, by nature, are imperfect. No matter how hard you strive for perfection, it is hard to avoid mistakes in small business. But it is well said that all the life’s precious lessons are learned the hard way. So instead of fretting over past blunders that cost you losses in business, one should acknowledge all their errors and take lessons from the year 2011.

5. Take Cost-Effective Measures:

If you wish to stay alive in the cut-throat competition, you must think of creative techniques of correcting your cash flows. In the coming year 2012, follow “A penny saved is a penny earned” principle. Take all possible cost-effective measures in order to minimize overhead expenses and eliminate unnecessary operating cost. Another options include divesting resources that are redundant and outsourcing all secondary business activities. Be advised that downsizing is never a good option, so instead you should try to reposition your resources efficiently.

6. Clock Your Business Wisely:

When it comes to business, time is money. Many a times small businesses don’t give their business due attention it deserves. So in 2012, try to clock your business wisely and schedule it to increase your productivity. Also, keep some time for regular planning and envisaging corrective measures for your business for future.

7. Go One Step at a Time:

You must have heard of the phrase, “Haste Makes Waste”. It accurately depicts small business owners who get anxious and try out everything at the same time. So in 2012, go one step at a time and don’t rush things as it damages your concentration and focus.

8. Say No to Pessimism:

Last but not least, make a promise to yourself that whatever may happen, you will say NO to pessimism. Facing minor setbacks in small business is a common phenomenon but one should remember that falling down only gives you a resolve of getting back on your feet in a stronger and better manner. Crying over spilled milk has never helped anyone in fixing issues. Instead, be optimistic and stay positive so that you work with determination in the year 2012.

Since decades, corporate logos are being used to differentiate products and services from one another. Even back in the agricultural times, farmers used to brand their cattle in order to distinguish them in the market. The current mode of branding includes logos which are abstract and graphic in nature. . Since logos are intended to symbolize a company’s corporate identity in order to gain customer recognition, it is not wise to regularly redesign them.

But, the logo design field has substantially developed in recent years since the rise of the Modernist movement in US. Thousands of corporations and startup small businesses are registered each year and subsequently thousands of logos are created for them as well. With the number of designs swelling each day, it is hard for logo designers to develop identities that are unique and distinctive.

To instill new ideas for logo designs, here are 25 fresh and innovative corporate logos that exhibit creativity in a novel and distinctive style.

EcoCare	See
Vesea	Studio Invisible
Heidfeld	Animal Search
PixelCrayons	Racquet Club
Armadillo Christmas Bazaar	Hillside Liquors
HD Live	b2bevent
Ignite	Golden water
Powerbloom	FlyFinland
Michael Ugess	The Third Image
On a date	Crocodile
Spade Dealer	Exe Tools
LED Superstore	Francisdrake Design
StartersFund

Even though the financial crises are slowly loosening its grip on the business arena, small business owners and entrepreneurs are still reluctant to initiate their businesses. Setting up a business is relatively more difficult that running it. According to the latest Statistics released by US Small Business Association (SBA), there are 49% chances of a small business failing within 5 years. This shows the appalling success ratio of establishing a business these days.

But, failure can be avoided if preventive measures are taken beforehand. One of the common reasons of small business failure is the lack of planning and forecasting. Following are 5 common questions that haunt a small business in its initial stages and hence must be addressed ahead of time.

1. What Are My Financial Perimeters?

The first question to answer before establishing a small business is regarding your financial perimeter. You must establish your business scope and scale according to your financial stretch. Most small businesses fail because their liabilities outweigh their assets. Moreover, some entrepreneurs tend to be over-ambitious and diversify their business more than their available resources. This leads to under-utilization of resources and your business falters.

2. Do I have the Right Corporate Logo?

The next critical thing that determines a stable business is your corporate identity and image. Corporate logos are the cornerstone of every small business brand identity. They help the customers in memorizing and recalling your brand/product when required. Without giving due consideration to your identity development, you cannot run a successful business venture.

3. Who are Your Targeted Customers?

Another common small business owner’s mistake is not defining their target market beforehand. In a rush, they fail to correctly identify and recognize who they would like to cater through their business offerings. For a small business, a well defined target market is suitable to gain reasonable and stable profits.

4. What is my Unique Selling Proposition (USP)?

According to the SBA Statistics of 2011, there are over 27 million Small Businesses in the US alone. In order for a new entrepreneur to make his mark in the business arena, uniqueness and distinction is required. Hence, another question that small business owners must ask themselves is what their Unique Selling Proposition (USP) is. This refers to the one competitive advantage that makes them stand out from the crowd. By defining your USP, you can make an impact in the market.

5. Do I have the Right Marketing Tools?

In this congested world of media and gimmicks, marketing is something that is hard to overlook. Before establishing your small business, you need to be aware of the marketing tools like business cards, flyers and corporate brochures that will propel your business in the market and help you advertise your business to the target audience. Without adequate exposure of your business, nobody will recognize your presence in the market.

Corporate logos are the face of an organization. But a corporate identity does not solely rely on corporate logos. There are other parts of the Marketing Mix that must be incorporated before your corporate identity can become successful in the marketplace. These include your corporate brochures, business cards, flyers and other promotional items.

Let us pay heed to one aspect of the Marketing Mix, i.e. Brochures. Corporate brochures are tools that persuade a customer to buy your products or services. When a potential client steps into a store or business are, they seek information and assistance regarding your business. Through your corporate brochure, you can help them in understanding what your business has to offer to them. These are also great tools for industrial sales and personal selling.

Today, I decided to showcase a roundup of 25 most creative corporate brochure designs that were created in 2011. So let us recap the corporate brochures of 2011 with these splendid and inspirational brochure designs:

Spielplan Oper Graz

Luckyrice 2011 Festival

Mareiner Holz

Dua

Driven Marketing

Tequila

Título de Especialista Universitario

Sci-Fi Film Festival

Bank of America

Chris MacKenzie Photography

Pharmacy Brochure

Wolf Trap Brochure

CATERPILLAR

Graphic Design

Metropol Luxury Apartments

TSAOUSIS-HOME

WSM brochure

Trifold Brochure Template

Zoo Brochure

Makedoniki Gi

Brochure Emporio

Frederick Goudy

Seawoods

The Crescent Mall

GSSG

For small business and corporate entities, branding is essential for long-term business survival. Each component of the branding and promotion phase is equally vital which include corporate logos, business cards, flyers, advertisements etc. In order to gain recognition and remembrance of customers, business cards are employed which tell the clientele about your company.

Since we are living in the age of branding and tough competition, it is hard to get your small business noticed among the masses. Therefore, to make your corporate business cards stand out from the crowd, you have to be creative, objective and precise with its design. One of the simplest yet effective techniques of accomplishing this is through minimalism. By keeping your business cards minimal in design, you can make your customers remember your business with ease and success.

For inspirational purpose, here are 28 creative business cards that employ minimalism in them. You will also get to learn how to say more using less design elements.

Sean M. Kinney

Kazepro

Ruben Alvarez

Photographer

Purple Carrot

Hello

BËRTHAMA

The Runway

Steven Whitely

KUNNGUYEN DESIGN STUDIO

Marietomeoki

David Boni

That Kate Creates

Ploc Media

Joe Liao CZ

Michael Blank

Business Card Bird

Invisible

Designer’s Design

Steel Metal Business Card

Soho Cafe & Bakery

Boyle Design Group

Intoto

adam morris

chef boulder

fifth floor gallery

Vanilla Smiles

IPhone Monster

It is a common dilemma that small business owners don’t take the corporate identity development phase seriously. They would either avoid getting a corporate logo or would obtain it in a rush. The pretext for doing this is that obtaining corporate logos is time-wasting and expensive. But a little trouble in the initial stages will help you avoid grave dilemmas in the future.

That is why it is prudent for small business owners to do a little homework before getting a logo design. There are certain questions that must be answered before you think of obtaining a logo design from professional logo designers. These questions must be addressed prior to the brand identity development phase as they are decisive in making or breaking your corporate logo.

1. What Company Details to Show in Corporate Logo?

The first question that is pertinent to the brand identity development is what the details need to be shown in your corporate logos. This will encompass the decision to include the whole name of the organization or just the initials. It will also include the choice of revealing the company products or services. Moreover, the corporate logo must accurately portray your business mission and vision to the target audience.

2. What are your Design Preferences?

This is another vital query that must be addressed before you head out to get a logo design. It will cover the questions related to what fonts are to be employed, what color palettes will accurately portray your business, and what symbol or sign will signify your company values. You also need to reveal your disliking so that the logo designer must be aware of what design preferences must be shunned away from. You must be sure to make the correct use of colors in corporate logos.

3. Who is your Target Audience?

Before obtaining a logo design, it is significant to identify what target audience you are catering and why. This will include a list of all the demographic segregation of the target market. It will allow you to modify the corporate logo according to the taste and preferences of your intended customers.

4. What are the Budgetary and Timing Constraints?

Another crucial question that needs to be answered is the ground rules of the logo design project. Since small business owners require the logo design within a limited time frame and a restricted budget, it is recommended that all the deadlines and costing must be spelt out before getting a logo design.

5. Who will keep the Copyrights to the Corporate Logo?

This is one issue that haunts most logo design clients after they have acquired the identity from a logo designer. The question of who will own the possession rights of the corporate logo is imperative to avoid mistakes in small business. You must ask this question from your logo designer beforehand so that no legal or copyright issues arise in the future.