Symbol is a summary of your brand. If you've already got people's attention, you can afford to take your time and tell the whole story. But to earn that attention, you first need to distill your brand's whole story into a single memorable symbol.

Today is exactly 1 year since we rebranded Conventa, the leader in sustainable events. It's refreshing to see how they're evolving the identity we've defined. Guidelines need to be clear—but adaptable, not set in stone. At least not for the brands that are truly alive.

This is what the last 1000 days of my content look like. Honestly, most of it was a waste of time... But the few posts that bring me new connections or teach me new ideas make it all worth it. Why are(n't) you posting?

Just a wild guess, but I think last week's Coca-Cola rebrand signals a strategic shift toward the less harmful variant becoming the default soon:

Last month KFC rebranded literally everything: identity, restaurants, packaging, menu... And as always, most people still don’t see the main change that’s right in front of them:

A single bad customer experience can easily ruin years of brand loyalty, even for Google:

Simplifying your brand architecture feels like decluttering the whole house: - Undefined services finally fit together. - Unclear products finally get used or removed. - Disconnected sub-brands finally join the single ecosystem. After 18 years of growth....

Love it when companies get really creative with their branding for a good cause. A few years ago, the iconic Lacoste crocodile disappeared from their polo shirts, replaced by 10 animals that are disappearing from our planet:

People don't buy until they clearly understand your value. To explain it simply, complete this sentence like a 10-year-old kid:

Founders can't afford to wait for 6 months. But a rushed 1-week branding sprint is just as risky. I think this 4-week branding process hits the sweet spot:

Not sure if your brand's logo stands out? Here's a quick little experiment. Test it the way FIFA World cup does. Remove your colors and the name to see if people still recognize the brand. Most of you probably won't get all 7 right. Right?

FIFA's World Cup covering of the Levi's logo didn't just result in a masterclass in branding. To me, it's also a great way to test symbol design:

How much meaning can one symbol hold? In my recent logo work for a youth athletics club, I drafted 100+ sketches to combine two concepts:

Founders think I finish their branding work. But I just start it. I finish the strategy and identity, so they can continue branding on their own:

For food companies, organic labels and health claims are meaningless without real transparency to back them up. I had a chat with the team at LoginEKO to see how they are solving this issue:

Late to the disco party in my usual fashion, but I just wanted to remind you that Spotify did exactly what all of us had been craving ever since brands became so serious and similar:

I fail 99% of the time. It takes me about 100 sketches to design a logo that can work for decades to come. But if you're afraid of failure, you never dare to explore the options. And without exploring, you never find the 1% that makes an impact.

"Looks nice" is useless feedback for your designer. If you want business results, talk about your objectives instead of the subjective taste that you like. Then you can test if the designer tied each element to your goals:

People care more about what you sell if they see the story behind. So show your sawdust. The process is also the product. #branding #brand #logo #design

Your personal brand doesn't need a logo. A logo is just a tool that reminds people of who you are, and you already have that: Your face. It ticks all the boxes of great logo design:

Design has an unfair advantage in sustainability. While so many people focus on solving issues... Designers have the exclusive power to prevent them from appearing in the first place:

Most founders can't grow their "brand" because don’t understand it. Here’s the simplest branding dictionary that fixes that:

How much do you pay an employee who works 365 days a year? $10,000? $100,000? $1,000,000? What if they drive customers to you and charge them a higher price than before? What's their worth to your business? Would the salary match? Most successful companies already have that:

As a designer, I shouldn't be saying people don't need what I sell. But most local businesses don't need a rebrand. Think of all the nearby computer repairs, bike rentals, print shops, and mechanics...

A friendly reminder. You can't simply copy what successful brands do and expect the same results. It's not the same level. That means it's not the same rules:

New work: We designed the most transparent brand. It's as an answer to +70% of misleading "extra virgin" olive oils. Bittergreen's founder came to me with an idea he was passionate about since his family trips to Tuscany...

The next time someone tells you logo = brand. Show them this image. If they recognize most of the brands, you've proved them wrong. I'm not saying that a logo, the main element of your visual identity is not important. But when it comes to quick recognition, color does the heavy lifting:

After our rebrand, Conventa's sustainability-focused main event has sold out faster than ever before, with record attendance. I've named "Conventa Meet" after their motto "Explore. Meet. Create". In 1 week, that idea comes to life as the top meeting place for event organizers:

Friends told me I need to share my work here more. I think they meant results. But I think the process is just as important as the final outcome.

Quick behind the scenes as I rebrand. This week, I turned my website sketches into code with AI. As I don't know programming, I started the redesign on paper. I sketched out 1 page that leads to 1 branding service that feels like a product. Here's my bet: