Have you ever gone on a road trip in the United States? If so, you’ve definitely driven by a Holiday Inn. One of the United States’ largest hotel chains, there are Holiday Inns all over the country. Easily identified by their bright green signage, the logo has grown to be an important part of the journey for many travelers. Over the years, though, that dependable Holiday Inn logo has changed. Taking a look at the changing logo can tell you a bit more about how the hotel chain has been perceived.

Holiday Inn Logo Design Elements

The current Holiday Inn logo consists of a few basic shapes. The biggest element is a large green square, which definitely shares a history with the company’s trademark color scheme. With the square is a large H, which stands for the company. It’s a change to a simplified format, one that plays very well as an icon for the company’s online app. The final element is the name of the company, which anchors the design and helps give users all the information they need.

The color scheme is incredibly important here. Holiday Inn has used green as a signature color for years, so it makes sense that this would be the primary color used for the logo. The company also uses white for their lettering, which stands out well against the green and is easy to read. The font chosen is easy to read and fun, giving viewers a sense of relaxation after a long day on the road. Everything about the Holiday Inn logo screams comfort.

Changes and Evolution

1. Shape

The original log for Holiday Inn by the Falls shares few elements with today’s design. It’s very much a 1950s logo, with a fun design and only a few basic elements. By 1983, the name had dropped the ‘by the Falls’, but the logo was largely the same – except for the addition of a flower-like icon above the wording. 2003 took that logo and put it on a sign even in the badging, bringing the logo in line with many other hotel logos. It wouldn’t be until 2007 that the Holiday Inn logo would finally a sleeker, more internet-friendly shape.

2. Color

Holiday Inn has always favored green. The earliest versions of the Holiday Inn logo used a very dark green, which looked great on signs but doesn’t work so well on screens. The more familiar shade would come in 1983, during which time the company heavily expanded and needed to print the logo on signs around the country. The color lightened up in 2003 and again in 2007, helping to make it even more friendly first to computer and then eventually phone screens. It’s a great example of how technology can prompt changes to logo colors.

3. Font

Holiday Inn has played around with fonts a bit. The original font was a fun cursive font, a bit kitschy and definitely in line with the signage of the times. That font would continue to be used all the way through the turn of the millennium as an important part of the company’s heritage and image. The 2003 logo switched to a more corporate image that was easier to reproduce on a computer screen, and the modern version stuck to a version that was even more in line with the times.

Influences/ Inspiration

Holiday Inn’s current logo is definitely more influenced by phone apps and highway signage than anything else. It’s small but it’s easy to manipulate in terms of size, so it can be stretched and shrunk as necessary. The main part of the logo looks a lot like many of the other travel apps that you’d see on your phone, which makes it easy to slide into a more modern setting.

The logo definitely helped to force other hotel brands to jump into the future. Going back to simple elements seems to be the goal of the day, and Holiday Inn managed to do it before most. If you’re looking at a modern hotel logo design, there’s a good chance that Holiday Inn was at least a partial inspiration.

Trivia

• Holiday Inn was founded in Memphis, TN but is headquartered in the UK.
• Holiday Inn was designed to be a family-friendly hotel chain.
• Holiday Inn has had a computerized reservation system since the late 1960s.

Conclusion

The Holiday Inn logo is simple, but it’s still fun. It’s a logo of the smartphone era, one that works as well as an app as it works on a sign. It’s a good example of how to modernize a logo without losing its charm, helping to keep a brand alive even as it stays true to what made it work in the past.

If you live in the United States, you already know Bank of America. The Charlotte-based company is the second largest bank in the US and the twenty-sixth largest company overall in the country. It’s the holder of countless bank accounts, mortgages, loans, and investment accounts. It’s also a company that has done a significant amount of advertisement across multiple sectors, always counting on the company’s logo to help make a sale. The purpose of this article is to take a look at the Bank of America logo, to track the changes across time, and to inform readers about this well-known brand.

Bank of America Logo Design Elements

The current Bank of America logo is incredibly simple, but therein lays its appeal. Nothing more than six intersecting colored lines, it manages to be easy to identify even if you know nothing about the company. While the simple logo doesn’t necessarily bring with it a host of complicated design elements, its design definitely trades on one part of the company’s name – America.

The logo is composed of a pair of horizontal blue stripes next to a pair of vertical red stripes, both of which are on top of a longer pair of red stripes. The effect looks a great deal like a flag from a distance, even if it doesn’t quite match the colors or pattern of the real American flag. By choosing this logo design, the company looks more patriotic and more trustworthy without explicitly making use of patriotic imagery. It’s a fantastic bit of design work that has gone quite a long way.

Changes and Evolution

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Shape

The shape of Bank of America’s logo has been roughly the same since the company took on the name Bank of America. The basic shape of the logo has continually been the name of the bank (Bank of America) followed by a secondary logo element. While the primary element in the original logo was a stylized “BA”, the primary element in the currently logo has become a stylized flag. The updated logo was doubtlessly chosen to further bank on the connection between the company and its American connections.

Color

The original Bank of America logo was monochrome. The simple black text and logo was certainly in line with banking trends from the 1930s to the 1990s, establishing a formal and trustworthy look with patrons who were more concerned about a bank’s stability than its friendliness or branding. The 2001 rebranding of the company to include red and blue was doubtlessly meant to build on the rising tide of patriotism during that time and to help reflect that the new Bank of America was a more American company.

Font

Again, the change in font between the original and restructured logos is a reflection of the change in times. The original, all-caps design was powerful and ascetic, showing that the bank was serious and remote enough to take care of a customer’s money. The new logo, which uses a friendlier, standard-case font is more approachable and is ultimately meant to present the bank as more friendly and accessible to its neighborhood customers.

Influences/ Inspiration

Bank of America’s current logo takes inspiration from a few sources. The commonly-cited story is that the flag symbol is also meant to evoke a field, due to the large number of farmers that bank with the company. More prosaically, though, the logo was designed by The Brand Union to evoke patriotism, pride, and trust in patrons. The logo is very similar to other turn-of-the-millennium banking logos, though it’s tough to say that it directly influenced any logos that came after.

Trivia

• Bank of America created the first credit card, the BankAmerica Card, which would later become known as the Visa card. Read our Visa logo guide to find out the story behind their logo!
• Bank of America can trace its roots back to at least the American Civil War in Chicago
• The modern Bank of America is descended from the (still American-based) Bank of Italy.
• Bank of America created the first dedicated banking computer
• Despite its name, Bank of America has branches in Europe, Asia, and South America
• Bank of America created the first proprietary ATM in the United States.

Conclusion

The Bank of America logo has changed infrequently, but its major change did denote a major shift in how the brand viewed itself and how it wanted to be viewed by its customers. With a simple design, clear intent, and a memorable color scheme, the bank was able to continue to grab the imagination – and money – of potential investors and account-holders worldwide. From humble beginnings, the bank was able to leverage its image into becoming one America’s largest banks and one of its most recognizable corporate entities.

In this article, we are going to cover the Slipknot logo. A staple of nu metal, the Slipknot emblem has been featured on countless articles of clothing and PC wallpapers.

Of course, we can’t really talk about just one of the band’s sigils. We are going to go into all logos associated with Slipknot. So, get ready to find out about how the Slipknot logos came to be, what they stand for, and how well they manage to do the band justice.

Changes and Evolution

Since Slipknot has been a very well-established band since their first album in 1999, they didn’t have any reason to change their logo. However, back in 2014, the band has released a new version of the classic nonagram. The Nonagram, arguably Slipknot’s most stand-out logo, is the band’s nine-pointed star.

While Slipknot logo can be interpreted as either the stylized S or the nonagram, the latter is the most interesting. The 2014 version of the Slipknot nine-pointed star was more streamlined, but also more demanding of respect. Despite being made more discreet and minimalistic, the new star has a certain dangerous dignity to it.

One of the reasons behind the new Slipknot logo design was publicity. Since the band hadn’t really been all that active since 2008, they needed an eye-drawer for the 2014 album launch. And changing the adored Slipknot symbols was the perfect publicity stunt to get the public eye.

Changing the font used in the band’s name or the stylized S could have also worked. However, it wouldn’t have worked as good as the Nonagram. The star Slipknot logo is a personal symbol of unity. Changing it also announced a new era for the band and its fans.

Slipknot Logo Design Elements

The Slipknot logo is made up of several elements. The most distinctive is the nine-pointed star, along with the distinctive Slipknot font and the tribal S. The Slipknot font appears quite often without the nonagram. However, technically, both elements make up the Slipknot logo. In the following section, we’ll be looking at the Slipknot logo elements, font and color.

 

Shape

Technically, the Slipknot logo most representative of the band is the Nonagram. It was created by the band before their first album, and it stands for unity. The nine points of the nonagram stand for the nine members of the band. Each point represents a band member. It is very important, even defining, for the band and all its members.

The Nonagram is composed of three equilateral triangles. Each of them is rotated – one to zero degrees, the other one to forty, and the other one to eighty degrees.

Many believe that the nine-pointed Slipknot logo is a satanic symbol. This is owed to several factors pertaining to the band’s perceived image. Instead of standing for something evil, perverted, or unclean, the Slipknot symbol stands for unity, friendship, loyalty, and remembrance.

The simple tribal S sometimes appears in place of the entire logo, since it is much easier to integrate with more complicated design elements.

 

Color

The three colors most prominently featured in the Slipknot logo are red, black, and white. Aside from the fact that each of the colors is meant to stand for something else, the color scheme was also chosen because the colors work well together. Red and black are always a good choice, as are black and white. So, let’s see what the colors of the Slipknot logo are all about.

Frequently associated with blood and fire, red is the color of intensity, energy, determination, and passion. Bands and sports teams often choose it because of the color’s ability to raise metabolism, blood pressure, and respiration rates. In this case, red is used even better thanks to mixing it with black.

Font

Finally, the last element of the Slipknot logo is the name of the band. Usually, we wouldn’t spend too much time on the name, but the Slipknot title is a work of graphic design on its own. The Slipknot font is a very rugged, messy conglomeration of letters. It is meant to be in tune with the band’s image.

Having a somewhat barb-wiry feel to it, the font helps promote the perceived dark and hell-born nature of the band. The font can be very easily applied to merchandise and all sorts of promotional materials. It is also one which would appeal to the public, as it has a certain inspiring, yet somewhat taboo look.

Inspiration and Trivia

As mentioned before, the inspiration for the nonagram Slipknot logo comes from the band’s nine members. Each of the nine points of the star represents a specific member of the band. And for a long time, the identities of the nine members eluded the public eye. This greatly helped promote the band, as the mystery haunted their fans for years.

Eventually, after the band became famous enough, the members had to come out themselves before overzealous fans unmasked them. While this move gave way to a new era for Slipknot, some of the mysticism was lost along the way. And people starting to refer to the band members by name rather than by number.

Belonging to one of the most beloved nu-metal bands in history, there is more to the Slipknot logo than meets the eye. And that’s only natural, seeing as the band and the symbol came to be because of friendship, ambition, and wanting to have some fun. For similar logo histories, check out the Marvel logo, the DC logo, and the Harley Davidson logo.

Image sources: 1, 2, 3

It has undergone many name changes and mergers, but the Mobil Oil Company has been around in one way or another since 1911. This company is mostly recognized in modern times due to its chain of gas stations that sell Mobil gasoline, but it also produces many oil-based products like lubricant and transmission fluid. All of the many lines of Mobil products are clearly labeled with the Mobil logo. You can learn all about the Mobil logo in this article. We will tell you the interesting history behind this logo, and analyze its design elements.

Mobil Logo Design Elements

Mobil’s logo is a wordmark that displays the name of the company. Most of the letters are written in a warm, medium blue shade that represents trust and reliability. To add a little visual interest to the otherwise plain logo, the O is written in a bright red shade. Mobil’s logo uses classic capitaliziation, so the M is capital, while the rest of the letters are lowercase.

The Mobil logo uses a customized version of Helvetica that was created for them by Chermayeff & Geismar in 1965. This font is called “Mobil Alphabet,” and it features rounded, sans-serif letters. The weight of each stroke is completely even, so every line in each letter has the same thickness. Each letter in the logo ends in blunt, 90-degree angles that make the logo look even and geometric.

Changes and Evolution

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1. Shape

Mobil’s current logo has only been used since the 1960s. The first few logos for the company featured its old name on a shield design that had a flying Pegasus horse on it. Once the company became known as “Mobilgas” in the 1930s, it changed to a shield shape that had the large Pegasus flying over the world “Mobilgas.” This was later simplified to a rectangle shape that said “Mobil” in large letters over a small Pegasus emblem. Eventually, the logo was simplified even further, and the Pegasus was removed.

2. Color

For most of Mobil’s history, the company has displayed red and blue shades on its logo. Even the older shield designs from the 1920s were red, white, and blue. This patriotic coloring scheme continued in the 1950s and 1960s, when the logo had a red Pegasus and blue lettering. The O was only turned into a red color when the logo was updated in 1964.

3. Font

Back when the company was first starting out, they tended to use sans-serif fonts in the neo-grotesque style. These fonts are characterized by elongated letters with a very narrow width, and they were quite stylish in the 1930s, when the old logos were used. Mobil later switched to a more rounded font style in the 1960s, when they were attempting to modernize their logo.

Influences/Inspiration

The current Mobil logo has a fascinating story behind it. It was originally created because the company wanted a fun, modern logo, but it is still in use decades later due to the company’s current desire for a reliable, historical logo. At the time of the logo’s creation, the font made the logo look updated and youthful. Its red O referenced the old logo, while looking simpler and less busy.

Mobil still uses this logo today because it is now an established logo that appeals to long-time customers. The sense of stability created by the Mobil logo helps reassure people that the company’s products are long-lasting and trustworthy.

Trivia

• Though it is technically an old logo, many Mobil products still use their signature Pegasus logo because it appeals to so many customers.
• The Mobil name found on the company’s logo used to be much longer. It was originally called “Socony-Vacuum Mobil Oil,” and “Socony” stood for “Standard Oil Company of New York.”
• In Australia, the Mobil logo is combined with the 7-Eleven logo due to a continent-wide merger.
• The graphic design company that made Mobil’s logo is also responsible for other iconic logos, including NBC and National Geographic.

Conclusion

The clean lines and bold colors of the Mobil logo are a wise design choice that appeals to new customers, while referencing the older form of the logo. This simple yet recognizable logo allows the company to maintain a united brand identity. Even from far distances, Mobil’s bright color scheme allows customers to identify the logo easily.

Recommended Read: Shell Logo Design History and Evolution

Pfizer started out as a chemical manufacturing company in 1849. After the company discovered Terramycin, they started to focus primarily on researching and developing medications. In modern times, Pfizer is one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Their logo shows up on many important medications, including Lipitor, Viagra, and Zoloft. In this article, you can learn all about the Pfizer logo. We will look at how the company has altered the logo over the years, and find out the logo’s effect on marketing.

Pfizer Logo Design Elements

The Pfizer logo is an oval design that is slightly skewed to look like it is slanting towards the right. This oval is a medium blue color, and it is shaded to look a little darker on the right side of the oval. Inside of this oval is the brand name “Pfizer.” Technically, the brand name is written with negative space, but it normally just looks white.

The font used for “Pfizer” is a customized sans-serif font that looks a little like a script font. Both the F and the R curl at the top, and the F extends to the bottom of the oval and merges with the top of the I. The P is capitalized, while the rest of the letters in the logo are lowercase.

Changes and Evolution

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1. Shape

Pfizer’s first logo was a circular design that said “Chas Pfizer & Co” in a circular banner around a monogram. This was used for many years, but by the 1940s, the company had created the precursor to their iconic oval shape. The oval that said “Pfizer” was initially much larger than the text, but then the company slightly tweaked the shape so that the text extended beyond the boundaries of the oval. Pfizer’s oval was symmetrical and straight, until it was slanted in 2009.

2. Color

Pfizer’s first logos were black with white text. By the 1980s, Pfizer had begun using their signature blue color. This was just a smooth, single shade at first, but it was turned into a gradient for the modern logo.

3. Font

Pfizer’s first logo font was just a classic Roman shape. When they switched to the oval, Pfizer began using a text that had a Roman style P and E, and a script style F, I, Z, and R. The font was eventually simplified until the F and the R were the only letters that still had script-like curls on them. Until the logo redesign in 2009, the font was primarily a serif font.

Influences/Inspiration

Pfizer’s logo was intentionally designed to be simple and modern. At the same time, they kept their iconic shape to maintain a solid brand identity. The logo redesign removed the complicated semi serif and script font combination, and cleaned up the shape of each letter. Adding a gradient color creates a logo that looks better on detailed phone and computer screens. The slant provides a sense of movement and forward thinking. Making the letters transparent instead of white allows Pfizer to overlay their logo on other backgrounds, and give it a more complicated look.

Trivia

• When displayed on tiny pill bottles, the Pfizer logo is a single shade of dark blue instead of a gradient.
• The Pfizer logo came very close to saying “Erhart” instead of “Pfizer.” The company was founded by two cousins, Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart, but Pfizer was able to convince Erhart that the company should be named after him.
• Siegel and Gale, the branding firm who designed the new logo, have also created logos for Comcast, Disney, Yahoo!, and Motorola.
• The 50mg size of Pfizer’s signature Zoloft pills is a blue oval that looks much like the company logo.

Conclusion

The Pfizer logo combines elegant details with a basic logo shape to create a logo that is simple, yet stylish. Its calming blue gradient and swirling script provide a reassuring and reliable look for their medical products. Pfizer’s clever redesign of their logo has helped keep the brand looking updated, while still maintaining a link with their past logos.