Friday, August 21, 2015  |  Category: Blog

Brand Chemistry: Trends in College Logo Design

Ken Steele explores the value of a strong college or university brand: to attract students and faculty from outside the immediate region, to build goodwill and trust, to be top of mind, to command a premium price point, or to build a tribal following of raving fans. A visual identity is a critical piece of graphic design that distills a college or university’s mission, vision, and values, and should be the cornerstone of its visual style for years.  Ken also reviews some trends in college logo redesigns over the past decade to identify the telltale signs your brand identity is nearing its expiry date: dated colours like forest green and navy blue, swooshes like the Jetson’s from the 1950s, serif typefaces, 1960s halftone effects, and literal imagery.  New college visual identities are likely to drop the word “college” or even drop to an acronym, they are likely to use blue, neon green or bright orange in their colour palettes. Static square outlines are being replaced with much curvier visuals, and all the cool brands are getting custom-designed wallpapers and textures to go with their visual identities. Ken also predicts some of the colleges likely to redesign their logos in the next few years, based on these trends.

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Post Tags: Branding