Before I realized what this post really was, I tried to peel off the post-it note with my mouse. Now that's an entry that would have gotten some attention.
I thought it was the post-it note, and this was all satire. Guess I better read this again.
Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
51–60 of 126 posts
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#52Before I realized what this post really was, I tried to peel off the post-it note with my mouse. Now that's an entry that would have gotten some attention.
... or at least show the logo when you do display: none; the post-it ...
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#53So let me get this straight: Gap first hires someone to design a logo, and it's universally panned by the design community. They then ask the community "if our new logo is so crappy, why not see if you can do better?" Then, the design community bitches at Gap for not hiring someone to design their logo? Does this seem a bit odd to anybody else?
Also, it's hard to bitch when your whole career depends on something as subjective as logo design. Because of this subjectivity it's possible a design rookie out of high school could design something as cool or cooler than the seasoned professionals, and do it for a fraction of the price (or free). Conversely, that same subjectivity allows people to get away with charging outrageous fees for design work (i.e. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXT#cite_ref-rand_16-0)
It seems to me like Gap is damned no matter what they do.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
I did not understand either, I feel I am missing some context to this post that the writer should have included.
I think it was pretty clear that he was being sarcastic, but only up to a point. I am still left wondering if he actually has a logo to show or if he is offering his services in a professional capacity, or not.
Neither. It’s just rhetorical.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#55I researched your customers. Talked to a variety of them, in fact. Asked them not only about The Gap, but about their own lives. Their needs. Anxieties. Their thoughts on the future. I took all that into account. I also interviewed employees in a few of your stores. (They’re quite dedicated, you know.) I asked them how they felt about the company and about their interactions with customers. Because customer service m…
In most re-branding efforts I've seen at companies of Gap's size, they absolutely do go through this process - some to discover new things, but also as risk mitigation. Right now I suspect the firm that did this new logo is on conference calls with Gap people to say wait, we did the studies and they said xyz, we know that any change to your iconic brand was going to be received negatively, etc.
But more importantly, it's not just logo that changes when you re-brand, it's product labels, business cards, web sites, stationary, building signage, color palette, EVERYTHING. So actually, you could spend a few k on a new brand with a quality designer, or spec out a logo for a few hundred on crowdspring, and frankly that's all most smaller companies need, but for a larger company like Gap, a re-branding ends up being a huge investment, so the research makes them feel more comfortable in making the decisions on how to move forward.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Looks like they are getting a good response and more mindshare then they should for a logo. Perhaps this will be the new "new coke/old coke" case study of the future but "now with more crowdsourcing (tm)".
I was thinking the same thing. GAP put out a crappy new logo on purpose (They aren't using it anywhere) knowing it would create buzz. Roll that buzz into a crowdsource contest. And in the end stick with your orig logo.
http://www.gap.com/ is using it.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
There have been a ton of other designs submitted to ISO50. Some aren't too bad: http://blog.iso50.com/2010/10/06/gap-redesign-contest/
There are some good ones there. Personally I like number 42. It seems to me that a place called "Gap" should have a gap somewhere in its logo.
only moderately related, but the best thing Gap ever did was when they bought ads at a bunch of baseball stadiums on the outfield walls, so when ever someone hit a double to the gap thats what you'd see.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't agree. I think it's probably more similar to a professional journalist complaining about another professional journalist. Or are you suggesting gap crowdsourced their identity requirements .. ?
The original post is a rebuttal to this: http://www.idsgn.org/posts/gap-turns-to-crowdsourcing/
Ah, sorry - I didn't realise.
Well, I suppose this is a reasonable strategy.
CP+B have done similar things, and tried to explore how crowdsourcing can create buzz (e.g. with Brammo) .. I think at one stage they even decided to ebay the services of their designers to create a sense of the agency's openness to 'new'.
It does seem that aesthetics aren't the main driver behind branding decisions any more. It's impossible to stand out by having the nicest looking identity.
Taking an approach like this makes sense on lots of levels, especially when marketing budgets have been reduced; create a couple of reasonably strong memes, which last long enough to seep into the public consciousness before they die .. and gain phenomenal exposure without spending too much. Gap get to create the hallowed 'relationship' with the customer by involving them their own brand 'journey'.
I did make myself slightly sick after reading back over that last sentence, but to an extent I think it's true. We all build up relationships with brands over time, and the course these relationships take can be manipulated.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#59Posts like this seem like the designer equivalent of the music labels spending years complaining about how sharing music is wrong and trying to put the "evil" back in Pandora's box, while millions of people merrily continue to download music off bittorrent anyway. The reality of the internet is that people can easily solicit work on spec from thousands of designers, and they will get good stuff in return. Will it be…
"While it's in the design industry's collective best interest to never work on spec like this, it might be in an individual designer's best interest to design Gap's logo for free."
People play the lottery - but I wouldn't argue it's in their best interests to do so.
Re: Dear Gap, I have your new logo.
#60Posts like this seem like the designer equivalent of the music labels spending years complaining about how sharing music is wrong and trying to put the "evil" back in Pandora's box, while millions of people merrily continue to download music off bittorrent anyway. The reality of the internet is that people can easily solicit work on spec from thousands of designers, and they will get good stuff in return. Will it be…
Just like the proliferation of cheap musical instruments diluted the value of the "pro" rock'n'roll bands. Nowadays any random dude with a cracked version of Illustrator can call himself a designer. And, they will be able to generate designs as good as 90% of the designers from back in the day. (See Sturgeon's Law). Only ability with scissors and glue and an expensive drawing table are no longer a requirement. For a…
It's not true. It's a common misconception that anyone with a cracked version of Illustrator / Photoshop can design.
Crowdsourcing isn't democratising design - it's reducing the importance of good design .. in much the same way that bad acting increases our tolerance for poor quality soap operas.
Good design is clear thinking, made visual. Good design solves problems and it follows conventions which take time to understand.