A company’s logo is, in a lot of ways, its essence. Your logo is like a quick summary of how your business looks, a sort of mental shortcut for people when it comes to recognizing and identifying your company. Your logo is obviously very important, and decidedly worth your time and money to perfect. With that said, however, sometimes a logo’s “perfectness” changes with the onslaught of time. What looks modern and sleek in one decade may very well not the next. Logos change over time, and even the largest companies in the world, with all their manpower and budgets, adapt their logos. In retrospect, it can be amusing and interesting to see how some large and familiar company logos have changed with time.

Mastercard Logo Change

Obviously, the first change is a dramatic one. This is often the case with the first logo change, as the company usually does not have the perspective it really takes to create a solid identity. The name also changes several times, which is not unusual as the company grows and truly finds its footing. The Mastercard Logo moves from red and gold to red and yellow, which I find to be a much more appealing color combination.

Volkswagen Logo Change

The change that occurs in the Volkswagen logo is very interesting, because while there is obvious change occurring in the 2-D logo, the newest design is actually made to look 3-D. This is the influence of the rise of the computer. Many logos change to reflect the use of computers in their design.

Shell Logo Change

This one is almost comical at first, with the 1900 Shell logo looking simplistic and understandably old-fashioned. If anything, this proves how far a logo can come in a century. Shell experimented over the years with having its name in and around the logo. This is good to study and to ponder in terms of your own business. Do you want your company name inside your actual logo, below it, or not with it at all?

Nike Logo Change

More experimentation with company name placement. This is a great example of a company’s logo becoming so well recognized that it is able to function on its own to represent that company. Today, anybody that sees Nike’s “Swoosh” knows exactly what it stands for, and that sort of immediate connotation is what any and every company tries to accomplish with their logo. Take a fresh look at your own company’s logo and try to think about how it would look on its own. Would it make a good stand-alone symbol? It’s something worth thinking about.

The driving theme behind this blog post is that logos change – sometimes often and sometimes dramatically. This is a chance to gain a little perspective when it comes to logos – and to think about your own. What could be changed to improve it? What could be added or subtracted? Our partner site, www.printshipnow.com, has an entire online community built around online custom design – of logos and more. It’s really worth checking out if you are interested in reinvigorating your logo.

I was recently brows­ing around on the wide, wide web and came upon this really cool Super Mario Bros. wallpaper. As a huge Mario enthusiast I was immediately enthralled, and ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the individual, detachable figures and blocks. I started thinking about ways I could decorate my empty home wallspace (either room or living room) in a unique, innovative way.

Sweet Super Mario Bros. Wallpaper

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As you know, we love our new Ocè Arizona Flatbed Printer 550 GT. In many ways it’s symbolic of the things going on here at PrintFX – growth, expansion and the ability and desire to try new things. Without waxing too philosophical: suffice it to say we are trying new things. We recently ran some test prints on corrugated tin – which is a cool and rare ability for a printer to have – and the results were, simply put, freakin’ sweet! Check out these cool pictures:

Marketing Director Brandon Snyder and Ocè technician Patrick Long prepare the tin for printing.

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Everybody has that kind of work day once in awhile: dragging, stressful, jumbled, or slow and grinding. They are decidedly inevitable in a person’s life, as inescapable as the coming of Monday or the paying of taxes. There are however, certain things that can cheer someone up. The slightest of things can add a bit of brightness and cheer to an otherwise drab day. Below is a video I hope might help with your “off day” if you are having one:

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Solar Billboard from Juniper Park on Vimeo.

I came across this video sometime ago, I’m guessing it was around November of last year. I was struck by its innovative, outside-the-box presentation and pure message delivery. The “solar-powered” SunChips billboard provides an ideal example for innovative advertising as a larger idea – something I’ll be touching on from time to time in this blog. (more…)

As you may know, we recently got our new Arizona 550 GT Flatbed printer set up and are already using it to do some really cool stuff. We sat down with Edwin Morris, one of Ocè North America’s Display Graphics Account Managers, to talk about the printer and its capabilities.

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