Get The Inc. Out Of Here!
I am reaching out to the design, marketing, advertising and interactive communities to help me with a cause that up until today, I have held very close to me. And I can no longer keep quiet about it...
It is time to get the Inc. out of logos.
Now that I have said it out loud I already feel much better. I think we can all come together as a group and make a conscious effort to help communicate the following to startup / small businesses that are about to design their first logotype:
Logos and their graphical representations do not require reproducing the corporate entity or legal name of the company.
While some "new marketers" or designers may feel that it makes their logo "more official", it in no way has anything to do with creating, establishing or protecting a copyright of the images included in the design. If a company does take the necessary steps to protect their company name and the graphical marks supporting it (ahem... logotype... read more here), then there will be enough to contend with in the future by getting those required ® and TM's fit into a logo without it crapping up the design. Combine that with your Inc., LLC, etc. and you've got yourself a mess just waiting to happen, let alone the visual distraction it creates for your prospects, customers and partners.
What if our peers in larger companies didn't think about the brand the same? How would that look? Hmmmm....
Alternate blog video posting of "Get The Inc. Out!"
(Produced using xtranormal, a really fun and easy-to-use editing tool, though the skin suit takes away from the "serious" nature of my post... or adds to it, depending upon your perspective.)
