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The most recognisable, popular iconic company logo designs.

Design magnate Steven Gilliatt once said "(A logo) should look just as good in 15-foot letters on top of company headquarters as it does one sixteenth of an inch tall on company stationery."

Understanding the synergies between business, brand and the consumer has never been more vital for commercial success.  Studies have demonstrated to us that it is not just the price, features or attributes of goods, products or services that heavily influence our purchasing decisions, but it is also our perception of the company.  A strong, simple and convincing company logo can play a huge role in motivating people choose your company over a competitor.

So that said, what are the most influential, popular, recognizable and iconic logos of all time?

McDonalds Logo

McDonalds has more than 23,000 restaurants in over 100 countries and their global market potential is huge.  The logo's simple red and yellow design was created by Jim Schindler in 1962.  The golden arches were used to give the impression that to own a McDonalds franchise was to have a goldmine.  The arches also symbolise an escape and a place to hide under, where you can have a break and a McChicken Sandwich meal without mayo... I'm allergic.

Apple Logo

Steve Jobs once said "Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works".  This is ironic really when we look at the first Apple logo which resulted in a violation over trademark and Apple Computer being sued by Apple Records (the record company of the Beatles) in 1989.  The argument was settled and an agreement signed in 1981 allowing Apple Computer to use the name for products not related to music in any way.  Despite this agreement we have still seen a number of other legal battles between the two companies with Apple Records claiming that Apple Computer are in breach of the agreement.

The first Apple Computer logo was designed by co-founder Ron Wayne which displayed Sir Isaac Newton sitting beneath the famous Apple tree pondering about gravity.  Steve Jobs felt that this logo was over complicated and asked art designer Rob Janoff to produce a new logo design in 1977.  He produced the apple that had the colours of the rainbow (The wrong way round) and the apple had a bite taken out of it.  The bite symbolised knowledge (We all know our Adam and Eve story) and the word bite could also be referred to as ‘byte' as a computer technology company.

When Jean Louis Gassée was asked for his thoughts to the Apple logo he replied: "One of the deep mysteries to me is our logo, the symbol of lust and knowledge, bitten into, all crossed with the colours of the rainbow in the wrong order. You couldn't dream of a more appropriate logo: lust, knowledge, hope, and anarchy."

Steve Jobs replaced the rainbow colour on 1997 and replaced the design with a solid colour which is similar to what we see today.

Shell Logo

Shell Transport and Trading Company Ltd was founded in 1897 by Marcus Samuel.  In 1904 the shell, that would symbolise fuel all around the world, was designed.  The logo was later refreshed by American industrial designer Raymond Loewy.

Coca Cola Logo

According to reports the Coca Cola logo was designed by Frank Mason Robinson, a Pembertona bookkeeper, in 1885.  The logo makes use of Spencerian typeface which is said to be the predominant form of writing taken up by American bookkeepers during that era.  The logo is hailed by some as the most iconic logo the world has ever seen, which isn't bad for a logo that is over 120 years old.

Many urban myths have surrounded Coca Cola over the years.  It was claimed that the drink used to contain cocaine, which is not implausible as it was initially used as a patent medicine by the inventor John Pemberton who was a pharmacist.  Coca Cola has been accused of being anti-Semitic in the past which could have been true as the company once refused to do business with Israel. 

Microsoft Logo

Microsoft is the world's most successful manufacturer of software, providing operating systems to an estimated 90% of the world's computers.  In 1987 Scott Baker designed the logo which was dubbed the "Pacman Logo".  According to the March 1987 Computer Reseller News Magazine, "The new logo, in Helvetica italic typeface, has a slash between the o and s to emphasize the "soft" part of the name and convey motion and speed."

Since its introduction we have seen the logo evolve over time from the ‘groovy logo' of the 70's to the simple and soft logo that we see today.

Google Logo

As far as search engines go, Google is the most iconic and recognisable of the bunch.  It contributes to billions of searches each year.  The logo works because it is simple, colourful, attractive and memorable. 

Google started in 2006 as a research project by two University students, Sergey Brin and Larry Page.  The logo was designed by Ruth Kedar and makes use of the Catull typeface.  Often, to mark world events, Google will change its logo to represent the celebration.  Marked celebrations include Mother's Day, Christmas, The World Cup and My Birthday (I made that one up, but they should celebrate it really).

Starbucks Logo

There seems to be one on every street corner.  Starbucks has become the face for Coffee with more than 7,500 stores all over the world, serving more than 22 million guests annually.  The company was founded in 1971 in Seattle, Washington.  The logo design reflects the area that the company was founded depicting the lady and the water which dates back to the old sailor tradition of the coffee trade.

eBay Logo

eBay launched in the UK in October 1999 and is the UK's largest online marketplace.  It is claimed that eBay has more than 10,000,000 items for sale at any one time.  An even more astonishing claim is that every other (47%) internet user visits eBay.co.uk at least once a month (Nielsen / Netratings, March 2007).

Bill Cleary of the CKS group designed the eBay logo that we see today.  It has a very childlike design to try to depict a fun and exciting image.  The name of the company is written with a capital B but it is not capitalised within the logo.  This is because the designers felt that the B would be perceived as a roadblock in the middle of the logo.  The four letters of the logo are layered on top of each other which subtly suggest a bonding eBay community.  The letters within the logo have what graphic artists call "baseline shift" to give the logo an offbeat feel. 

Nike Logo

Phil knight founded Nike in the 60's, but at that time the company was called "Blue Ribbon Sports".  The name Nike and the Swoosh of the tick came in around 1971.  The name was influenced by the Greek Goddess of victory which provided a strong logo that would work well in the industry of sport.  Designer Carolyn Davidson designed the Nike tick in 1971, which is said to be taken from the wings of the Greek Goddess.  When Phil Knight was presented with the logo design, he felt that it just didn't do it for him (see what I did there?) and was quoted as saying "I don't love it, but it will grow on me".

Further reading:

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