I was on an elevator this morning when the stranger who got on with me looked over and said, “Nice shirt!” I was wearing one of my polo shirts from The Masters Golf Tournament in Augusta, GA. This happens to me all the time when I’m wearing one of these shirts. The logo is such a recognizable image – even without the word ‘Masters’ written across it (see image) – that people seem compelled to comment on it.
What is it that makes this logo so well-known? While we can’t replicate the world-wide TV audience and golf superstars associated with the event, there still are several lessons – as business owners and marketers – that we can take from this:
1. It’s a simple, clean logo. Why is that important? ‘Simple’ makes it easy to absorb and remember. Further, a simple logo looks good and is easy to reproduce in all sizes. For example, a complex logo – when reduced down to fit on a business card – can get all ‘smushed’ together (that’s a technical term!), so that the little details are hard to make out.
2. It’s timeless. Some logos are created using what – at the time of creation – are cutting-edge design ideas. But a few years later, look old and dated. Remember all those groovy fonts from the 60s and 70s?!
3. They are consistent in their use. No matter when or where you see anything related to the Masters, you see that same logo. In addition, they never mess with it… that is, the colors, fonts and proportions are always the same. It is what it is.
4. Along those same lines, they have used that same logo for years and years. We have come to know and be familiar with it. We know what to expect when we see it. We have never had to ‘learn’ a new logo and ‘start over’ again getting comfortable with it.
5. Maybe most importantly, the Masters logo stands for something. We know the logo represents a tournament that is a one-of-a-kind event… rich in tradition… attracts the sport’s best players… on one of the game’s most beautiful venues… and brings out the best in the world’s best golfers.
Now take a look at your logo…
- Is it clean and simple and easy to read and recognize, even when it’s small and embroidered on a shirt?
- When was it designed? If it’s old… does it look old?
- Are you keeping it the same everywhere you use it?
- Have you been using it for a while? Do clients and prospects know it when they see it?
- What do people think and feel when they see it? What do you want them to think and feel? Does it stand for something unique and different?
Your logo is an important part of your brand… an important part of your message to the marketplace. Make sure that message is what you want it to be.
“FORE!”
And now the “rest of the story.” No, I have never been to the Masters. But my wife has a friend with access to tickets… and has been 3 times. And she brought home a new polo shirt for me each time.