Google has done more for the practice of branding today than any other company in the world (sorry Coke). The findability of virtually everything has magnified the end consumer’s strength in the power relationship of a brand. More than any other company we can thank Google for that. Google also has been a model example of letting function lead form and creating alignment of the brand message with the delivery of the core product. It also managed to make a goofy logo, cute, friendly and meaningful to billions of people – to the point where Google’s holiday and special occasion logo variations are celebrated by faithful followers.
So Google, what’s up with the new favicon?
Lowercase “g”? Where did that come from? And why the circle with the predictable, Web2.0ish shadow? OK the main Google logo was never going to win any design awards, but really is a gray egg the best you could come up with?
Well, here’s one guess: when you are collectively worth many billions of dollars, you have to do something to shake things up just to fight off the tedium of billionaire-hood?
Of course I have not actual idea what they were thinking but I agree with your placing them at the top of the brand heap. And as you say, it is the alignment — or perhaps also the “combination” — of all the elements of their strategy and execution that makes their brand so strong. As such, I think they see each element as just that, an element of the whole and may judge from time to time that individual elements can be added, tweaked or even replaced as long as it does not worse than have a neutral effect on the brand. Their intent would probably be that it adds something but, hey, even Google-billionaires aren’t perfect …
This is a perfect example of PART brand thinking.
AND it fights both the original brand and the later society-created brand associations.
Since 2004 Google has taken on a symbol that is VERY important to people worldwide. That is: capital “G”, capital “O”, capital “O”, capital “G” – that spells “GOOG” or “500% return”.
I never noticed the small “g” in Google’s “logo”. One pities the designer who came up with it, but such is life. From a company point of view, they may see their small, little egg-”g” as an important part of their company artwork.
I hate to break it to them, but we never even noticed it, what with all the, you know, Googling that was going on.
Every day, Google helps people NOT notice the millions of web sites which – while important to their owners – have not proved important to people looking for things on the Internet. In fact, they invented the business. They should look at their little, eggy “g”, like the many family photo albums, birth announcements and cute, inside jokes they help us pass over. Important to them – not something we can use.
Thanks, though.
Google has posted an explanation of the thinking behind the new favicon and hedges with a statement that it is not the final choice: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/one-fish-two-fish-red-fish-blue-fish.html