In September of this year, with great public
relations fanfare, the software company Quark introduced
their new corporate identity. In presenting the new
image, Quark corporate communications director Glen Turpin touted it as a “fresh,
inviting and open” symbol representing a “q” letterform. Designers
around the world, on numerous online forums and boards, quickly noticed a similarity
to the identity symbols and icons of a variety of firms.
From a basic design point of view, it would appear that the new Quark image
is simply not as “fresh,” as touted in the press as the new image
was rolled out. It seems to be much too similar to the identity symbol of the Scottish
Arts Council (which reportedly was introduced in 2001), the logo of ArtWorkers.org,
the U.K. based marketing firm Alcone, The
Designers Network, Sterling
Brands and the lower case “a” in designer Dirk Uhlenbrock’s
1998 typeface “Girl.” Each
of those examples resembles the “new” Quark image fairly closely
- and it would personally make me uncomfortable submitting such a design concept
to any client. I wonder if the shape used is the “swoosh” of this
decade. During the dot.com boom the swoosh seemed to be an easy option
for an Internet company logo and many logos seemed quite similar.
It would seem that someone involved in the Quark identity process really dropped
the ball in regards to an identity image search. In published reports a Quark
spokesperson is quoted as saying the firm made “extensive checks to discover
any similar existing logos [but] we evidently didn't find them all.” Is
that explanation good enough? Will it satisfy those entities with similar logos?
Even so, in the CreativePro.com article, “Sometimes
a Logo is Just a Logo,” contributing editor Gene Gable writes: “Quark’s
real trouble with its new logo is not a legal one. It’s a public relations
snafu that must be handled appropriately. Quark should voluntarily change the
mark and cite respect for the creativity of other organizations as the reason.
(Quark says it has variations on the logo; perhaps one of those differs enough
to pour oil on troubled waters.) If the company has already printed a lot of
material with the controversial logo, the monetary cost of a change will be
high. But what is the cost of the design community’s ire?”
It is certainly not a bad thing for the design community to be vigilant and
bring to light situations of similar or copied designs. I see nothing wrong
with designers questioning whether an identity is “inspired by” another
image, blatantly stolen or an “honest mistake.” Quark set themselves
up for the received response - their client base is the profession of often
very critical designers.
How can designers avoid having such similarities occur?
The Quark identity situation is a call for all creative professionals to
push themselves harder in their creative efforts. While I have hundreds
of design books on my shelves, I seldom flip through the volumes for inspiration
when working on a new project. My best ideas come from my first impressions
based on the initial input from a client. I also immediately try to steer
clients away from their comments like “I want a logo that looks just like
such-and-such a company.”
With concepts being fine-tuned it is then time to do your homework and determine
if the design is unique enough to present to clients - by whatever means available:
Self research, a trademark attorney, a image search firm or even relying on
the eyes of designers on forums.
David E. Carter’s 1999 book “Bullet-Proof
Logos: Creating great designs which avoid legal problems” is
a valuable resource for any identity designer. In his book, Carter suggests
that three types of logos help designers avoid infringement issues:
1.) Name in type: A simple type treatment of a business name can
often set it apart from other firms in a graphically pleasing manner. His book
offers examples such as Sony, Boeing, Casio and Chanel.
2.) Name in modified type: The unique modification of a typeface, in
representing a company name, can present a logo that cannot be easily duplicated.
The identities of Compaq, radius, Microsoft, Eaton and Canon represent this
type of image in the book.
3.) Name in type with a secondary device: I use this a lot in
creating logos that incorporate a unique art element as a letterform, or specific
design element within a type treatment, which then limits the possibility of
the design being "borrowed." Many identities that face infringement
issues are those with a simple graphic symbol, often a geometric shape, slapped
up next to a simple type treatment of the name. Several of my own logos are
used as examples of this type of logo in Carter’s book.
In addition to the advice in his book, David E. Carter offered some additional
input for this column. He adds, “Copying the work of others began with
cave art maybe 30,000 years ago. The Internet has made it easier than ever
to steal ideas. But for the graphic thief who is caught, the minimal problem
is being exposed as a cheat; the worst that can happen is that the big company
can sue your pants off, and you lose everything you own.”
“(The) best bet is to do original work, and make it bullet-proof,” says
Carter, “especially if it’s going to be used in more than a local market.”
Most of the logos designed by John Wingard Design, the firm of Creative Latitude
member John Wingard, are based typographic on solutions with the letterforms
manipulated in some way. According to Wingard emphasizing the name of the business
accomplishes two things.
“First, the name of the business becomes the driving force for branding
and marketing, says the Hawaii-based designer, “A large amount of time and
resources can be spent trying to build recognition of an icon that represents
a business. When a typographic solution is used, the brand equity is quickly
built on the on the letterforms and the company name.”
“Second, because the business name has been registered and is unique, the
chance for infringement is much lower with a typographic logo than an icon,” he
adds.
Tim Frame, of Tim Frame Design, tries to look at as much relative material
as possible when researching a project. This includes a visual reference of
design publications, annuals, and web sites, as well as the identities of competitive
companies or related businesses. The reason for this is two-fold according
to Frame: first, to make sure that what is created is unique and distinctly
different
from the competition;
secondly, to make sure that any ideas are not closely related to something
that is already being used by someone else.
“The more you research and familiarize yourself with the work of others,
the more aware you are of what’s already been done,” says Frame. “I
tend to assume that when I’ve designed something extremely simple, that
most likely someone else has already come up with this before; I which case I
would eliminate the concept from consideration, or insist that it be trademark
searched before giving it any further consideration.”
How "similar" is too similar?
“Naturally there are going to be ideas and designs that are very similar
even though created independently of each other,” according to Frame. “I’ve
had students unknowingly create logos that are very similar to logos that I’ve
seen, but more than likely they’ve never seen, because they have limited
access to reference resources.”
“That’s not to say that all similarities are coincidence,
and that there isn’t copying going on, or that some
logos aren’t mere adaptations of existing designs,” adds
Frame.
In the business world, the legality of a design similarity is often going to
be determined in court or through legal mediations. The matters of intent
and damage to another business are just two of the considerations to be weighed.
In the case of Quark, I think it will be interesting to see if the Scottish
Arts Council or some other entity initiates a legal challenge - or if some
other form of settlement is reached.
The 1976 NBC logo case comes to mind. I was in design
school at the time and students and instructors watched the
situation closely. Wikipedia.net offers the following account: “On
New Year’s Day, 1976, NBC’s visual trademark was
updated, as a stylized ‘N’ was introduced, consisting
of two trapezoids. The design was bold, bright and contemporary.
In February 1976, NBC was sued by the Nebraska ETV network
for trademark infringement since the new NBC logo was virtually
identical to the ETV logo. An out-of-court settlement was
reached in which NBC gave ETV new equipment and a mobile
color unit (valued at over $800,000) in exchange for allowing
NBC to retain their logo. In addition, NBC paid $55,000 to
ETV to cover the cost of designing and implementing a new
logo.”
That’s an expensive logo. Back then, prior to Internet access, most
in the design community were amazed such a thing could happen – especially
within the same industry.
How do you go about such a search?
The responsibility for such searches is most likely going to be established
in negotiations with the business seeking a new identity and the firm hired
to do the work. It may be the legal department of a major corporation,
a hired firm that specializes in identity searches or someone on the staff
of the design firm/department.
The introduction in Carter’s book, “Bullet Proof Logos: Logo Law
101,” written by trademark attorney James H. Higgins, Jr., offers excellent
trademark advice for any identity designer. Higgins explains that there is
no total legal guarantee in creating a “bullet-proof” logo. However,
he does think that by making use of two steps the designer will be protecting
their identity efforts. First, the design must fulfill an “identity” requirement
of the legal definition of a trademark. The logo should be made up of more
than simple geometric shapes and words used in the name should identify your
company as the single source of what your company provides. Secondly,
the logo needs to meet the “distinguish” portion of the legal requirement. “The
logo (both design and any word used) must be differentiated from pre-existing
logos so to avoid confusion,” according to Higgins.
Higgins does suggest hiring a firm to do a trademark search in regards to both
the wording used in a composite mark and the design element of the logo. Documentation
of such a search also demonstrates the good faith of a company in attempting
to avoid confusion with any other identities.
“No trademark or logo search is perfect, however, because even unregistered
marks and logos (which can be quite difficult to locate) have legal rights,” writes
Higgins. “However, if a search of proper scope is conducted, the amount
of risk will be substantially mitigated.”
My own small business clients often are not going to have the financial resources
for a major identity comparison search. As a one-person design shop I
do my best to research my own design concepts with online searches and the
resources of my own graphic design book library of a couple hundred volumes. My
project agreement will often make such clients responsible for their own searches,
as well as trademarking the design - which may mean bringing in their own trademark
attorney or search firm.
“Because we like to do work that’s not just following trends, I usually
use logo books and websites as a reference for what’s being done right now,” designer
Wingard contributes. “Then we ask ‘Where are things going to be in
the next few years?’ and move in that direction.”
Larger corporate clients usually take on their own searches through their legal
departments or relationships with firms who specialize in searches.
“The majority of my work is done for other, larger design firms, so I leave
the trademark search and registration issues to them since they are essentially
buying my artwork and presenting it as their own in most cases,” according
to Tim Frame. “For clients that I’m working with directly, I state
in my initial proposal or contract that they are responsible for all trademark
searches and registration.”
In the end, with a major corporate identity effort, I do think it is the responsibility
of the in-house identity project manager, and the graphic design team given
the assignment, to create an end result that is powerful, unique and memorable
as a symbol. Part of determining that unique quality is to do all possible
to make sure the logo does not resemble or infringe on the identity of other
established firms or organization. A reputable business should avoid conveying
any message - implied or intentional - of that business “borrowing” the
brand reputation or strength of another.
I have seen cases of designers posting concepts online with the question “Has
anyone seen this design, or something similar.” With the feedback
on the Quark identity, hiring a few Internet savvy designers to do a search
may be an economical and efficient manner in which to do a search.
“During the end of a college semester, one of my design professors said
that ‘Any logo idea you come up with has been done before,’” says
John Wingard. “Although I still don’t totally agree with it,
the idea has been liberating. If designers keep their work personal, and
concentrate on their own unique vision, that will be evident in the final logo.
If something feels like you might have seen it before, you probably have. Try
something else.”
Contributors:
David E. Carter - GraphicsBooks.org
Tim Frame - Tim Frame Design
Gene Gable, Contributing Editor, CreativePro.com
John Wingard - John
Wingard Design
Suggested Resources:
Bullet-Proof
Logos: Creating great designs which avoid legal problems, by David
E. Carter
How to
design a logo of letters, from the publishers of Before & After Magazine.
Design book reviews:
A Book About Design:
Complicated Doesn't Make it Good
by Mark Gonyea
Hardcover: 144 pages
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co
ISBN: 0805075755
Not often does one come across a great new design book that would be the perfect
holiday, or birthday, gift for your kids, nieces, nephews, grandkids or that
creative kid of any age you may know. That book is A
Book About Design: Complicated Doesn't Make it Good by designer
Mark Gonyea. (Gonyea is also a cartoonist known for his Mr.
Oblivious character.) With its bright colors, simple design and easy-to-read
text this book would be great for the young artist/designer in your life -
especially those of grade school age. Basic principles of design – often
forgotten by many in the profession – are presented in a very entertaining
manner. I'll be ordering copies for some of the budding designers I know, as
well as some of the seasoned pros who will appreciate getting this book in
the spirit of the holiday season. What a fun book!
Before & After:
Graphics for Business, by John McWade
Paperback: 198 pages
Publisher: Peachpit Press
ISBN: 0321334159
Before & After is
one of my favorite design magazines. The project examples, step-by-step guidelines
and practical articles have always been excellent resources for designers of
all education and experiences levels. With Graphics for Business,
author, designer and teacher John McWade teaches the reader how to make their
business look great. The book is not logo or corporate identity specific. In
addition to logo design, McWade covers the creation of newsletters, stationery,
sales pieces and forms, and charts, reports, calendars and maps. Still, the
logo and identity section of the book (44 pages of the volume) explains logos
very well and provides great examples of how to design lettermarks, wordmarks,
monograms, ligatures and other forms of identities. Playing with type, words,
shapes and illustrative elements are all presented in fun and well-illustrated
manner. The book will be a great addition to the design library of anyone interested
in producing a strong image for their business, or that of a client.
Worldwide Identity:
Inspired Design from Forty Countries, by Robert L. Peters
Hardback: 256 pages
Publisher: Rockport Publishers
ISBN: 1592531873
Robert L. Peters, the past president of the International
Council of Graphic Design Associations (Icograda), has produced one of
the most unique and interesting corporate identity books I’ve come across
in quite some time. In association with Icograda, and an international advisory
board, he has compiled – from entries submitted by design professionals
around the world - the beautiful volume Worldwide Identity: Inspired
Design from Forty Countries. Organized by country, the book highlights
diversity in both individual logos and complete identity systems – all
with well-written explanations and in some cases the actual design brief for
the projects. A description of each featured nation helps the reader comprehend
the influence and impact that the location, history, politics, cultural, economics
and religions of a region may have on the exhibited designs – and vice
versa. Designs from the United States are not included as American professional
design organizations were not full Icograda members at the time of the “call
for entries” in 2004. Any designer, feeling limited by their own geographic
surroundings, should take a trip around the world via the pages of this incredible
book. The author, Icograda, Rockport Publishers and all the designers/firms
included in the book should be very proud of the end result of their collaboration.
Jeff Fisher, the Engineer of Creative Identity for Jeff
Fisher LogoMotives, has received over 475 regional, national and international
graphic design awards for his logo and corporate identity efforts. His work
is featured in more than 75 publications on the design of logos, the business
of graphic design, and small business marketing. He shares his observations
about the design industry on his blog, bLog-oMotives.
Fisher is a member of the HOW Magazine Editorial Advisory Board and is also
on the 2006 HOW Design Conference Advisory Council. His own book, “The
Savvy Designer's Guide to Success,” was released by HOW Design
Books in late 2004. An excerpt from the book may be found at CreativeLatitude.com.
More information about Jeff Fisher LogoMotives is available at www.jfisherlogomotives.com.
