Mechanics and meaning

Quick, picture the symbol on Tiger Woods’ hat during the final round of this year’s British Open. It’s everywhere; you can’t turn left these days without seeing it. It’s the Nike Swoosh of course and it’s one of the most recognized symbols in the world today. But what is it? What does it mean? Why should you care?

Symbols are our native language

People used symbols to express ideas and concepts long before they began writing. Symbols are a kind of visual shorthand, allowing us to communicate our deepest thoughts and beliefs into a single, powerful image. Primitive cultures used symbols to try to create order of the chaos in the universe. Come to think of it, many corporate cultures do the same thing.

There are many kinds of symbols. Iconic symbols take the form of the thing they represent; the meaning of these symbols is often self-evident because it’s based on a characteristic that seems inherent in the thing itself, like a rock as a symbol for strength. Other symbols are aniconic, meaning they are chosen more randomly.

The interesting question to ask about symbols is: where do they get their meaning? By knowing the answer to that question, you can help control the meaning of your logo in the marketplace.

Most graphic symbols (including logos) are known as ideograms; these symbols represent ideas rather than specific words or sounds. These symbols typically lack inherent meaning, though they have strong cultural meaning. For instance, the shamrock is a leaf with no inherent meaning. But it does have a strong cultural, almost universal, meaning for good luck. The distinction is important. Symbols earn meaning from the quality of the thing they represent. Or put another way, symbols earn meaning through action.

To illustrate, let’s look at the two most powerful symbols in Western culture: the Christian cross and the swastika. Both are simple, elegant forms with a long history; curiously, each has experienced a dramatic shift in meaning.

The cross is an ancient symbol. The word cross is derived from the Latin word cruces, meaning torture. And in the Roman/Jewish/Persian tradition the cross represented a brutal instrument of execution. But after the crucifixion and the resurrection of Christ, and particularly after the conversion of the emperor Constantine, when wearing the cross no longer subjected you to hang from one, the cross took on new meaning. As Christianity spread throughout Western civilization, the cross’ traditional meaning transformed into something new and more profound—redemption through Christ’s supreme sacrifice.

Conversely, the swastika is today one of the most reviled symbols on the planet; and yet for more than 3,000 years it has been almost universally used as a symbol for good luck, strength and creative energy. The swastika has been used by the Greeks, Romans, Christians, Buddhists, Navajo Indians, even the U.S. Army’s 45th Division, the Thunderbirds, wore the swastika as a shoulder patch in the years following WWI.

In the early 1920s, Hitler, understanding the power of mass psychology, recognized the universal appeal of the swastika and adapted it to his own message. A few short years later, his systematic murder of millions irrevocably altered the swastika’s meaning.

Symbols

To say that symbols gain meaning through action is not to say that the design of your logo can be just anything and still succeed. To quote the eminent designer, Paul Rand: “Design, good or bad, is a vehicle of memory. It is easier to remember a well designed image than one that is muddled.”

A successfully designed logo is one that instantly brings to mind the experiences, whether good or bad, you’ve had with the company that it symbolizes. Great logos do have some common characteristics. Visually, they’re simple. With simplicity comes elegance that is, in many ways, timeless. Perhaps a logo’s most important visual characteristic is distinctiveness. Even with a high quality product, distinctiveness is critical to memorability.

Make a board of your competitors’ logos. How does your logo look when you add it to the crowd? Does it stand out or blend in?

You’re probably asking what does this have to do with my business? Actually, the connection is relevant. Look at your logo and consider this: what your logo is literally is secondary to what it stands for. In that regard, your logo is a signifier, a symbol for your brand. It points people neatly and efficiently to their feelings about your company.

Per...per...perceptions!

How people perceive your company is dependent on their experience with you or your product. In that regard, your logo is not self-explanatory; it functions properly only after people have judged your company or your products to be acceptable or unacceptable, superior or inferior. Someone who has no experience with your company will assign no meaning to your logo, short of any meaning associated with the components of your logo. (If your logo is or incorporates a shamrock, people will in the beginning assign the typical meaning of good luck to your logo; experiences they have with your brand, however, will determine how lucky you are.)

As people accumulate experiences with your brand, they assign their emotional feelings to your logo. Companies that get it right design their logo holistically, while working to control the experiences people have with their company. They consider the logo in relationship to every customer experience, every ad, and every brochure. Employees who get it understand that the tone of their voice affects the way people feel. Who among us hasn’t dealt with a customer service rep who just didn’t care? All of these experiences are ultimately assigned to your logo.

So what does your logo say about you?