I get print advertisements in the mail every month slipped into my supermarket flyers or inside coupon postcard packs and the ad from Castle Windows always has me scratching my head. Here’s the logo at the top of the ad:
Now, why on earth would a WINDOW company have a logo of a castle (or any building) that has no windows? It’s beyond me. In fact, the lack of windows stands out so much in the image that at first glance I would assume this is a high-security storage company. Perhaps that’s why Castle feels the need to define who they are in quotation marks.
After some research, it turns out that this company has a number of logo variations (and all perplexingly use that same outdated Cloister Black font). Thankfully, there are versions with windows in the castle.
Another print ad header but with a different (windowed) castle:
Logo from website:
Castle employs different branding without any reason; but they’re not alone. Many other companies have this same issue due to a need for branding guidance (whether because they have no graphic designer or no budget to get the branding straight). There’s a lack of coherence in what the public sees which can make a company less than memorable and perceived to be unprofessional. This incoherence can be seen not only in the logo use but also the message or colors and fonts in the body of the ad, website, business cards, letterhead, brochure, signage, leave-behinds etc.
Businesses- take a look at yourself the way the public sees you.
• Are you consistent in your branding (matching business cards, invoices, website, envelopes etc)?
• Are you consistent in your message? Does the text in your ad reflect the text on your website?
• What makes your company stand out (in a positive way)?
• Where can you improve perception-wise?
• Do you have good logo files (EPS files are the best to have- they allow the most flexibility) or is your logo sometimes fuzzy when it’s printed or on the web?
With some introspection and a little help from a graphic designer you can streamline your image, become consistently recognizable and up your company’s image.
Good luck!
