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What are the basic types of logos? Logo: Is the somewhat generic term for a corporate identity. Sometimes a logo is just type, sometimes it is a picture, and sometimes both. 1. Logotype: A type treatment of a company's name. Below is the history of the Sony logo. These may seem like finicky changes nowadays, but it took Sony from 1961-1962 to redesign the logo to better translate into a new medium — neon signs.
Google uses a logotype with a decorative, customized font.
2. Icon, Mark, Brand or Dingbat: A mark evolved from the symbols potters used to identify themselves in ancient times. Now a mark is a pictogram used to represent what a person or company wants to convey in terms of information and feeling. Here is an examples so well branded that it doesn't need an introduction; and that is the whole idea behind using an icon, so that when you are miles away from being able to read the word "McDonald's" or you just get a flash of the golden arches out of the corner of your eye, you start dreaming of hamburgers. This an abstract symbol, which reads fast and easy, but it could have been a drawing of a realistic hamburger, which is more difficult to discern, but if you've never heard of McDonald's you'd get the idea.
This is the McDonald's brand. The word 'brand' is literally derived from a cow brand. In the olden days, ranchers soon discovered it was a bad idea to brand their cows with something like, "This here's Old McDonald's Cow," so they invented brands or pictograms to represent themselves. The drawback is that everyone has to be taught what the abstract brand means. 3. Icon and Logotype: Here is another famous example. Nike has invested so much money into branding their image that they could use the word "Nike" or the "Swoosh". Most companies, however, have to combine both because they can't afford the brand recognition. Most people think that it is essential to brand their logotype; however, I think it is tres eighties.
4. Combination: These are my favorites! I like to combine both the logotype and icon. It solves the problem of having to design three different logos, and spending millions of dollars branding your company. Below is a logo I designed for a floation spa, featuring sensory deprivation tanks. I think combining the type and icon adds aesthetic integrity and sophistication to the design. This logo both reads and feels "float" in one swoop.
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