There is a specific way to distinguish good logos from ordinary ones. The right one will have a significant impact on market trends, shift current trends, and influence future logo designers. In 2024, it can be quite inspiring to look beyond the few iconic logos of popular brands.
In this article, we will discuss about
- Award-winning logos
- Features of award-winning logos
- Ten award-winning logos
KEY POINTS:
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The best logos are those that have truly stood the test of time and made a memorable impact. A good logo focuses on many design elements, such as color, symbols, typography, size, and shape. Most popular logos emotionally connect with the audience, incorporating hidden meanings and Easter eggs, influencing perceivers to trust the brand. If you’re a small business, you should focus on creating a professionally designed logo that sets the tone for a positive brand experience.
But do you need inspiration? Here, I’ve curated a list of iconic and popular award-winning logos that have genuinely contributed to the overall success of a brand. Curious to know which brand emblems made the list? Let’s dive in and find out!
Table of Contents
How Do Designers Make The Perfect Award-Winning Logos?
Logo Design Principles
Graphic designers responsible for creating a logo adhere to logo design rules and guidelines. These principles include a combination of different qualities that are typically seen in good logos: uniqueness, simplicity, timelessness, versatility, and scalability. Without these, you can’t determine if a logo is trying to tell a story or rely on the company’s message.
Graphic Design Guidelines
Aside from logo design principles, graphic designers adhere to guidelines that are essential in their design ideology. The graphic design principles include balance, contrast, typeface, whitespace, and proportion. You can see that most designers blend emblem and graphic design concepts together to ensure the brand has a stunning logo. These principles must be followed to create aesthetics around brand identity and enhance the overall brand messaging.
Symbolism Or History
Logos are a visual representation of a brand. They represent the values, goals, and ideals through this emblem. Many times, you can see this pattern in many brand logos where they aim to honor their humble beginnings by adding symbols, font styles, or using a color palette to signify their unique messaging. The designers take on the weight of designing a creative icon that doesn’t lose the brand’s essence. Here, in this challenge, we can see that designers add symbolism to provide more depth and meaning.
Top 10 Award Winning Logos And Brand Identity
Iconic logos are considered a great source of inspiration for any designer, branding, and advertising. Companies, whether big or small, invest in developing a standalone emblem that stays true to its messaging for their thriving business. But how can you trust that a logo can grab the eyes of the people without breaking the bank?
Award-winning logos are characterized by the following similar features:
- Simple and easily recognizable
- Clean lines and minimalist designs
- If a font is needed, either serif or sans-serif typography
- Use minimal colors or color combinations
- Versatile for various applications and media
- Less negative space to add more depth
- It should be relevant but not trendy
Now take a look at world-famous 10 award-winning logos that are iconic then, and now.
1. Burger King
Who doesn’t love the famous Burger King logo? A giant burger? Looks delicious and yummy, reflecting the company’s identity just like that. The rebrand was by JKR (Jones, Knowles, and Ritchie) and won The One Club Gold Pencil in 2021. According to the brand, they wanted to transform the brand from a synthetic feel to a more real and tastier leader in the market.
Burger King’s goal was to achieve the highest standards for food quality, sustainability, and the restaurant experience, also paying homage to the old iterations of their logo. I feel the new trademark symbolizes confidence and fun while looking tasty!
2. OnePlus
A refreshed appearance might be necessary for a well-known brand, especially if it resides in technology. OnePlus is known to compete with the top tech companies in the world, so it’s necessary that the logo is unique and impressive. When OnePlus entered the US market, the original logo underwent some new modifications.
They gave the old logo a more flexible and modern look by changing the OnePlus wordmark from white to red. The modern logo won the Reddot Award.
3. Visa
Visa, known to be Mastercard’s biggest rival, rebranded to modernize its logo. Mucho, in collaboration with Visa, created a new visual identity system to change the company’s paradigm and reposition Visa for a new look. They grabbed the Bronze in the Brand Impact Awards.
The old logo had two horizontal stripes, blue on top and yellow on the bottom. Now it is taken out, only keeping the wordmark for its updated appearance. The concept of trust and security is maintained by not changing the wordmark.
4. TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor refreshed its globally recognized travel icon with the help of an agency called Mother Design. The rebranding included transforming the old owl logo into a modern and simpler version online on their website.
It’s crystal clear why TripAdvisor received the One Club Winner Award in 2021. Instead of having three colors in one logo, they stuck to TripGreen, giving it a unified and fresh look.
5. The I Love New York Logo
Who doesn’t love the Big Apple? The original “I Love New York” logo was designed by Milton Glaser in 1977. Since then, it has become a huge component of many merchandise and products around the world, ranging from seeing the symbol on fashion t-shirts, bumper stickers, posters, mugs, and many more. The initial design by Glaser was dashed off in a taxi, which represented New York’s spirit. The iconic logo consists of the capital letter I, followed by a heart symbol in color red, stacked above the capital letters N and Y.
Additionally, The famous typeface used here is a slab serif typeface, American Typewriter. An updated “We Love NYC” logo created in 2023 was not received with open arms and generated criticism. That gives us the lesson: sometimes it’s better to leave iconic things untouched.
6. Instacart
Next on the list is Instacart, and it’s included because it boasts a recent award-winning logo. The Instacart modern logo with the carrot is a memorable and cute detail. However, the company aimed to convey forward-thinking, fresh, and dynamic energy to the customers. Wolf Olins created the new Instacart logo and branding image to effectively communicate the message, values, and goals of the company.
It retained the carrot in redesign to symbolize the delivery of fresh food to customers, incorporating an arrow that represents the leaves of the carrot in a way that conveys credibility and trustworthiness. Instacart won a Silver award at the 2023 Clio Awards. Well, rebranding the right way can certainly help you reach the success you envision.
7. FedEx
The FedEx logo truly stands bold and loud. The blue and orange representation of the name “FedEx” was created by Landor Associates in 1994. This is an example of how you can make use of negative space to embody what the company does in the industry. In case you haven’t noticed, there’s a hidden arrow between the E and the X that represents the company’s role in moving letters, boxes, and freight from one place to the next.
This is a clever way of incorporating hidden elements into a logo that looks minimal, modern, and confident. The design delivered has won over more than 40 awards to date. This legendary logo is still one of the many logos that we never want to see rebranded or changed. What do you think?
8. Cadbury
The world-renowned confectionery brand Cadbury won a merit award in 2021 from the One Club. The gold gradient logo, written in cursive sloping letters on a purple background, is still a vivid memory from our childhood. You’ll never forget this brand! Now, for the iconic Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate, the logo has been repositioned, changing the slanted version into a straight line. It was more geometric state, to make it look more trustable. The agency that worked on the rebranding was Bulletproof.
The agency aimed to create something elegant that moved the brand forward while honoring its past and giving it a bit of modern heritage. To maintain Cadbury’s British legacy and not scare away beloved customers, they made mild iterations to give it a contemporary abstract feel.
9. Apple
The Apple global success story began with the creation of the Apple icon. It was designed by Rob Janoff in 1977, and since its inception, it has played a chief role in Apple’s overall brand recognition and success. When the bitten apple was subject to various interpretations over the years, Rob Janoff mentioned that the bite was not coincidental. A short brief from Steve Jobs was not to make it cute, and the typography should be basic.
The idea of introducing a bite on the apple was to ensure that people don’t mistake the fruit for other fruits; for instance, taking a bite from a peach can cause it to collapse, but an apple would remain steady. He explained that he simplified the logo to make it more visually appealing. Without any secret or symbolic representation, this silhouette became a part of technological history. So, how can we miss out on this one?
10. Nike
The Nike emblem is proof that one effortless idea can greatly influence a brand. The checkmark, or the swoosh symbol, was designed by Portland student Carolyn Davidson in 1971. Initially, she was paid a sum of $35. However, the founder, Philip Knight, didn’t love it at first but predicted that it would eventually be liked by everyone. His prediction proved correct, and in 1983, he gave Davidson a gold swoosh ring embedded with a diamond and an envelope containing Nike stock.
This logo is a prime example of how to make use of the black & white concept. The logo conveys positivity and motion from point A to B (although the swoosh was mostly red and white for a long time before it shifted to black). Well, it still remains unchanged, and the single swoosh continues to influence and make an impact all over the world. So, it tells us it’s okay to go with what you feel is right; it can make a huge difference.
To Wrap Up
There’s always a story or a message behind the creation of a logo. The story can convince the customers to trust the logo and increase its familiarity to enhance your brand’s visual identity. Most of the logos mentioned in the list have an interesting way of sharing their visual identity with the audience. Their strategy includes incorporating the company’s visuals, goals, and objectives into their respective logo designs. It requires careful planning and time, as well as the expertise of designers, to earn recognition and coveted awards.
If you require rebranding assistance or are looking for a logo design, you should always select experienced clients, designers, or agencies that can help you create a stunning logo that everyone can connect with. You can try out Graphically, as we have skilled in-house graphic designers who excel at designing inspiring top logos. You can do so by subscribing to Graphically, which has affordable plans that fit your budget. Try Graphically.io now.
FAQ
1. How do graphic artists create ironic logos?
Graphic artists collaborate with the brand team to understand their values, personal goals, and objectives. Taking into consideration the company’s preferred colors and matching typography, the artists craft an initial draft of logos. If the company approves the design, the artists enhance its meaning by incorporating various elements. Once the company selects a logo, it represents the company to the fullest extent.
2. Where Can You Get a Professionally Designed Logo?
You can enlist the assistance of creative graphic agencies, where top-notch graphic artists can help you achieve your desired outcome. These graphic design agencies boast skilled artists with professional expertise to breathe life into your vision. They can effortlessly aid you in crafting your dream logo without consuming excessive time. One such agency is Graphically.io, where you can connect with in-house designers and receive your design within 24 hours.
