Brand logos: the most talked about but not yet most effective brand assets

As a brand manager or marketer, you can imagine the almost endless conversations about brand assets. As a brand, you have to present yourself in the right and distinctive way if you want to be successful. Did you know that marketing teams spend the most time on brand logos? But are they really worth the time and attention?

When you think of Mickey Mouse's ears, you think of Disney. This is a character that has become a symbol, and eventually even a logo of Disney. If you see the 'M' or 'the shell' when driving on the highway, then you think of McDonald's or Shell. The 'M' and 'the shell' are pictorial marks or pictorial marks (logo without a brand name). These are just three examples of strong brand assets. This is because these brands have tied their message to the brand logo. As soon as you see the logo, your brain conjures up all kinds of associations it has with this brand alone.

Logos scores low on DBA Benchmark

The brand research team at Blauw has been conducting brand asset studies for over seven years. Based on that knowledge and experience, the Distinctive Brand Asset Benchmark was developed, which is unique in the Netherlands. This allows marketers of all brands to measure the performance of their brand assets against those of winners. About brand assets, Blauw's experts also really notice a few things.

Although Disney and McDonald's score high with their logos, the same is not generally true for most companies. Indeed, on average, logos score 56% (out of 100%), while other brand assets range from 70-80%. By the way, a score of 100% would mean that every consumer knows how to associate an asset with a specific brand within 3 seconds, only with that one brand.

Why are logos the most talked about brand asset?

Yet a logo is the most discussed brand asset within marketing departments. This is actually not surprising, because a brand logo can often be easily translated to different media channels. For example, a logo appears on the landing page of your website, on your product, on advertisements and as an application on your cell phone. A logo is therefore important, because without even mentioning your brand name, consumers can already know that it is your brand.

2 critical questions

But despite all that attention, the effect of this brand asset lags a bit behind. Do you want your brand logo to stand out well? Then keep two critical questions in mind when developing your logo:

Question 1: How well do you evoke your brand message by portraying only your logo?
Question 2: How strongly is your logo linked to your brand and not to those of competitors?

Mental and physical availability

Only when you understand these two questions, and can answer them well, will you have a strong logo as a brand. In addition, it is of course important to have your logo present at the right moment. Think again about the moment you are driving on the highway and see 'the shell'. This is a touchpoint for Shell, during such a touchpoint the brand presents itself as an option to a potential customer: the car driver with an empty tank. And that ties in with a well-known "marketing law" that marketing communication works strongest just before the moment of purchase.

Differentiate yourself with all your brand assets

Want to know how you as a brand can stand out not only with your logo but with all your brand assets?

In our latest white paper, our experts tell you everything you need to know about brand assets and give you the ultimate tips for developing a differentiating strategy.