You may have heard that the NBA has allowed corporate logos on team jerseys this season. Last May they reported that six teams had signed deals to add a small logo on the left side of the chest of NBA players’ jerseys. By midseason, 20 of the 30 teams in the NBA had signed advertising deals to display a corporate logo on their jerseys. Deals are reported to be around $7 million per season for a logo patch that is restricted to be no larger than 2.5 x 2.5 inches. Corporations such as Goodyear (Cleveland Cavaliers), GE (Boston Celtics), Western Union (Denver Nuggets) and Disney (Orlando Magic) have signed jersey sponsorship deals.

What is the value of your logo?

What impact does your company’s logo have on your market? Is it so valuable to your marketing efforts that you would gladly pay to have it seen by large crowds of people because you know that their recognition of your logo is contributing to your bottom line? If you cannot make that connection, maybe you need to examine your logo and the brand for which it stands. A good logo represents all the good attributes you are trying to market regarding your brand. Whenever we are designing a logo, there are certain marketing questions I want to have answered by our clients.

• What is your marketing positioning statement? In other words, what do you want your market to believe about your brand?
• What is unique about your brand? What does your product, service or company do better than your competition? What is the differentiator between you and them?
• What does your market really want from you? Is that reflected in your logo? For instance, if you have been in business since 1905 and your logo has a nostalgic look, but your market wants cutting edge innovation from you, the 1905 retro look may not gain much attention from the people who are buying from you.

How distinct is your logo?

A good logo should be recognizable at a glance. That means you need an eye appealing design for sure. But it also means that your logo cannot look like everything else that is in the marketplace. Think of going to a grocery store and looking for a jar of peanut butter. In a sea of brands, a good logo will stand out from the pack. I prefer to eat Peter Pan brand peanut butter. I like crunchy over creamy. At a glance, I can find the brand I am looking for. Why? Because the design of the logo: the font used, the graphics and the colors used on the label are distinct. No other peanut butter that I have seen has a flying boy in a green suit on the label. It is familiar to me and I can find it at a glance. Does your logo do that for you? If not, it may be time for a change.

Visual connection to your brand

Your logo is the visual connection to your brand. A good logo adds value to your brand. If you think I am blowing smoke, do a little experiment. Go into any sports retail store and examine the difference in price between the apparel with a Nike logo on it and those with no logo. A baseball cap without the logo might sell for $10. A baseball cap with a Nike swoosh is selling for at least double, if not triple that price. The difference between one and the other is a logo that stands for a brand people want to be seen wearing.

Take a look at your logo. Is it contributing to your marketing efforts, which are contributing to your bottom line? If not, it may be time to determine the real impact of your logo and redesign it.