Published: December 14, 2008 in design » graphics by Thomas Baekdal
VSA Partners, the company behind Barack Obama's logo Sol Sender talks about the process of conceptualizing and designing the logo in this 2-part video. They also talk about the concepts that didn't make it, as well as how the community started to use it in ways they didn't imagine.
Update: See the rejected logos here
There is no question that the logo stands out from the rest of the political landscape. Political logos have always been blue with some text. Obama's logo is still very traditional, but its shape and the simplicity of the design made it special.
It is a logo than instantly stands out from the crowd. You can spot this logo from any distance. At the same time, because of its simplicity, it can be modified and expanded upon. This is something that most other logos are incapable of.
I don't think the designers intended to design for the social interaction. The creative director talks about how they wanted to control the message. So VSA is definitely not embracing the concept of change and using the uncontrollable strength of a social movement. They were excited when it happened, but I don't think they designed to logo with that in mind.
I think they focused on the visual aspect of how it looked (which they did very well), not how people could take it and change it into something else.
The team behind Barack Obama's campaign did understand the impact of being able to use a logo socially, and created a number of variations to further the cause.
Here are some of them:
...and this is my personal favorite.
Of course, there are some people who claim that the designers were simply drinking too much Pepsi. Then again, others will claim that Pepsi's new logo was inspired by Obama's swoosh.
BTW: Pepsi paid a staggering $1 million for someone to apply a twirl effect in Photoshop. In comparison, Barack Obama's logo was worth whatever price they paid. They created something you could identify instantly, and more importantly, could be used as tool for the community.
This is what a logo is all about.
(Images/Video via VSA Partners and Barack Obama)
Writer, Project Manager and Interaction Designer
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Jonathan, I am aware of the work involved in an enterprise level re-branding projects. I have worked on several.
And yes, it does involve a lot of people, and a lot of resources. Based on the time spent re-branding Pepsi, I don't think that $1 million is a lot... but based on the result it was a waste of time and money.
In my opinion, they wasted $1 million. They ended up where they started (well almost). I don't know if this is the fault of Pepsi, or their ad agency. But in any case, it is not worth $1 million - regardless of how much effort that went into it.
Take a look at this...
http://starline.tumblr.com/post/59407111/joshuawoulf-it-all-makes-sense-now
Found this while surfing...
@chrismingryan
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Christopher, Interesting find.
I have a lot of respect for an ad agency that can sell , such a minor change to a logo for a stunning US$1 million.
Good sales people and a reputation is simply worth a lot of money.
I simply do not think that Pepsi would pay less, as the amount of money paid reflects postievely on their business.
We all dream of working for some of these very rich corporate customers that do not mind waisting lot's of money.
Well I'm back to my US$30 hour web design jobs!
Wow great videos, not! (i.e. the videos are not there, I'm aware that it's not your fault but fix it)
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Videos fixed, thanks for the heads up!
I have tremendous respect for the brains behind a brilliant logo.. but sometimes the logo is just one piece of a brilliant branding campaign.. I would love to get how that game works, some day...
After reading some other comments...I have to say...how a re-branding can cost $1 million is beyond me. I coulda cooked up that pepsi logo in 2 hours on my laptop while watching Short Circuit. It WAS a waste of money, as so many have said.
Why can't I be paid 60k a year to sit around on a shitty mac and mull over "deep" reasons for making someone's logo look a certain way?
@Flash designer:
Yeah right. $30/hr as a web designer? hahahaha Maybe developer, who went to MIT and can code web sites that are more like web operating systems than just sites, but a designer? Yeah...keep dreaming.
p.s. Cool logo for Obama. Pepsi logo is lame.
Interesting. If someone had come up with a logo similar to Pepsi, they would have sued them to the ends of the earth; yet they can come up with a logo that's similar to Obama's campaign with no worries. Hmmm.....
It's not just a gut feeling anymore that Pepsi is piggybacking on Obama. In Miami there's now an ad draped over a large building that just reads "HOPE" with the Pepsi logo as the O. If Change had an "O" in it they would have used that instead. "Feel good about Pepsi like you feel good about Obama. Forget that red republican Coca-Cola" :) I'm not convinced that the Pepsi logo designer intended to copy Obama's logo, but what marketers have done with it is pretty clear...
I find it interesting that VSA Partners is presenting this as work they developed when they had nothing to do with it - other than hire Sol Sender after the campaign was almost over. But then again perception is reality. Go VSA Partners!
I feel terrible for Sol. I wonder if he is kicking himself right now. This is one of those project that could have lifted his reputation and helped him build a name for himself. Instead VSA swoops down and picks up the prize. Sorry Sol.
a lot of assumptions regarding pepsicobama. first, what logo came first? and second, who designed it? vsa has not said to the best of my knowledge that they designed the logo or are behind it. sender designed it in 2007. vsa hires him as a strategist in 2008 after the election. the videos are set in vsa's offices and yes, there are a lot of links. easy to misinterpret. vsa is good office that will give sender many opportunities.
http://designapplause.com has quite a bit of obama coverage as well as facts regarding pepsicobama.
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Initial introduction changed to reflect the who really created the logo. Thanks for the input everyone!
I love the arrogance shown here that everyone supported him, even the gun owners. I don't have buyers remorse but I am getting a headache from other buyers that are starting to have that problem.
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Dec 17
2008
Jonathan
"Pepsi paid a staggering $1 million for someone to apply a twirl effect in Photoshop."
Since I work for an ad agency, I feel compelled to defend this one.
Yes, they paid (almost) $1 million, but what people don't realise is that a logo redesign like that takes literally months and involves hundreds of people (not including many hundreds more in market research). It is (unfortunately) not the case that some lone designer gets the gig and emerges from a Photoshop session with a few scamps for the client to choose from. Indeed, if you'd ever worked on a large corporate redesign, you'd know that nothing could be further from the truth.
Indeed, even when large amounts like this are paid to agencies, much of the money is swallowed up by the costs of pitching for, and doing, the work. I'd be surprised if the agency came away with any real profit at all. Industry kudos and potential clients, certainly, but profit, no.