Best brandings of all time

subjective opinion by the designers at Vorm

Branding influences customers’ perception and becomes a sign mark of what the company stands for.

I asked VORM designers to share their favourite ones with us.

ZocDoc
Inhouse branding

What do I like about ZocDoc? You won’t find here any restrained solutions — so characteristic for other medical pages. Instead, you’ll see perfectly compiled, bright colours and direct web notifications. Add to this humorous pictures and you’ll obtain a distinctive character of the brand.

The branding is timeless for one simple reason — it was created from the patients’ point of view. It doesn’t correspond with old patterns but stands for modernity and openness. ZocDoc is not only a visually attractive brand but it’s also a sign of changed, bold approach in the world of designing services. I’m impressed!

Kinder
Inhouse branding

What amazes me in Kinder’s branding is that it’s addressed both to children and adults. They’re doing a great job! As for the main colours, they use consequently white, black and red.

For its logotype, the brand picked one of the most popular and easily adaptive font — Helvetica Black. Although the branding hasn’t changed rapidly in decades, the line for children is still a symbol of dreams and childhood whereas the line for adults is sensitive, full of passion but still aesthetic.
It’s the best example of how a great branding can survive through years while still remaining significant and on top. Without doubt it’s one of my favourites.

Apple
Apple design team / Rob Janoff (logo)

Apple always evoked emotions in their customers and opponents. Why is it so impressive and well-thought-out?
I think cohesion is one of the main factors behind their success.

The range of products has a similar nomenclature that combines it all together and makes users emotionally attached to the brand. Notice, that every new product is promoted as a better version of the previous one and in promotional materials it’s always portrayed in everyday situations, pointing at its usefulness and ease of navigation.
Their logo changed slightly over the years. It also gives many possibilities how to fill it with colouring while preserving the original concept. The branding is simple but unique, and most importantly — it’s always associated with Apple.

Nike
Inhouse branding / Carolyn Davidson

Best branding of all time? Definitely Nike!
Its name refers to the Greek goddess of success, therefore we can observe a consequence in building the heroic archetype. It rapidly became a brand recognizable by people around the world. In many societies, it still implicates the high status and it’s a sign of an affiliation to the specific group. I really like their videos, many of them are humorous and I guess that’s why they get so many awards.

Nike focuses on building a personal relationship with customers. Having sports stars in their promotional materials helps to raise the popularity of products and shows the professionalism of the brand. The company relies on emotions, inspires to take actions — the best example of it is their famous slogan “Just do it!”. The logo implicates movement but also symbolizes the wing of Swoosh that gives it the gentle touch and the sense of lightness. Nike amazingly understands our needs, is always one step ahead and creates the future lifestyle.

Gorillaz
branding by Jamie Hewlett and Damon Albarn

The Gorillaz band consists of four animated members. All of them are fictional and are not personas of any “real life” musicians involved in the project. The creators designed a whole universe for their characters. This allows the listeners to fully engage with the band. Whether it is by the lyrics or by the quirky webpage one feels part of a virtual community.

Why is it so good? Because out of a normal band emerged a well-known brand that big league companies like Sonos, Converse or T-mobile see the benefit of teaming up. You could say the branding is timeless as animated figures usually do not feel the effect of time.

Adidas (Originals)
Inhouse branding

I’d say… Addidas Originals. It’s undoubtedly one of the stars when it comes to the timeless branding. Let’s take a look at their logo.

It almost remained untouched for so many years! The company is strongly associated with culture and lifestyle and their brand strategy is based on reaching a wide audience. Their products are marked with novelty and quality and that’s what I like about them.

IBM
recent branding by TDA Group

For me, among big and stable companies, IBM takes the lead with their model of visual identification. In my opinion, IBM has one of the most recognizable and timeless logos there.

Their logo was designed by Paul Rand and it’s continuously used since 1972. The minimalism, austerity, attention to details and lack of randomness make it universal but still modern and up to date. Their branding ideally corresponds with the company’s motto “Good design is good business”. It portrays the image of a strong, respected and innovative brand that has a well-established position in the tech world.

Spotify
branding by Collins

One of the most recognizable music platforms changed its visual expression! Spotify obtained a bold, eye-catching identity designed by Collins. The new branding is loaded with colours, energy and it’s targeting millennials.

The main aim when creating the new billboards was to promote the artist while giving it a touch of Spotify. This way it could be immediately associated with the brand. The final effect shows that undergoing creative brand refreshing definitely pays off. They use Circular typeface family that underlines their boldness and organizes compositions. Soon after their rebranding it becomes one of the most popular typefaces.

Look at the results!

2nd Best:

Google
Inhouse branding

Early this year, designers from all across Google, including Creative Lab and the Material Design team, convened in New York for an intense, week-long design sprint. Throughout that seven day sprint, I believe they have established the principles of how a modern brand should present itself in the digital era.

The new and refreshed Google is superbly clean and functional, with a genius spark of fruity motions. Furthermore, the new geometric sans-serif typeface complements the logo. Love it!

Read more on Google Design and visit our Behance page to see what our designers have been working on lately.