Guest article: L Suresh: 'Logo' ka kaam hai kehna...

Changing a logo is such a telling exercise - it tells you how much money there's to be made.

So, another year has begun. And, if your fortunes still haven't changed, it's because you haven't encouraged your clients to change their logo.

What's the connect? Well, all those clients who haggled over loose change when passing your estimates, didn't bat an eyelid when they had to shell out crores for a re-branding exercise to a brand identity firm. So, what you need to do is start one, too.

But, your agency has been doing logo designs for years. How different can that be from setting up a brand identity firm?

That question brings in more questions -- with answers.

Where does your agency stand in the client's mind?

Your client will not offer suggestions to his doctor. ("Stomach upset? I'm not sure... couldn't it be lymphosarcoma of the intestine?") He will not ask options from the auditor. ("Can you file my returns, one set with 80A, 80P and 80CCC and the other with 80GGC, 80RRB and 80E?") He will not bomb his lawyer's arguments. ("I can understand it, but I don't think the judge will. Simplify it.") But, it not so with an agency. That's the reason why you need to create a new entity.

Why a brand identity firm?

Two reasons. One, clients believe that when all else fails, try re-branding. Two, they don't differentiate between a gas agency and an advertising agency because they think both deliver 14.2 kilograms of hot air every month.

Who does the work?

Logo options are what your visualiser, and if he is busy, the Mac operator creates. Brand identity is the end result of a collaborative effort between the client and his brand partner (you!), one that begins with research, the findings of which go through a gestation period and transform into a key insight that gives rise to a vision for the company, which is then translated into a graphic form. In other words, three months are up and sweet nothing has happened, so it's finally what the visualiser, and if he is busy, the Mac operator creates.

When is the deadline?

A logo is designed overnight and 'options' mostly involve changing curves to straight lines and blues to reds. Brand identity is a process. It works on the ancient advertising premise, 'Don't get straight to the point. What will you do for the rest of the day?' So, it takes months.

To start with, understanding the client takes a week. During this time, take over his conference room and his expense account. Carry your Wii console and plug it into his plasma TV. (All the hand-waving you do as you return a backhand will be misconstrued for an animated brainstorming session.) A fortnight later, play his brief back to him with some minor changes under the title 'A study of the changing brand landscape in alternating behavioural patterns - a brand narrative approach'. And, that's just the beginning. A few months down the line, you'll be ready to 'present'.

How is it presented?

The most important aspect of a logo presentation is the number of options you have presented. The most crucial part of a brand identity presentation is the number of slides that offer the rationale to the new identity.

So, what DOES one say in these slides? It's simple. Just google the last 10 re-branding exercises. In the words of Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark office), "Everything that can be invented has been invented." (Can you imagine he said that in 1899?) So, every colour, every slant, every straight line, every curve, even empty space, accidental coffee spills and the creative director's toddler's endearing squiggles that went unnoticed until the last minute have already been given a rationale. So, all you need to do is mix-n-match the above and get your own rationale ready. Just make sure that you mix them differently, or the client will find a match with the ppt (power point presentation) of another brand consultancy firm.

Presenting the estimate is equally important. Remember not to laugh and maintain a deadpan expression, even if the client's contact lenses pop out, or if a couple of buttons fly off his shirt as he inhales desperately, trying to keep his heart pumping.

What is the working methodology?

As far as brand identity goes, that's an oxymoron. And, as far as the industry goes, people asking such questions are...

(L Suresh is an independent creative consultant)