The connections between brand image and logo design

 We all know about Walmart, the big corporation that has been causing a stir and instigating debates for many years about the fact that it is putting small businesses and local grocers out of business.  We've seen them pop up everywhere, attracting swarms of people looking to save a few bucks on food, clothes, toiletries, and the like.  Their logo is pretty straight-forward: big, block capital letters in a bold sans serif font.  It looks exactly like a corporate logo.  It's big and in your face, much like the Hummer logo.  The logo embodies the company–a corporate entity that has a big, recognizable name.  The star separating WAL and MART gives the logo a little character, but the uniform blue color keeps it professional and, well, corporate looking.  Recently however, with the increase of business and the advancement of international stores, Walmart has changed their logo by rounding the letters and adding a bit of color.  The blue is a little lighter and more fun, and the letters are more rounded, less harsh, and lowercase.  Replacing the star is an abstract illustration of something that reminds me of rays of light, implying a new, energy and community interested company.  The final result of the logo change is definitely softer and friendlier to the eye, and projects less of a corporate image and more of a community oriented front.  Going back to the note on a more internationally friendly image, research done at several American universities suggests that Eastern cultures, such as those in Asia, are more attracted and open to rounder, softer fonts.  For more on this, check out an article at Businessweek.com.  That means that this new logo is more internationally recognized and acceptable, something that was surely researched by Walmart's team of designers and artists.  Now, most companies have trouble changing their logos, as loyal customers that follow the brand sometimes have strong opinions about the change and how it affects their support of the brand and the brand image.  Walmart, as a comprehensive business offering food, clothes, and household items, doesn't truly have a brand following.  Nothing from the Walmart brand is especially high quality, and the food that they sell is mostly from other companies, so Walmart customers don't really have brand loyalty–they're just looking for low prices.  In this aspect, Walmart is definitely lucky.  This logo change seems pretty beneficial to the company, as they've also altered their commercials and overall mission to include community action and focus on local events, issues, and charities.  This is also reflected in their slogan, "Save money. Live better".  This has made Walmart a much more popular company and star, and overall, this logo change seems to have been the best move possible by a giant corporation looking to change its image.