Dramatic Change Sweeps BU
I’m tempted to make some sort of smart-ass comment here, but instead I’m going to let the Boston University communications department speak for itself. In the lede of their website’s story about the school’s brand new logo, they write:
A year and a half of study, discussion, and hard work ended last week when members of the Office of Marketing and Communications gathered in the Metcalf Trustee Ballroom for the unveiling of the University’s new master logo, along with a manual of guidelines for its use.
Ok, now look at the old logo (above on the left), set aside the new logo (on the right). I know what you’re thinking: it’s a really good thing they took their time with this. The decision to remove the white line separating “Boston” and “University” clearly necessitated a minimum of 18 months of “study, discussion and hard work,” not to mention the tab B.U. paid local design firm Toth Brand Imaging.
And lest you think that the removal of the line was the only change:
Scott Dasse, the creative director for [B.U.’s] Office of New Media, said that although the new logo is very similar to the old one, the spacing has been adjusted to make the words feel less crowded and the integrity of the border has been strengthened so the image can be reproduced at a variety of sizes.
It’s true, I’ve never seen borders with that much integrity. I’d trust them with my life. Now, the only question is who’s more adept at wasting money: BU or MIT?
January 30th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
As an alum, I am personally grateful that the university worked with a branding company to improve its logo. I couldn’t stand the logo before. Now, I’m overwhelmed with school (what’s the mascot, again?) pride.
January 31st, 2008 at 10:20 am
Dude, the new one looks wicked better
January 31st, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Logos are not the only changes undertaken during rebrandings. There are photo and copy standards, typography changes, publication redesigns, and so much more. Also, as Chris F. says, the new one does look a lot better. Sometimes subtler changes are the most effective. Any jerk could have gone in and made the thing a whole new beast.
January 31st, 2008 at 9:16 pm
This article is inaccurate. There’s no “new” logo. It’s a slightly tweaked version of the previous logo. There’s also a book of well-conceived guidelines that accompany the revised logo. Read www.bu.edu/brand to get a clue.
February 1st, 2008 at 10:00 pm
No truth to the rumor that someone snorted the white line…