Thicken Power Portrayal via Logo Thickness

Characteristics of a brand logo project brand characteristics to consumers. An example from Brock University and Chiang Mai University researchers is how thickness in the visual elements of a logo suggests greater power of the brand. Because exposure to the logo generally accompanies introduction of a brand to prospective purchasers, the marketer’s awareness of logo line thickness effects is useful. At the other end of the product familiarity dimension, recognize how updating a logo in ways which change the thickness of elements might upset highly dedicated customers.
     We might assume that consumers most influenced by thick-lined logos are people feeling high in personal power, since consumers favor brands which reflect their personalities. However, it was people who felt low personal power who showed a stronger boost in brand preference when the thickness was bulked up.
     Researchers at Florida State University, University of Oregon, and University of Miami found that a consumer experiencing a particular type of low power—a feeling of having limited control of a situation—became more likely to purchase an item when encountering a logo with thickness in a particular part—the border. Shoppers in the studies expressed a higher willingness to complete a risky purchase if the product logo looked protected. With low-risk purchases, a thick border on the logo did not help. It depressed purchase intentions. Shoppers not suffering a control deficit subconsciously feel confined by the protected logo and so turn away.
     Perceptions of logo power also depend on the logo’s position. Researchers at Sun Yat-sen University, National University of Singapore, and Chinese University of Hong Kong designed ads in which a logo was positioned in one of two places in relation to the image of a customer. For some of the ads, the two images were at the same horizontal level and close together. This arrangement received the most positive evaluations when the brand was being promoted as a friend to the shopper. For the other ads, the logo appeared at a distance above the customer image in the ad. This arrangement worked best when the brand was being promoted as offering leadership to the shopper.
     The positioning of the logo, and perhaps the thickness of the logo lines, can affect not only how you make the sale, but also what consumers will do when they don’t like your logo. Will they inform you as a friend or as challenging your leadership?

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