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What does it cost?
This is the mother of all FAQ's. But
it's a fair question, and it deserves an answer.
As phrased by Mike Walsh, Assistant
Professor of Marketing, West Virginia University:
"Logo change is not a trivial undertaking. How much do companies
typically spend when designing a logo? In my past life,
I've working in the advertising industry and I know there is no
easy answer. In fact, I've looked at various trade publications
hoping for some quote/reference on this topic. No luck so far."
Right, Mike; it's not easy to answer -- and
you won't find much good reporting on it. (The press, in
fact, is drawn to stories of tens, indeed hundreds of
millions in costs of "image change," based however on retail
format changes or on advertising media expenses incidental to
rebranding, where rebranding planning and design costs
themselves were comparatively small. )
I shared y0ur question over lunch with friends close to the
current (2008) marketplace, designers Kuyper, Wolf, van
den Bergh and Toth, qualifying the question to apply only to
institutional brands and to exclude category brands... I neither
know nor care what an advertising agency (say) does in the way
of category brand tweaking, where costs can be as insignificant
as changing the ad signature graphics file and the issues are
merely marketing issues. Corporate brands are much different in
planning and design processes (and much more interesting to me).
One of us jumped in and said “75 to 200 thousand [US$] for
analysis and planning, 55 to 75 for logo design, 50 to 150 for
typical corporate applications -- documentation, then, on a per
page basis; maybe twenty pages at $1,500 per page.”
Everyone else then said “No, it’s not that simple. There are
too many ‘it depends’.”
Correct. It depends, for example, on:
Are you starting with CEO engagement, or do you have to
build up to that over time? This can add months, sometimes
years.
How many audiences need to be engaged in the process?
Planning costs are pretty much a direct function of the
number of individual interviews required (or prudent) with
key players.
Is a monolithic strategy called for, or do sub-brands have
to be rebalanced/rebranded too?
And above all, how much quality is required (in
sourcing of both strategic and design counsel)? Some firms
routinely command ‘don’t ask’ fees, higher by orders of
magnitude... for the comfort level that comes with perceived
bench depth and relevant experience.
But for ballpark purposes, in America in 2008 the above range
of $210,000 to $455,000 sounds about right, for planning
and designing a moderately complex institutional rebranding, by
qualified specialists.
This, of course, just covers professional service fees and
expenses. You still have implementation costs, notably:
- Launch event staging, employee communications, brand
launch advertising;
- New stationery (best done quickly);
- Facilities signs replacement;
- Staff realignment and retraining.
These costs and others, varying by industry, can be significant
one-time costs. But they can also be understood as one-time
opportunities to leverage the event of a rebranding for its
unique ability to command attention, elevate perceived quality
and renew confidence.
Other comments welcome, from client and consultant alike
More from Jerry Kuyper:
I wouldn't want to suggest that a prospect needs to decide
whether they want a "quality" team/result or a lower quality
team/result. No client wants someone learning on their job; but
many are interested in getting seasoned thinking and top
creative work at fees they deem more affordable.
I'm also not sure about your fees ranges above; they seem to be
between what independent consultants and major firms
might charge. For small firms, or an independent teams of top
specialists, I would think these ranges might be more accurate:
Strategy, 40 - 120K
Logo, 30 - 60K
Design System, 20 applications 1.5 to 2K per
application, 30 - 40K
Standards, 20 pages, 1.5 to 2K per page, 30 - 40K
Total range: $130,000 to $260,000
(with expenses extra).
The largest variables not necessarily included are
naming/nomenclature needs, brand architecture needs/number of
entities within company/organization, and new research needs --
any of which could add considerable cost. Other variables
(as you have suggested) include number of interviews,
presentations, refinements required.
Incidentally, for years I have been helping my clients
understand that while demonstrating a logo as applied to a
[hypothetical] sign or homepage may be useful in evaluating the
look and feel of a logo, this is not the same as the
[actual] design of a signage system or website. Kuyper |
