Corporate design

Academic sculptor Rostislav Illík

Study support for combined study students

Study programme: B7202 Media and communication studies (KOCRD)

Study guide: B8206 Visual arts (KOCRD)
Introduction:

We all meet various forms of corporate design every day, which could be called a phenomenon of
today's commercial world. Every day our eyes register tens and hundreds of pieces of visual information
that await us at every step we make; starting from labels, covers, stickers, advertisements on buses,
billboards, commercials on TV and all its commercial relations, even up to the clothes we have on right
now. All these modern media of visual communication want to be different in some way; they want to
show their uniqueness and identity. Logotype, brand, trademark as the fundamental elements of
corporate design, serve this purpose. The goal of these lectures is to clarify the whole structure of
corporate design, to familiarise with the historical development, current situation and detailed
examination of design manuals as an important device of corporate design. At the same time there is
emphasis on the ability of students to critically and independently consider particular visual elements of
corporate design, from logotype to its application to different media.
This study support deals with this, as well as other crucial aspects of this field. It speaks about the
theory which should be used in practice and about experience that the teacher, and at the same time
the author of particular elements of corporate design, can pass on.

The study goals:

After taking this course you will be acquainted with:

 the structure of corporate design in the corporate identity system

 historical bases and typology of logotypes
 meaning and content of design manual and its use in practice
 the ability to use the acquired knowledge in practical corporate design

After taking this course you will know how to:

 prepare documentation and specify the demands for creating basic visual elements of corporate
design
 apply the acquired knowledge to everyday decisionmaking in practical situations
 create a design manual according to given requirements
 judge individual elements of corporate design from an aesthetic and expert view
Primary study areas
1. Corporate design as an essential part of corporate identity.

2. Historical roots of corporate design and the typological division of visual means
(logotypes, symbols, and trademarks).

3. Manual design: its content, importance and practical use.

4. Practical ability to asses the aesthetics of visual elements of corporate design.

1. Corporate design as an important device of application of

corporate identity in visual communication

Keywords

Corporate identity, corporate design, logotype, trademark, brand, symbol, identity, differentiation, design
manual, corporation norm, colour as an important element in corporate design, corporate design
creation

Study goals of this chapter

 understanding the conception of corporate design

 awareness of corporate design in corporate identity structure

 understanding the meaning of corporate design

 familiarisation with the meaning of carefully applied corporate design in use

Corporate design has gone through many changes during its development. In the beginning, corporate
design was a rather utilitarian concept, as it concerned identification of soldiers in mass battles or
aristocratic blazons. Over the time it has developed into an important means of communicating with
customers; from simple product marking and craftsmen’s signboards to the perfectly worked-out
systems of visual devices in corporate trademarks. During the fifties and sixties, the first historically
sustainable origins of such conception of corporate design appeared, thanks to the activities of big
designer companies in the USA (Landor) and in the UK (Henrion). Huge corporate designs for big
companies and organisations began to be created, e.g. IBM, Olivetti, Mobil Oil, Lufthansa, British Rail,
BMW etc.

Over time we came to recognise that corporate design was just one of the parts of a more complex
system of corporate identity, which came together to establish the system as we understand it today.
CORPORATE IDENTITY is the umbrella term for: corporate culture and corporate product.

Remember
Corporate identity structure
CORPORATE IDENTITY
Corporate design
Corporate communications
Corporate culture
Corporate product

CORPORATE IDENTITY – represents the main corporate strategy of a company. It is also a social
technique for establishing, developing and stabilising an organisation. Corporate identity includes many
means of presentation, which unite a particular organisation, at the same time as distinguishing it from
others. We can say that corporate identity is the sense and form of an organisation.
Corporate design – united visual style including these elements of visual interpretation: trade mark,
grid, font and typography, colour, architectonical design and particular measures.

Corporate communications – if all the rules are kept, they have a very positive influence on public
opinion and they shorten the distance between organisation and target groups. It is an extensive and
often complicated system, which ensures quality communication and dialogue between subjects.

Corporate culture – is a system of values, manners and behaviour of co-workers in an organisation

that create, through corporate design and corporate communication, the outer image of the company.
This is not a precise science, but rather an ongoing long term development.

Corporate product – is one of the essential requests of good marketing, it is a clearly identified
product, given by a recognisable producer.
Summary

Corporate design has recently been going through a boom, mainly thanks to the rapid expansion of
physical press and electronic means, and is understandably strategically important at a time of intense
competition for customers and market position. Due to information technologies and the man on the
street’s new-found access to the process of spreading visual messages, there is also the danger of
devastating this part of human culture, which can already be seen on daily basis. It is necessary to face
this amateurism with a good knowledge of these issues, having clear historical bases very closely
connected to visual arts history. We have to enforce strict professional rules and use our findings on
corporate identity and design in the creative field. The corporate design field, which is so attractive to
many non-professionals, should be thoroughly observed in particular, and knowledge of special
marketing terms should be exercised, as well as the ability to judge aesthetic and artistic qualities of
corporate design. For that reason, visual elements have to be taught, because these elements are
widely applied in public.

Comprehension check

Name and explain the structure of contemporary corporate identity.

Think and discuss

1. Why is corporate design becoming increasingly important?

2. Think about how you personally feel about corporate design: what does it mean to you
and what do you imagine under this term?

3. What are your application limits of corporate design visual means in public? Can you
suggest some solutions?

2. Historical roots of corporate design, and typology of visual

images, symbols and marks used in corporate design
Keywords

heraldry, monograms, product brand, ceramic marks, stonemason marks, printing marks, watermark,
design programme, mark – visual, verbal, letter, combined, trademarks, graphic marks, picture marks,
figurative marks, pictograph fifth element corporate design, national mutation of marks

Study goals of this chapter

 understand the principles of corporate design visual elements creation

 familiarise with visual forms of symbols, signs and logotypes interpretation

 understand the difference between individual forms of corporate design elements interpretation

 understand the advantages and disadvantages of application of these elements in practice

 familiarise with the criteria of assessing proposed elements from an aesthetic point of view

Mark - is usually combination of name, words, symbols and images.

Visual – e.g. Mercedes (trident star in a circle symbolises aerial, road and waterway transport).
Verbal (logotype) - e.g. Nestlé, it is a brand composed only of letters, wrongly called logo, but this is a
very short and quite often used word.
Letter – e.g. 3M, IBM, and Sazka has the symbol S in a polygon.
Combined - e.g. Škoda combination of circle sign with a winged arrow and logotype ŠKODA;
Mercedes, Volkswagen and others use combinations.

It is also possible to sort the marks according to the character theory to pictograms, ideograms and
phonograms.
Pictograms – graphic sign representing a specific message thanks to conventionalised image.
Extralanguage validity is used everywhere it is necessary. For example toilet labelling, transport, safety
information systems, pictograms for Olympic Games etc.
Ideogram – we have to learn the importance of this mark. E.g. the above mentioned Mercedes mark
where we understand its meaning after an explanation.
Phonogram – mark or initials that can be read. E.g. ČSOB, SAZKA etc. This used to be a very popular
way of labelling in the Czech totalitarian environment. (OPBH, ČSLA, ČSAD etc.)
Logogram – little known expression, mentioned here just to complete the list. Sign representing a
particular word. E.g. %, §. Also figures, mathematic, chemical and other scientific symbols are
logograms.
There are many more examples of mark divisions and categorisations, but they are not so fundamental
that they would considerably change the categories of these visual signs – rather they would form
subcategories.

Remember
Visual graphic elements of corporate design should be the following:
- easy to remember
- carrying the basic identification of product or company
- distinct from related group of other products
- at the same time well advertising product or company
- easily reproducible on all possible visual supports, including the electronic ones.

Logotype is a graphic symbol of a company, an organisation or an institution. The best logotypes reflect
the type of activity practised by the company, but their graphic interpretation should not be complicated
and remain clear on all sorts of reproductions from business cards, headed paper and outside
advertising to miniature reproductions on a promotional ball-point pen. Recent development trends in
new brand creation are intensively heading to verbal brands - logotypes. An historically valuable
example of this type is the IBM logotype (year 1956, its author is famous graphic designer Paul Randt).
A modern solution is represented, for example, by the new logotype of our capital Prague by Aleš
Najbrt, or the new logotype of the city of Brno by Věra Marešová.

Finally, the first pioneer of high quality work in corporate design in our modern history, after the
revolution of 1989, is the city of Zlin. It uses a very smooth and simple logotype, and with it comes a
high-quality and intricate design manual from its two authors Machek and Babák.

This design manual has been used extensively by the city of Zlín and it only proves that it is worth
paying great attention to this issue. This practice is very fruitful, as we can see today, as not only a
positive visual image of Zlín was established!
Summary

Whenever you are required to prepare a layout for a new corporate design for an organisation,
institution or company, do not forget that this activity is no less important than, for example, planning its
economic growth. The first impression a person gets is the visual one. This means the one that is
carefully treated within a well planned corporate design has the advantage. To define and design a
project accurately, the author should know the organisation’s history and typology and be versed in the
contemporary course of events in this field and have a little knowledge about how to balance these
elements aesthetically. This area of marketing knowledge has its roots in the long-distant past, and is
above all related to the history of arts.

It is necessary to have an idea about the history of graphic design (see Recommended literature) that
shows the development of visual elements specifically related to corporate design. Ladislav Sutnar
(born in 1897, died in the USA in 1976) was a Czech author who lived in the USA from 1939. He is a
great example of personality who helped a great deal in the development of this field. I recommend
studying the parts of his life’s work that have been rediscovered, as Sutnar is the Czech graphic design
pathfinder in corporate design. Typography and font are no less important components of corporate
design; they have a special importance in corporate design and their history and rules of use are
another separated chapter to study.

One great piece of advice arises from this summary: only a truly global understanding of the above
mentioned areas can really ensure high quality corporate design projects. The challenge is to study
further and develop the knowledge which is only briefly represented in this study material.

Comprehension check

What are the advantages and the importance of applying united visual style in everyday life?

Think and discuss

1. Try to assess a randomly chosen worldwide company from a corporate design point of
view.
 2. Based on your own experience, what advice would you give companies that have no or
low-quality corporate design?

3. What are your thoughts on the future development of corporate design in the current
environment of increasing competition and globalization?

3. Design manual as an instrument of corporate design implementation

in practice

Keywords

design manual, raster, brand net drawing, negative and positive brand design, size series, typography,
font, CMYK, RGB, PANTONE, RAL, signmaking, other corporate design applications

Study goals of this chapter

 clarification of design manual structure and importance

 manual types by content and form

 identification of individual parts of manual

 applied demonstrations of manuals with their directions for use

Corporate design is being implemented into company (corporate) design manuals. It is in a way, kind of
corporate policy; we can say it is a specific kind of obligatory corporate standard. Design manual states
precisely and in detail how brands, symbols, rasters, font and typography, colour scheme and design
are used in architecture and other special applications of corporate design in all kinds of
communications. The principle of design and design formation is a clear corporate design conception
which relies on organisational philosophy (which can be considered as generally accepted and regarded
from the long-term point of view), valid and implemented for overall company vision. We can call it, for
example, strategy, the long-term plan etc.
Ongoing work on the codification of an organisation’s design manual unwinds from the conception of
corporate identity and the philosophy of the organisation. It is essential to point out that the above
mentioned text describes an ideal situation. Practically, we can see a situation where the design manual
is dealt with even without the above mentioned document. This situation is acceptable because the
entrepreneur is not always willing to invest his capital into these documents - on the contrary: he invests
his money only on the corporate design elements. It is not an ideal situation but it often happens in
practice, especially with smaller regional clients.

Remember

Quality and a carefully-created design manual are the fundamental elements of corporate design
realisation in the overall conception of corporate identity. Design manuals can be of differing sizes. A
minimal one may contain only few pages of basic elements, such as: brand (logotype), its black and
white and colour design, eventually modification with another text, definition of font, colour and primary
raster elements – business cards and headed paper. The middle design manual should contain
additional elements, like more prints which we include into raster (sometimes the term mercantile prints
is used): invoice, fax, purchase order, company announcement, headed paper and other specific prints.
Then there are special use situations: prints on advertising objects (flags, badges, bags, pens etc.),
applications used in architecture (internal and external information systems), and a range of others, from
company transport (labelling cars), to staff outfits. The top design manuals of a wide range (big
companies and internationals firms) include many more items, including visual elements of particular
advertising campaigns, national mutations, company print layouts, 3D elements used for example in
electronic media and many more that differ according to what the company does. Design manuals can
have even more parts still, and they are regularly updated. Generally it is good to carry out design
manual revision from time to time, in terms of visual elements and updating its conformity to modern
trends in the field. Within this context we speak about redesign, meaning not radical visual change, but
only its partial graphic adjustment. Sometimes we can witness huge changes in visual style, mainly
when there is a change of owner – which is quite common in the Czech environment.
In this case the corporate design is either being adapted to a new corporate situation, or a completely
new visual style is created; but that is rare. The latest trends in design manual creation are heading to
the digitisation of all created elements because not all the companies can afford the quite expensive
high-quality print (e.g. offset). There are many clients who are satisfied with just the electronic form of
their design manual that is visually well presented (e.g. on company web sites) and has a distinctive
work character.

Remember

Basic codification of brand features in design manual

- Pure drawing in basic colour design and description.

- Construction or brand in a subsidiary drill (for large scale manuals).
- Uncoloured brand design (black and white) – positive and negative.
- Colour brand design (CMYK, PANTONE, RGB, RAL, foil).
- Colour design on different colour supports.
- Inadmissible varieties of brand design (black and white, colour).
- Brand size range (minimal size and other sizes for print).
- Another brand design solutions (e.g. modification with additional text).
- 3D possible topography design.

This is the basic codification of a brand that each design manual should contain so that everybody is
able to work with the brand in the future in different applications of corporate design.
Further composition of design manual is very variable depending on client's nature and his
understanding of things, and that is why this topic will be described in detail in the lectures with example
case studies.
It is important to remember this often used abbreviation CMYK. It is a code which is used for colour
definition in the system of four print colour usage: C-Cyan, M-Magenta, Y-Yellow, and K-Black. The
perceptual mixing of these colours reaches required print colour hue. Company PANTONE uses this
system in its patterns (these most diffused colour patterns today are the fundamental aid for colour
identification all over the world) where for example light blue colour marked by number 291 C (direct
colour) is defined in this system as: C-50%, M-10%, Y-0%, K-0%. The required hue is achieved by the
corresponding number. RGB is on the other hand an abbreviation that defines colours from three hues
R-red, G-green, B-blue. This abbreviation has its base in optical perception of colours and it is closely
related to the use of colours in electronic devices (TV, screens), where it is used to determine colours.
RAL is the generally used abbreviation to designate hues of synthetic, acrylic and other industrial
colours.
Special foils for outside advertising (signmaking) are named after the producer (e.g. JAC, Fascal and
others) and they have special markings. However, they do not have such a wide colour range as the
above mentioned systems.

Summary

Our present visual world, where we see advertisement everywhere we look, plays a great role in the
quality of visual style. Its mission is to aim at the target group directly and every day. Some
examples are the thoroughly honed visual styles of well known companies (Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola,
Shell, Mc Donald’s and many others). They have very detailed concepts of corporate design and very
strict and clear rules, which are stated in the design manual – the essential tool for realisation of the
whole corporate identity. Czech companies and institutions, however, are also capable of realising
similar strategies, though in much smaller measures. As an example, the financial group PPF has a
high quality visual style, and the new visual style of Prague, and past visual styles of the mobile
providers Paegas and Oskar are further examples among many others.

Small and medium sized companies should not be forgotten, as they too are important clients. Also, it
is necessary to spread knowledge and professionalise the work by implementing quality corporate
design.

This field offers unlimited possibilities. Look around and you will realise that not everything is – in this
aspect – done in a quality way.

Think and discuss

1. Can you describe the effect of well designed visual style on you and the way it affects
you?

2. Which trends do you see in the corporate design sphere – eventually specify the limits
of its application in practice.
 3. Practical ability test: you will be given examples of real competing companies. Choose
one you think is the best according to the specific criteria we have discussed.

Recommended literature

1. SVOBODA Václav, PhDr. : Corporate identity, učební text UTB FMK, Zlín 2003

ISBN 80-7318-106-1

2. MOLLERUP PER: Marks of Excellence, nakladatelství Phaidon, New York

ISBN 0 71 48 3838 1

3. PHILIP B. MEGGS, A History o Graphic design

ISBN 0-471-29198-6

4. KOLEKTIV AUTORŮ, Total Identity, Amsterdam 2004

ISBN 80-247-0731-4

5. MILAN MYSLIVEČEK, Panoptikum symbolů, značek a znamení, Horizont Praha

1994, ISBN 80-7012-073-8

6. IDENTITA SPOLEČNOSTI, publikace pro interní potřebu SPT TELECOM