First, as a consumer; second, as a designer; I couldn’t help but notice how so many of my favorite brands are using similar color palettes for their logos. If one logo becomes a hit in an industry, other emerging brands follow suit and use similar elements of design.

Subsequently, the next question that pops in my head is about the role of the uniqueness of design. How does it contribute to the success of a logo? Are there any defining design elements for each industry? How would the consumers react if their favorite coke brand turned its logo to pink or sky blue? I guess there is a fine line between exceptional (in the sense of being original) and successful (while conforming to the existing design trends within an industry).

Famous Logos On The Color Spectrum:

If we consider only one design element, i.e. colors, we can see how certain colors dominate within different industries. For example, most of the logos of computer industry are designed blue, whereas, restaurant logos incorporate colors ranging from orange to yellow. Is it solely because the color orange is known to stimulate appetite?

There are, of course, many exceptions to the color rule when it comes to corporate giants. We collected many of such trend setting brand logos which have achieved immense popularity by defying the standard branding approach in their respective industries.

Check out our color spectrum of famous logos and see which color has the most variety and number of logos associated to it.

Update

The Color Spectrum of Famous Logos

Red:

Famous brands including CNN, BBC, Levi’s, ESPN, Coca-Cola, Vodafone, Adobe, YouTube, Kellogg’s, Exxon, Canon, Avis, Nintendo, Kmart and Oracle – all feature the fervent hue of red.

Orange:

From Orange Telecom to Blogger, Nickelodeon, Hooters, Payless, Fanta, JBL, Crush, TNT, Harley-Davidson, Lufthansa, Shutterfly, Penguin Books, Rock star Games and Science Channel – brand color is Orange.

Yellow:

Yellow is known as the hunger inducing shade. But yellow logos are everywhere including Yellow Pages, DHL, IMDB, McDonalds, Shell, Best Buy, Hertz, Nikkon, National Geographic, Sprint, Chupa Chups, IKEA, Snapchat, Kodak and Denny’s, etc.

Green:

The soothing green is favorite color for many brands. Brands such as Xbox, LimeWire, ShopZilla, Sprite, BP, SONY, Animal Planet, John Deere, Whole Foods, Tropicana, Lacoste, Heineken, Hess, Tic Tac and Android feature green in logos.

Blue:

Named the most widely used color online, blue is prevalent in branding. Blue Logos include Twitter, Skype, LinkedIn, Dell, IBM, Facebook, AOL, HP, Ford, Samsung, NIVEA, PayPal, Durex, GE and American Express.

Purple:

Purple exudes luxury and sophistication. Brands that feature purple logos include Yahoo!, Craigslist, Avid, Syfy, Cadburry, Taco Bell, FedEx, Monster, Hallmark, Wonka, Milka, Apollo Tyres, Thai Airways, NYU, Welch’s and more.

Pink:

Popular pink logos are T-Mobile, Orkut, Cosmopolitan, Glam Media, Baskin Robbins, Barbie, LG, Haier, Dunkin’ Donuts, Instagram, Trolli, Axis Bank, Playboy, POPSUGAR, and BBC Three.

Now that you have the visual color story of logos, let us know of your opinion on why some colors are more successful than other. Which logos, do you think, can look better in a different color?