Just like humans have fingerprints for identification and individual classification of people, companies and brands have logos that play the very same but prominent role in the business and marketing world. The main aim of a company is to create and design a logo that can tell the world about their brand and can give them a clear idea of what they are offering. The question that commonly comes to businessmen is whether a brand can have two or multiple logos for a single brand. Well, the simple answer to this question is that a brand can have multiple logos or logo variations. If we look around and go for deep research, we can easily conclude that there are various brands and companies that have up to four different variations of logos. Each logo is used for different purposes in different activities.
One thing is essential that you need to specify a logo as your main symbol that will represent your brand as a whole while other logos or variations will be considered complementary. Where a single logo can help you grow your reputation and get stuck in the mind of your customers, multiple variations or logos will allow you to represent your brand with each prominent and unique symbol on different platforms. Sometimes companies create a main logo and then use variations while some even use different logos. As this could be confusing for new businessmen, the article will go through all the minor to major aspects of this question so that you can have a better understanding of this important factor of your company.
What Does Having Multiple Logos Actually Mean?
Before deciding to have multiple logos for your brand, it is highly recommended to know about what it actually means and what will be their effects on your business? There are many reasons that can urge the need of having more than one logo for your brand.
The multiple logos could be in the form of logo marks, symbols, or logo variations. The need for multiple logos is usually increased when a company has a brand architecture which means there are various brand entities in a single organization.
Even if you feel that all these logos are different and don’t have any similar properties, the truth is that most of the time, multiple logos are just the results of some variations in the brand’s main logo. Multiple logos can be said as the sub-logos or logos extracted from the main logo. These logos are mainly used to represent specific products or services of a company.
What are the Major Types or Variations of Multiple Logos?
Although a company can have multiple logos according to their own desires, some of the most prominent and widely used types include the following. Having at least one of the below-mentioned logo categories will allow you to easily represent your brand in every forum and platform without any hassle.
- Brand’s Identity or Primary Logo
- Secondary Brand Logo/Symbol/Mark
- Different Variants/Formats of a Logo
- Brand Architecture Logos
Brand’s Identity or Primary Logo:
Your primary logo or brand identity is the main logo that is composed of different symbols, designs, colors, and phrases. This logo includes all the major elements of your brand so that it can give a clear idea of what you’re offering. It creates an image and vision of your brand in the eye of the viewers and customers.
It is essential for every brand to have one specific logo that can be used as a visual representation. There are possibilities that you may have a single logo that doesn’t have any meaning. In this case, you need to add other elements such as symbols, marks, alphabets, and short phrases. The Starbucks logo is one of the major examples as they have the face of a mermaid as their main symbol but some variations have text as “Starbucks Coffee”.
Secondary Brand Logo/Symbol/Mark:
Some of the brands don’t have a secondary brand mark but plenty of well-known and most famous brands do have a secondary brand logo. The secondary brand mark is used at various places and completely identifies your brand as it includes some of the major elements of the company’s primary brand.
You may have seen that companies have printed different brands’ logos on their papers such as a warranty card, this symbol is known as the secondary logo. You can definitely realize that it is the brand logo but is a bit different. Usually, the signs and symbols are used in secondary logos while the short phrases are avoided.
Different Variants of a Logo:
We all know that we are living in an era of technology and advancement. Today, almost all businesses and brands operate in different countries and regions of the world. This factor urges the need of having logos of different variations so that your brand can be represented on any type of platform regardless of what is the situation.
Logo variations are used when you are going to market your products by patching your brand’s logo on walls or poles. But you may come to a place where you can only paste a horizontal logo but your primary logo is a vertical one, this is the place where logo variations will help out. Having a logo variation will allow you to get the job done without worrying about the space.
Brand Architecture Logos:
Brand architecture can also be classified as the brand family tree or the structure of the brand. There are many brands that have their sub-brands and they need to show the world how their chain works in the company or organization.
Do keep this fact in mind that this is not the perfect example of multiple logos because this is not used to represent a single brand but identifies each brand as an extension. The structure is initiated by putting the branded houses at the top and then the sub-brands, endorsed brands, and in the last, house of brands.
Can Two Companies Have the Same Logo?
You will definitely have seen various types of symbols, signs, and designs that represent a specific company, organization, firm, or brand. These symbols and signs are known as logos in the business as well as the marketing sector. If you are a beginner in the business or marketing world and are currently working on a logo, you may have thought that is it permissible to use a logo of another company or brand? While going through different logos, you will notice that there are also some alphabets on the top right corner of the logos, usually as “TM” or “®”. The first states that this symbol is the trademark of this company while the second one claims that the symbol has been registered or licensed to the brand and no other company can use this.
If you are feeling disappointed, just keep this fact in mind that you can create a logo according to your desires and interests but you only have to ensure that people should not get confused while deciding to buy a product. If a company feels that you have used their logo and it is distracting their customers, they can file a copyright case on your company as well. This factor clearly states that two companies can never have the same logo but there are a few cases in which this thing can be done without any illegal charges.
What is Copyright and How It Limits A Company?
If you create a logo for your brand, you will definitely want to protect it so that other companies cannot use it. Copyright is protection that prohibits other companies or individuals and restricts them not to use your logo for their marketing purposes, not even a part of your logo can be used by them without your legal permission.
Copyright protection is used for almost all kinds of creative work whether it is music, a book, a picture, or a logo. You should know that copyright protection will not have any protection for the name, colors, and short phrases used in the logo. It will only prevent other companies from using the unique created design.
The company, brand, or person who wants to protect the name, phrases, and colors used in their logo can opt for registering a trademark. The combination of trademark and copyright protection will allow them to use their logo without any hassle and they can easily sue other companies and individuals upon using their designed logo.
When Two Companies Can Have the Same Logo?
There are some situations and conditioners that allow two companies to have the same logo. If you go through the rules and regulations, you can use a logo for two or even more companies and can market your products without any hassle. This can only be done if:
- Both Companies are Owned by One/Same Individuals
- First Company Grant You a Permission
Both Companies are Owned by One/Same Individuals:
Two companies can definitely have the same logo but it is necessary that the owners of both companies are the same or have been licensed by the one who got that logo registered first. In simple words, suppose you had one company and you registered a logo for it. After some time you initiated another company and want to use the same logo just like the first one, you can have all the permission to do so.
Do keep this fact in mind that you are not even allowed to use your own registered logo for your second company without going through a legal process. You need to give your second company a license for using the logo that has been registered to your previous company.
You should talk to your trademark attorney to know how you can license your logo to your second company. Always make sure that you have done all the legal processes so that you don’t have to face any issues while marketing your products with the same logo.
First Company Grant You A Permission:
If you want to use the logo of another company as your brand symbol or even in blogs, presentations, or other activities, you will have to ask for permission from the logo owner. Never create or use the same logo without permission because all of your efforts can go in vain if the owner of the logo gets to know about your activities.
If you are seeking permission for the logo to be used in blogs or presentations, it is highly possible that the company will give you permission without any hassle. But if you want to use their logo as your own company’s logo, you may need to work hard and there are minor chances that they give you a license for their logo.
What If You Use Logo Without Company’s Permission?
If you don’t seek permission from a logo-owned company and use their logo for your brand or marketing purposes, there are huge possibilities that you may have to face legal consequences. The case can go to court and if they find out that you have used another company’s logo without their permission or a proper license, they will immediately stop you from using that logo and can also ask to pay a penalty in the form of cash or sometimes jail as well.
Before creating or designing a logo for your brand, you should talk to a trademark attorney to ask all the questions that are confusing you. Also, check for similar logos that have been registered so that you don’t end up spending time and energy to create a logo that is being used by any other company. This will not only prevent you from wasting time but will also help you to create a highly creative logo.