Pepsi recently revamped its logo by arcing the white band in the Pepsi circle so that it forms a series of “smiles.” The estimated cost for the redesign according to Advertising Age – over $1 million. The cost of changing signage on vending machines, point-of-sale materials and more around the world – several hundred million dollars. Is this new design worthy of such spending? Reactions are mixed. But if the company wanted to make a “quantum leap” forward in transforming the soft-drink category as Pepsi executives claim, the jury is still out. In fact, some detractors liken the new design to “a series of growing beer guts,” “a Pac-Man make over,” and “the backside of Joe the Plumber.” We believe getting feedback to our work is critical. Hopefully Pepsi got lots of feedback on its new logo and is not surprised by the reaction it’s engendering.
At first, I didn't like it. In fact, I hated it. But the more and more I looked at it and scrutinized it, the more I realized that Pepsi needed a little jolt to their brand ID. Their new look is young, fresh, energetic and most importantly modern(or up-to-date!). Brands need to keep up with the times and I feel like Pepsi's effort isn't half bad. As for the public's reaction, well, sometimes people are afraid of change and this might be a good example of that.