In the past couple of weeks I have seen some new signs popping up on just about every corner in Richmond VA, and the one that makes me cringe the most is the Wells Fargo logos. The colors, the font, and that stagecoach… I shudder just thinking of it!

While I thank Wells Fargo for not using Old English Text in their branding, I wonder why they never felt the need to change the “look” of their branding. According to their website:

“Our Stagecoach symbolizes our strength and stability. It says to our customers: We’ve been here for almost 160 years and we’ll be here for you in the future, too. We’re one of only about a dozen U.S. public companies of that vintage that’s still in its founding business under its founding name.”

I don’t know if I can agree with this… Maybe it says that to your older customers. Maybe as a marketer I am being overly critical because that is what I do.  Or maybe as a 20 something I don’t “get” the message it conveys… Stagecoaches, to me, symbolize 5 mph and a bumpy ride, not strength and stability. I want flying cars in my future because it symbolizes growth and moving forward- not a stagecoach.

Change is good sometimes and companies that have been around 100+ years go through many branding phases/logo changes and still remain successful. Examples of that are Amtrak and Yuengling, both companies who have around since 1829, and both who have gone through re-branding to modernize their looks. So with that being said, I think it’s time to retire the stagecoach Wells Fargo!

What are your thoughts on Wells Fargo’s branding?

Rosa Luciano is the Marketing Coordinator and blogger extraordinaire for Interactive Financial Marketing Group. Follow her on Twitter @RozaLuciano

Our new office is totally in flight now.  Walls are up.  Sheetrock is going up.  The server room is in.  Network infrastructure is going in.  Believe it or not we’ve already begun to move some items over.

Our weekly meetings with the crew have been both helpful and impressive.  Let’s send a quick shout out to the groups showing muscle on our project:  Parkway Properties and Riverstone General Contractors.  We’ve been impressed with the level of service to date that Christina and Tyler along with the whole crew from Parkway have demonstrated.  From coordinating the new office design with Baskervill to working daily with our the contractor, the effort has been spot on.  It’s nice working with Riverstone.  Their support of questions and changes, particularly being prepared for our weekly meetings is greatly appreciated.

Now to some pictures…

We’re not too excited about the coffee at the Moorefield III cafe but the guy has pie.  Mmm… pie.

Our reception area on July 29 looks rather empty but has been framed.  This won’t be a grand entrance, just enough room for elevator passengers to admire our logo.

The reception area is starting to take shape on 8/12 with the rest of the office.  Here’s the wall to feature our logo (on right).

Not every building has an elevator with an upside down “3″.  Just one of the many items that makes our new office space special.

Sales has everything, even the kitchen sink.  On July 29, our new office space was just getting cleaned up.  Here’s the view from our new sales area down the space to where development will be (where the people are meeting).

On 8/12, the walls of offices start to give the space its dimensions.  Managers are on the inside of the space with all other employees in the open.  Everyone has a window!  This view is from sales looking down the space towards reception.

We’re expecting some paint and potentially carpet on the floor by the time we visit the new space again.  Check back in next week to see our progress.

Tom is IFMG's General Manager. When he's not noodling through honest spreadsheets, he's at home with his wife, two girls, and BBQ. Comment on his posts and he'll share a recipe. You can follow him on Twitter @tomfeary.

We get into some interesting debates here in the halls of IFMG. As a marketing services company that has built a business around lead generation for auto finance, we understand a lot about how to reach out to prospective customers and get them to respond to a call to action.  But it also means that we engage in some animated discussions around the strategy and tactics we can use to do that. Recently we’ve been taking another look  at one of the fundamental concepts of marketing, branding.

Opinions vary, but what it boils down to is this: how do you define a brand?  Is it the word-association game you play when someone mentions a company’s name? Is it the logo? Their message? The tagline?

If it’s done well, it’s widely recognized like Apple or Coca-Cola. Their names conjure up full experiences, for better or for worse. It can help increase stickiness and determine any given potential consumer’s propensity to buy.

Personally, I like Seth Godin‘s description:  “If you’ve never heard of it, if you wouldn’t choose it, if you don’t recommend it, then there is no brand, at least not for you.”  (“define:Brand“, December 13, 2009)

If that’s the case, and there are no associations for a company name or a brand, then does changing a logo really have any effect on how a company performs in the marketplace?

Amy Taggart is Marketing Manager for Interactive Financial Marketing Group.

Amy Taggart is the Marketing Manager for Interactive Financial Marketing Group