Running circles around brands

This is the season of the Olympics. There is no way you can miss the five rings that are the symbol of the Olympic Games. When originally designed in 1912, these five interlocking rings were meant to represent the five continents of our planet – Africa, Asia, America, Europe and Oceania. Today, more than a century later, they continue to reinforce the idea that the Olympics are global, are based on the union of all five continents, and that all countries on our spherical planet are welcome to join these splendid Games.

Apart from these rings, there are many other circular forms associated with the Olympics. The gold, silver and bronze medals are round in shape. The olive wreath with which winners were crowned in the ancient Olympics, well before modern medals made their appearance, were also formed in the shape of a circle, or a circular horseshoe. These wreaths were made of the branches of wild olive trees that grew at Olympia in Greece, and were known as ‘Kotinos’. And the cauldron that holds the Olympic flame is generally circular too – including the impressive cauldron which was lit at the Maracana Stadium in Rio De Janeiro last week.

If the Olympics uses circles so extensively, can brands and marketers be far behind? Of course not. There are so many brands across the world that use rings and circles in their logos. Circles are perhaps the most used geometric forms when it comes to brand symbols. Consider the following examples.

Virtually all the famous German cars use circles in their logos. Volkswagen features the letters of the alphabet V and W inside a circle. Mercedes houses its famous three-pointed star within a circle. BMW has a circle as its logo. And Audi extends this point beautifully, by featuring in its symbol not just one circle, but four rings that represent the union of four manufacturers of the Auto Union of Germany. Incidentally, the International Olympic Committee took Audi to court, claiming that this logo was confusingly close to the Olympic rings, but it lost, and Audi happily retained its circles.

Amongst telecom companies, Vodafone has a bright red circular logo. AT&T has a globe as its logo, with blue circles running around, which represent its mission of helping connect its customers with their world. China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile phone operator, has a round symbol. Our own desi carrier BSNL too has a circular logo, with arrows flying around the circle.

Think Nivea, and its round blue logo. Then, think Starbucks and its round green logo, housing the siren inside. There’s LG, and its round red logo with the dot. And if you want to move into multi-coloured mode, think Pepsi, and its round red-and-white-and-blue logo. These are amongst the most famous brands in the world.

If you think the circle is old-age, think again. Because new-age technology and digital brands have also used the circle quite liberally. Dell, HP, Whatsapp, Wikipedia, Firefox, Chrome and Ola are excellent examples.

There are many reasons why so many of these popular brands use circles all the time. First and foremost, research has shown that circles, ovals and ellipses convey to human beings messages of positive emotions, friendship and love. Circles and rings signal marriage and partnership, and therefore subliminally convey stability and trust. No wonder some of India’s strongest brands that inspire trust, such as the Tata Group, State Bank of India and Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) use logos that are either circular or elliptical in shape.

Studies have also shown that curves and circles are seen as symbols of safety, as benign and harmless. Perhaps the circle is seen as a shield, given that most shields, since ancient days, have been circular in form. On the other hand, brain imaging studies have also shown that viewing sharp objects and shapes is likely to activate that part of the brain which processes fear. This is perhaps because sharp objects (such as spears and arrows) have, since centuries, signalled physical danger. Hence, sharp lines and shapes are now associated with threats. This is perhaps why Dettol, a brand that stands for safety and protection, houses its sword within a strong and large circle.

Circles and curves also appear to convey greater aesthetic beauty to consumers, far more than straight lines or jagged edges do. This is why a majority of people prefer to wear round watches on their wrists, and why even dental floss sells more when it is encased in round packaging. Designs which use circles and curves hold greater emotive appeal, though perhaps some more in-depth research is required to find out exactly why.

One more reason why circular logos work so well is that they are reassuringly familiar to us. All around us, we see circles, and we have seen them ever since the day we were born. The sun is round, the moon is round, the earth is round. Our cups and saucers are circular, our dinner plates are mostly circles too. In fact, circular shapes are amongst the first forms that are recognised by infants, because the first few toys given to them, such as balls or rattles, are circular or have lots of curves. When Tetley Tea pioneered round teabags in the UK, moving away from the traditional square-shaped tea bags, consumer response was hugely positive, perhaps because of this reassuring narrative that circles convey.

In some specific categories, such as automobiles, circles as logos are perhaps even more relevant, because they also powerfully evoke the product. Because cars run on circular wheels, and because they have circular steering wheels which we are all so familiar with, a logo that is encased in a ring or a circle is such a natural fit. No wonder so many of the world’s finest brands of cars use a circular logo.

Last but not the least, circles are so simple. They are one of the simplest, cleanest geometric forms known to man. Gestalt Theory, which guides good design, tells us that human beings prefer things that are simple, clear and well-ordered.

By instinct, we tend to look for a single, recognisable pattern in anything that we see, to attain satisfactory closure in our minds. Logos that feature simple circles and rings provide this simplicity in adequate measure.

So, when you sit back over the next two weeks and watch the famous Olympic rings repeatedly appear on your television screens, do reflect on why circles have been used in so many logos and symbols.

Perhaps you will also now begin noticing many more circles around you, given that as many as 25 of the world’s top 100 brands have circles in their logos. If there are any other circular brand logos that particularly appeal to you, do write in and let us know.

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