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Brand Makeover, Copy?

After 40 years of following the same path, Xerox is getting a makeover to try and get away from the perception that they are nothing more than a giant copy company. The makeover will be far-reaching, including a new corporate logo, and will touch Xerox’s product naming, design, building signs, and any other Xerox brand marketing materials. While Xerox, like google, has become a verb in many countries, Xerox the company wants to separate itself somewhat from what they have become dominant in–i.e., copying.

After some research, and to Xerox’s dismay, the Xerox brand had become not only inconsistent with what Xerox did, but also no longer stood out in the consumer’s mind–rather than sticking out, Xerox blended more into the background. The Xerox wordmark was designed over 40 years ago by branding firm Chermayeff & Geismar, has lost some of its pizzazz in the Internet age. The new logo will be softer, with lower-case letters, and in terms of presence, will be a contrast to the block capital-letters that were used during an age of company’s imposing their superiority and dominance. This is a different age, and Xerox is a different company than when they started out, and it seems that the company understands the need to modernize themselves according to the times, but also to the reality of what their company does.

Interbrand, the company that will be tracking the ROI of the branding updates that will be made, hopes the changes will communicate ‘innovation, forward thinking, flexibility, and enterprise.’ While Xerox as a company missed out on using its technology during the computer boom in the 1970s, companies like Apple and Microsoft did not. Ever since then, Xerox has been trying to play catchup. The company has done well in the copier and printer business, but it’s a cloud that never has gone away. One of the big things that may arise from this is Xerox moving up in the global eye; while we know Xerox here like we know Coca-Cola, that’s just not the case around the globe for them. The new brand is something they’re hoping will change that.

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