Our Thoughts on the AOL Rebrand
We were asked by Reader’s Digest to comment on the AOL rebrand. Turns out, AOL recently changed its phone app logo from a blue background to phone book yellow, and longtime users have a lot to say with mixed reviews.
Checkout what we think about this iconic brand!
⚡️Why would AOL make a change like this? Is it a similarity to other apps... to get people talking about AOL again?
There are only a handful of reasons why big, household-name corporations decide to rebrand. But two of the most common reasons are because they want to stay relevant in the market and/or to attract a new audience. Knowing AOL’s history and place in the current email and news market, it would make total sense that they want to catch more eyeballs with a shocking rebrand that leans more toward a youthful vibe. They most likely want to move away from only being associated with an older generation, dial-up internet, and those juicy but sketchy AOL chat rooms.
⚡️ They only changed the logo of the phone app... not the IG, X, or website logos. Why?
I just took a peek, and I believe they have updated all their platforms and website with the new brand. What could have happened is more likely due to poor brand launch planning than a strategic decision. You have to submit app updates (like icon changes) through the various app stores and it’s hard to predict when those changes will go live. Ideally, if you’re an established business that is planning to relaunch with a new brand, you should have a launch plan that includes sequenced roll-out dates with pre-planned teasers that alert your existing customers that something new is coming and they shouldn’t be alarmed. Although most think that the purpose of branding is to “look pretty,” it’s actually to build trust so that you can turn a lead into a customer that then stays loyal to your product/service. Poorly planned brand relaunches lead to confusion, which leads to mistrust, which leads to losing customers.
⚡️ What does the new app color emote?
According to color psychology, yellow is the color of joy, excitement, and warmth. But it can also be the color of overstimulation and childhood/youth. Compared to their previous slate blue brand color, which represents maturity, stability, and trust—yellow is a leap for how their brand will be perceived.
My educated guess is that the color change is tied, in part, to an intention of reaching a new (younger) audience and competing in a market where modern tech brands are leaning toward youthful brand styles. This is also reflected in the font choice for the new logo — bubbly, rounded…young.
⚡️ Do you think the yellow is a shout-out to AOL’s “running man,” who was retired in 2017?
100%. They are even using an updated version of the Running Man in their new brand. And they got lucky! Having been in dozens of rebrand brainstorming sessions, finding a believable reason to defend a brand design choice can be incredibly frustrating. It’s like searching for a needle in the company's historical haystack.
If the intention for the AOL rebrand was to appeal to a new audience and stay relevant in a market where the “tech look” reigns, then they knew using a bright, youthful color was the way to go. And, if AOL had already been recognized in the past by their iconic yellow Running Man, then using yellow as their new brand color was a no-brainer.
⚡️ Anything else you’d like to add?
Since social media took off, it’s become common practice for consumers to jump on the hate bandwagon when big corporations rebrand. I can’t recall the last time I saw a bunch of viral videos about people loving a rebrand of a well-known company. But I don’t think the problem lies so much in the rebrand itself (although yes, some rebrands are absolutely disgusting…talking to you, KIA). Instead, the problem with rebrands being ill-received has to do with companies forgetting they need to strategically ease their customers and followers into the new brand, bringing them along for the journey, so that trust isn’t broken when they show up randomly one day with a different color app icon.
Read the published article at Reader’s Digest.
Ready to rebrand the right way?