Which logo do you prefer?

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Which logo would you prefer on the helmet?

M
43
33%
Cat head
46
35%
Cat script
41
32%
 
Total votes: 130

John K
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by John K » Thu Jan 20, 2011 6:57 pm

Bay Area Cat wrote:
GFCatFan wrote:Why do we care if a few idiots who don't follow Bobcat football think the M is for Michigan. Let it go people.
We care because we want MSU to be able to successfully market the program throughout the nation in order to make MSU athletics and Montana State University the strongest they can possibly be. That happens by having strong branding and successful marketing.

If a person doesn't care about the "idiots" whose first impression of our logo is that it is Michigan's logo (a statement that suggests that about 99% of American sports fans are idiots, including most of our potential out-of-state recruits and their families and potential out-of-state sponsors/contributors), that's fine. But for those people who understand the importance of effective marketing for MSU beyond the borders of Montana, it's something that is quite important.
I suppose this is sort of loosely related to the "move up to I-A/stay in I-AA" argument, but is MSU ever going to be so well known nationally, that our logo will be readily recognized outside of Montana, or at least outside of the Mountain West region, no matter what it is? Unless of course we somehow actually incorporated the words "Montana State" into the logo? If a school's sports programs are not regularly featured on ESPN or other national networks, how are they going to get enough exposure, so that people automatically make that connection when they see you wearing something with any MSU logo?

I graduated in Marketing, and fully understand the concept of branding, and it's importance with regard to the successful marketing of MSU. I'm just saying that none of the three commonly used MSU logos are particularly unique, so I'm not sure that any of them should be favored over the others, based on that particular argument.

I travel to Boise frequently for business, and even there many people don't recognize my MSU gear if it has only a logo, no matter which one it is, if not accompanied by the words "Montana State". Sometimes even if it has "Bobcats" on it, they don't always affiliate that nickname with MSU....and that's in a state that's right next door to us!! On a loosely related note, on my last Boise trip I saw the MSU-themed Horizon Airlines plane at the airport, which was pretty cool. And by the way, it has all three logos, with the script "Cats" on the side of the engines, the "M" on the fuselage, and the Cat head on the tail.



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SonomaCat
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by SonomaCat » Thu Jan 20, 2011 7:12 pm

I'd always much rather have a brand/logo that, if not immediately recognized, people would take a closer look to figure out what it represented than to have a brand/logo that people see out of the corner of their eye and instantly recognize it as somebody else's brand/logo.

So arguing that MSU will never be known by a lot of people nationally and we therefore shouldn't worry about it isn't compelling to me. What I am concerned with is that each and every time our logo IS seen nationally, that people not instantly assume that the money we spent on marketing/buying the gear/traveling to the venue, etc., etc., was spent to promote Michigan. I want there at least be a decent chance that they come away from that experience knowing more about Montana State.

Like I said, the all blue and white M works well for me ... just not the ones that feature yellow in them and therefore look like Michigan.



John K
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by John K » Thu Jan 20, 2011 7:31 pm

Bay Area Cat wrote:I'd always much rather have a brand/logo that, if not immediately recognized, people would take a closer look to figure out what it represented than to have a brand/logo that people see out of the corner of their eye and instantly recognize it as somebody else's brand/logo.

So arguing that MSU will never be known by a lot of people nationally and we therefore shouldn't worry about it isn't compelling to me. What I am concerned with is that each and every time our logo IS seen nationally, that people not instantly assume that the money we spent on marketing/buying the gear/traveling to the venue, etc., etc., was spent to promote Michigan. I want there at least be a decent chance that they come away from that experience knowing more about Montana State.

Like I said, the all blue and white M works well for me ... just not the ones that feature yellow in them and therefore look like Michigan.

I definitely see your point about that, and don't completely disagree. Here's the one that really gets me though....and this has happened to me a number of times in Boise and elsewhere. Sometimes when I'm wearing something that actually says "Montana State", people will say "Montana State....that's the Grizzlies right?". That just makes me cringe when it happens. I don't mean to be critical, but thay may tell us all we need to know about the relative effectiveness of our marketing efforts, versus UM's. Giving credit where it's due, their bear paw logo is very unique, and I would suspect that it's pretty commonly recognized as being affiliated with UM, at least in the west.



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technoCat
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by technoCat » Fri Jan 21, 2011 2:17 pm

Bay Area Cat wrote:I'd always much rather have a brand/logo that, if not immediately recognized, people would take a closer look to figure out what it represented than to have a brand/logo that people see out of the corner of their eye and instantly recognize it as somebody else's brand/logo.

So arguing that MSU will never be known by a lot of people nationally and we therefore shouldn't worry about it isn't compelling to me. What I am concerned with is that each and every time our logo IS seen nationally, that people not instantly assume that the money we spent on marketing/buying the gear/traveling to the venue, etc., etc., was spent to promote Michigan. I want there at least be a decent chance that they come away from that experience knowing more about Montana State.

Like I said, the all blue and white M works well for me ... just not the ones that feature yellow in them and therefore look like Michigan.
Absolutely, it should be blue and white or all Gold. I agree if it is completely yellow(gold rush) than it does look almost exactly like Michigan. I don't really like the yellow on any of our gear. I would rather see gold or all blue and white.


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Old Skool Cat
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by Old Skool Cat » Fri Jan 21, 2011 2:53 pm

Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

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John K
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by John K » Fri Jan 21, 2011 3:09 pm

Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

Image

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Image

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I am impressed by your creativity, and I actually like all of them. I think my favorite is the first one though, because I like incorporating "State" into the logo, to differentiate us from that other school.



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SonomaCat
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by SonomaCat » Fri Jan 21, 2011 3:16 pm

I love the second from the last ... that would be awesome on gear.



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by AlphaOAlum » Fri Jan 21, 2011 3:48 pm

Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

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DUDE! You are TALENTED! I like all of them! umm... so when does manufacturing begin?



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by Killdeer Cat » Fri Jan 21, 2011 4:18 pm

AlphaOAlum wrote:
Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
DUDE! You are TALENTED! I like all of them! umm... so when does manufacturing begin?
I agree. I like all of them and would buy shwag with any and/or all of those logos.



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catpound
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by catpound » Fri Jan 21, 2011 4:50 pm

I like them all....but the last two are AWESOME! I agree with BAC those would be great on gear, plus they would look really good on the helmets!



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by webdav » Fri Jan 21, 2011 4:57 pm

The tweaked cat head is better than the previous one, but I still don't think it looks like a Bobcat. I think it looks like a mountain lion.

It's not going to happen, but I'd prefer something that looks more like a bobcat and is a little more intimidating. The current one indicates "speed" more than anything else.

Check out my avatar for an example of where I'd take it. It was created a few years ago by a friend of mine on a sports logo bulletin board. He posted it with different colors, I worked with him on some tweaks and gold/blue coloring.

I'd be VERY against any helmet color other than gold. I love our gold helmets. I'm not a huge fan of the "M" but I don't hate it. I like it better than the cat head. And I would love the script, but I just know we'd get a while lot of "you are copying the Griz" even though we had script long before they did!



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longhorn_22
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by longhorn_22 » Fri Jan 21, 2011 5:09 pm

I get what you're saying about everything else, but have you seen a mountain lion? From the side it looks way more like a Bobcat than a lion.



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catsrback76
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by catsrback76 » Sat Jan 22, 2011 6:00 am

At this point we have a statistical dead heat... So any logo will be loved and hated by the same percentages of people. At least on this board!



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by D-Wreck » Sat Jan 22, 2011 10:17 am

Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

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Image

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I like them all, great work Old Skool! I really like the first one. The "STATE" needs to be a little thicker script I think, but I like it. Is that the M from the flame logo MSU uses?



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by Old Skool Cat » Sat Jan 22, 2011 9:28 pm

D-Wreck wrote:I like them all, great work Old Skool! I really like the first one. The "STATE" needs to be a little thicker script I think, but I like it. Is that the M from the flame logo MSU uses?
Thanks all for the nice comments! Yes, D-Wreck, that is the M from the flame logo. Good point on the script - I think it needs some more emphasis. I will try to work on that!


Image

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catsrback76
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by catsrback76 » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:05 am

Good work OldSkool. Thanks for the different views. For my preference, sometimes I think "more" is "less", and I think that is true when it comes to a logo.

If I think back to the most recognizable logo's, the Dallas Cowboys star, the Rams horns, the Seahawks, etc are all easily recognizable and seen at a distance and instant identity. Now, I know the Green Bay Chicago game is also recognizable, but my point is that simple can be powerful, and clear, and branded to identity easily.

The big M can be confused with Michigan, Missouri, Minnesota, Maine, Montana-- and as a result needs clarification. The "State" brings more clarity, but still needs more, particularly in a less populated place like Montana.

Script to me is the hardest of all, though I understand the romance of the "Cats" logo from 84. That said, the Cat head with maybe some modifications to it to accentuate it's features, ie. eye, teeth, ears could really make it pop and be seen at a distance and carry our brand forward.


That said, I have no way to even create it. :oops:



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by SaxCat » Sun Jan 23, 2011 1:22 pm

Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

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These are really nice, for a polo shirt. On a uniform, they look too busy.



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LTown Cat
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by LTown Cat » Mon Jan 24, 2011 10:33 am

Old Skool Cat wrote:Here's some images I have played around with; don't know if you'll like any of them:

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Second one down would be my choice. You need to get permission to use these--I would buy apparel with almost all of those.



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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by kmax » Mon Jan 24, 2011 11:26 am

catsrback76 wrote: Script to me is the hardest of all, though I understand the romance of the "Cats" logo from 84. That said, the Cat head with maybe some modifications to it to accentuate it's features, ie. eye, teeth, ears could really make it pop and be seen at a distance and carry our brand forward.


That said, I have no way to even create it. :oops:
This is the one that they have put on the signs distributed to businesses around town that I really like, similar to what you are saying about slight modifications to accentuate the features. I like it because it gives it a little more depth and accentuates as you say but still stays simple (only a three color logo still). Note this is just me making the standard logo look like the one on the sign in my office so it's not perfect. And I added the white to the eye.
Image


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catsrback76
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Re: Which logo do you prefer?

Post by catsrback76 » Mon Jan 24, 2011 1:48 pm

kmax wrote:
catsrback76 wrote: Script to me is the hardest of all, though I understand the romance of the "Cats" logo from 84. That said, the Cat head with maybe some modifications to it to accentuate it's features, ie. eye, teeth, ears could really make it pop and be seen at a distance and carry our brand forward.


That said, I have no way to even create it. :oops:
This is the one that they have put on the signs distributed to businesses around town that I really like, similar to what you are saying about slight modifications to accentuate the features. I like it because it gives it a little more depth and accentuates as you say but still stays simple (only a three color logo still). Note this is just me making the standard logo look like the one on the sign in my office so it's not perfect. And I added the white to the eye.
Image
EXACTLY, in my book, something like that POPS!!! Thanks for sharing it! =D^



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