Terrible UX: Kia’s new logo

Sometimes I just shake my head in dismay. Today, I was watching the Australia Open on television. In the back of the court is a giant logo that looks like this.

My son and I looked at it and said, “What company is that? KN? Maybe the n is backwards. KVI? Maybe the V and I are connected? Hmm, wait, maybe it’s VAA? That looks like an A slanted in the middle” Eventually, I said, “Could it be Kia??”

After googling that it was in fact an “upgrade” to the Kia logo, I then began to shake my head in dismay. Here is the original.

It’s not the most inspiring logo, but I could at lead read it.

A logo (abbreviation of logotype,[4] from Greek: λόγος, romanized: logos, lit. ‘word’ and Greek: τύπος, romanized: typos, lit. ‘imprint’)
is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logo

See? It’s supposed to AID identification and recognition. To AID! To HELP! This logo does the exact opposite. Yes, of course one could make the claim that I am writing about it and therefore it is good publicity. However, this is a car company we are talking about. I don’t think many people focus on the logo or my blog for that matter.

Why do so many companies screw up on logo design? I have a feeling it is because the CEO is the one making the decision and they have a terrible sense of design. I wish more CEOs understood design more, but here is a few simple rules for logos.

  • Make sure it can’t be interpreted to have a penis or any other sexual innuendo. Google “bad logos” for examples.
  • Make sure you can read it
  • Don’t expect logo recognition without spending a billion dollars promoting it
  • Don’t use gradients, keep it simple

That’s all I got. Feel free to contact me and ask if your logo looks good. I’m happy to help. 🙂

Side note: I am writing this on the WordPress IPad app. WordPress has done a masterful job in so many ways. Upgrades take about 5 seconds. It’s fast, easy. God bless WordPress.


Comments

One response to “Terrible UX: Kia’s new logo”

  1. I think the low legibility and abstraction of the glyph are intentional— more shape than word. Controversial but may work well over time.

Whatya think?