It’s no doubt that the online world is advancing faster than we could ever have imagined. Nowadays, having an online presence whether you as an individual, organization or a business is highly essential. Building a presence online comes in many components and one of the main part is having your own website, and a logo that represents you of course.

Logos are not as simple as we think they are. Logos are not as easy as taking a selfie or scribbling a signature just to say “this is me”. There is definitely a strong justification on why some people are willing to invest huge amount of cash just for their logos. We would want our logos to spell out what we are all about. Would you ever use an image of a stone from your garden or perhaps a randomly searched photo from the internet as your profile picture in Facebook or Twitter? Certainly not! Logos are of the same importance.

The beauty of logos is that there are no rules and we are allowed to create logos however we want. Too bad some people would settle for poorly made logos and some are victims of worst logo designs without even realizing it. The fact that nowadays anyone can get their logos as low as $5 which is about £3.15 is just ridiculous! We get what we pay for and there is a very small chance to actually get lucky and get a decent logo design at a very cheap price. On the other hand, even multi-million companies can also be candidates of worst logo designs! Can you believe it? Here’s some of the most remarkable contenders we found:

Worst logo designs

1. 2012 London Summer Olympics

Who would forget the London Olympics logo of 2012? Not only does it resemble Lisa and Bart Simpson in a seemingly “sexual act” position, but also it has been highly criticized not to meet the standards that everybody expects. The £400, 000 logo was also thought to resemble the swastika and Iran even threatened to boycott the Olympics believing the logo spells out “Zion” which represents a pro-Israeli conspiracy.

The controversial logo was designed by London-based brand consultants Wolff Olins. For just about 48 hours after its unveiling, the logo was opposed rapidly with articles and steady flow of comments firing up and demanding a replacement. Over 28, 000 signatures was also given on an online petition to scrap the logo. No matter how this unforgettable logo maybe defended, it is clear that the masses did not welcome it calling it a waste of money and nothing but a huge disappointment.

2. Pepsi Cola

Anyone with creative and imaginative mind would look at Pepsi’s logo and see a fat man with exposed tummy or backside which is not really a good image for the company. This 1 million dollar logo definitely did not escape the honest opinions of critics either.

3. Healthcare Industry Logos

The logos say it all! The designers of these health care logos seem to have missed the awkward sexual messages the illustrations are portraying. There are loads more other logos that have the same mistakes others fortunately changed their branding but others may have taken the advantage of having an eye catching logo even if it’s for the wrong reasons.

4. Consistel’s OMGtel

Consistel is a huge company in Singapore and one of the leading wireless telecommunications business in the country. OMGtel is a subsidiary of the company known for its partnership with another notable company SMRT bidding for Singapore’s fourth mobile license.

So much for the big details, Consistel seem to fail with their logo designs, even their website looks cheap and dated. Both Consistel and OMG logos look like a child’s project or something quickly made form Word Art. Terrible choice of colors and use of gradient effects which doesn’t really help with the dull color and stiff font used.

5. Gap

On the image above, which version of Gap logo would you choose? Well, we think everyone would agree that the original logo on the left is far better than the new one. When this new logo was released, public outcry on scrapping the new logo was evident especially online. More than 2000 comments were written in Gap’s Facebook page demanding the old logo back. Good news is, the company listened to what people say and brought the original logo back.

Time reveals the science behind the Gap logo fail pointing out the little blue square behind letter P that seems to bother the human brain having the sharp edges disturb the curve of the letter. Also, the fonts of the new logo was said to be too simple and common compared to the old logo which have a unique and stylish feel just like the fashion brand that its supposed to be representing.

6. Copycat Logos?



We can understand those companies making t-shirts or artworks showing funny versions of logos but these logos above are proper company logos and some even reached lawsuits for copyright.

Starbucks and Starpreya had their battle on court on whether Starpreya can keep their Starbucks like logo and in the end they did win. Gurukul public school in India has it very obvious, almost everything from LFC was copied even their slogan “You’ll never walk alone”. Good thing the school gave up this logo. Aside from these examples, we sure have a lot of “similar looking logos” existing. Whether it’s copied or not, originally is definitely an important role in branding.

7. DC, DB Logos

Obviously these logos look like phallic symbols especially those with extra added highlights on top. When combining company initials, designers have to be careful and bear in mind how it looks like as a whole unit.

Bonus: Generic Logos

Have you ever seen a logo and feel like you have seen it somewhere? Oh yes, generic logos such as these on top are very common these days. With online services offered by freelancers such as those in Fiverr and 99designs, it’s no surprise that these kind of logo patterns exist with designers just simply replace font, colors and the name of the company when creating logos.

These overused logos are compiled by GT graphics showing various examples of these generic logos that rapidly multiplies today. What can be worst than finding a similar logo as yours?

Logos are essential representation of a business, company, individual or any entity it stands for. Nowadays logo designing extends from amateurs to massive agencies. Prices have also widened its gap; we could find a lot of cheap or even free services that offer logo designing as well as those six figure worth. As someone who wants to establish a name, you should think twice and think about the best results you can achieve when it comes to your branding above anything else. It is quite risky to expect much from free services but an expensive design fee doesn’t guarantee a great logo either.

Find someone you can trust and someone who truly understands your vision. Designers are inspired based on the story of what the logo represents as well as the person/organization behind it. As the owner, your main responsibility is to keep your designer inspired and make sure they understand what you are looking for.

Branding is a life long investment for your business and it can even make or break its success. Take time in consulting people about your logo because opinion of others really matters whether they are experts in design or not. You can join communities such as Deviant Art, Behance, Reddit, Quora, or other reputable online forums that can give you their honest, helpful and free opinion about your logo. Simple as showing your finished logo to a family or friends can even be insightful. Don’t take for granted the importance of a logo.

P.S If you need any advice on logo designing for your company/business, feel free to comment or message us privately. We offer free quote and advice for anyone interested. Don’t be a victim of worst logo designs. When it comes to your company branding, quality is a must.