In many ways, brands are like people. They are born, have experiences, grow and mature. There are rites of passage. In the case of brands this is most evident when they reflect on how their brand is perceived and decide that in some way, they need to take a step forward. The most obvious way to achieve that is to refresh the brand identity. The Starbucks logo update is a good example.

Now it’s Twitter’s turn. Twitter emerged in 2006 as a micro-blogging tool that allowed people to freely connect and share updates. There are currently over 465 million members with a million new accounts being added daily. Revenue is projected to hit $260 million this year. Still, there are questions about its business value and future.

If you want to be perceived as serious about your business you need to look like it. Twitter took aim at its bird logo as an aspect of its brand that needed adjustment to achieve that. The changes they made were subtle. Many won’t even notice. But this update clearly signals an effort towards maturity.

The original logo could best be described as quirky. The bird is oddly proportioned. Its wing feathers lack consistency in shape and the tuft on its head is sometimes described as a mohawk. It was a great symbol for a startup seeking to gain a foothold among social media early adopters. Quirky is rebellious. Twitter was cool. It gained acceptance. The spunky little bird represented the brand well. Now it’s time to grow up.

First impression of the new logo is that it is more corporate looking – well drawn and better proportioned. Even the blue colour is more conservative. The lines have been simplified. They are more round and sleek. Design changes include the haircut – bye-bye mohawk – and reduction of wing feathers from four to three. But the most important difference is the uplifted flight direction accentuated by the higher position of the beak. The old bird flew on a horizontal plain. This new bird is definitely moving up.

Related post: 365 Days on Twitter