Prof. Gerald Gorn, Associate Dean, and Dr Jiang Yuwei at the Department of Management and Marketing partnered with two overseas researchers to conduct two studies exploring how the logo of an unfamiliar company can influence people’s feeling about its products or services.
The first study found that consumers associate round shape with “softness” and angular shape with “hardness”. In this study, consumers were shown a mock advertisement of generic sneakers. When the fake logo of a brand was circular with mainly curved lines, they assumed the shoes of that brand were more comfortable. On the other hand, when the logo was angular with straight lines and sharp corners, consumers assumed that the shoes were more durable.
Another study further proved that the shape of a company’s logo can alter consumers’ prediction about its customer service. When presented with a story about a passenger of a fictitious airline having problem of overweight luggage, consumers assumed the personnel of an airline with circular logo be nicer and more sensitive to customer’s needs as compared to an airline with angular logo.
The research provided key insights into the impact of roundness or angularity in the design of a logo on public perception. The findings were published in the Journal of Consumer Research.