Petition to revert to the old site logo? 4 4

[Timed]

I don't know why, but the new logo seems too "fun". Maybe I just loved the professionalism of the old logo too much.

Edited August 22, 2023 by Timed

[Lightning55]

I don't like it all.  CGC Comics sounds like they sell comics. They don't sell comics. They are a service company. 

Except maybe when they have to sell the ones they buy off people when it gets damaged while at CGC, or maybe if some didn't get paid for somehow, or got returned to them, address unknown.

Even on this page they have the old logo.  Very nice.  It's probably some marketing company advising them that they need to update their logo and they will get 0.000000015% more business.  What a windfall!

Sometimes I have to get a suit tailored at Ace Tailors.  To follow CGC's thinking, they should be named Ace Clothes, because they fix clothes.  But they don't sell clothes, so they are correctly Ace Tailors.

[shadroch]

I'm not a fan of the new logo.  It looks off. 

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 6:11 AM, Timed said:

I don't know why, but the new logo seems too "fun". Maybe I just loved the professionalism of the old logo too much.

I think what CGC are trying to do with the new logo is to differentiate all the separate product components which now fall under the 'CGC' company banner. Five of them have their own logo now and there are more in the pipeline (toys, concert posters etc):

 

Each still carries the original scales logo though, to maintain the consistency with the overall Certified Collectibles Group companies:

https://www.collectiblesgroup.com/companies/

To be fair, CGC have some excellent websites and web pages. They are very slick and full of enticing graphics and moving components. The rolling picture on this home page below is really effective and looks extremely professional:

https://www.cgcgrading.com/

As the product line expands, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain a coherent site map. CGC now comprises cards, videos and games, with more components to come, and whilst each has their own webpage some of them are actually quite difficult to find.

At the foot of most CCG (CCG, not CGC) pages you will find these standard links:

NGC and NCS both take you to the same page for coins, PMG for paper money, ASG for stamps, etc. The CGC link takes you to this page...

https://www.cgcgrading.com/

...which is different to this page...

https://www.cgccomics.com/

...the CGC comics home page. We're used to that home page, as we are here for comics and that's the home link from the forum:

You have to hunt around though for some the home pages that relate to the non-comic CGC product range. Unless you do a separate Google search, CGC Cards for example only seems to be accessible from the 'collectibles we grade' link half way down the comics home page. Now that the forum comprises discussions for all the things CGC grades, perhaps they'd be better off having the main CGC page as the home link, not the comic specific one.

CGC are likely in a transition phase, but it can be quite confusing for the customer at present. The logical way forward would be for there to be a link at the foot of every Collectibles Group company homepage which has links for all the various products and not the overarching titles of CGC, PNG etc. which are meaningless and in some cases represent various products.

In the meantime, I think it is a good idea to amend the logos to be product specific especially now that 'CGC' isn't just about comics. They've retained the old scales logo and letter font and then added funky product specific wording. Whether you like that font is a matter of taste I suppose but I can see why they're doing it and where they're going. I kind of agree with @Lightning55 that 'CGC Comics' implies that they sell them, but how else could they make the distinction between their various product lines? 'CGC Comic Grading', perhaps? 

 

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 9:20 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

Now that the forum comprises discussions for all the things CGC grades, perhaps they'd be better off having the main CGC page as the home link, not the comic specific one.

@CGC Mike

Actually Mike, you might want to flag that up to web-help as a suggestion. Now the forum is for discussions about all the CGC products....

...it makes sense for the main CGC page to be the home page, not the current comic-specific one:

https://www.cgccomics.com/

 

Additionally, there are two improvement suggestions below that you could flag up, assuming you haven't already spotted them:

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/525424-theres-nothing-here-yet-the-images-tab-on-our-profile-pages/#comment-12898962

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/512177-gallery-album-image-limits/#comment-12892568

 

[CGC Mike]

On 8/22/2023 at 6:31 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

...it makes sense for the main CGC page to be the home page, not the current comic-specific one:

https://www.cgccomics.com/

This is a good suggestion.  I'll pass it along to marketing.

On 8/22/2023 at 6:31 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

Additionally, there are two improvement suggestions below that you could flag up, assuming you haven't already spotted them:

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/525424-theres-nothing-here-yet-the-images-tab-on-our-profile-pages/#comment-12898962

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/512177-gallery-album-image-limits/#comment-12892568

Yes, I am aware of these threads.  The next time I have a meeting with the tech engineer, I will bring up these gallery image threads.

[Dr. Balls]

No consistency among the primary name logo. If you're going to break away from house branding, focus on some consistency, hierarchy and visual importance to the main company mark, especially when you're doing individually designed sub brands. Some logos have small CGC, some have large. Some logos are centered. Some are force justified. Some are right justified. Some have keylines. Some are reversed. Everyone of them have different x-heights and there isn't a single stylistic element to tie any of them together either through size or appearance. There's a lot going on in this new effort, not sure if it's going to work out well for them in terms of branding.

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 2:33 PM, Dr. Balls said:

No consistency among the primary name logo. If you're going to break away from house branding, focus on some consistency, hierarchy and visual importance to the main company mark, especially when you're doing individually designed sub brands. Some logos have small CGC, some have large. Some logos are centered. Some are force justified. Some are right justified. Some have keylines. Some are reversed. Everyone of them have different x-heights and there isn't a single stylistic element to tie any of them together either through size or appearance. There's a lot going on in this new effort, not sure if it's going to work out well for them in terms of branding.

You should offer your services 

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/517816-need-a-logo-for-your-comic-business-or-convention-the-doctor-is-in/

[GeeksAreMyPeeps]

On 8/22/2023 at 9:33 AM, Dr. Balls said:

No consistency among the primary name logo. If you're going to break away from house branding, focus on some consistency, hierarchy and visual importance to the main company mark, especially when you're doing individually designed sub brands. Some logos have small CGC, some have large. Some logos are centered. Some are force justified. Some are right justified. Some have keylines. Some are reversed. Everyone of them have different x-heights and there isn't a single stylistic element to tie any of them together either through size or appearance. There's a lot going on in this new effort, not sure if it's going to work out well for them in terms of branding.

Yup. Their design is all over the place.

[GeeksAreMyPeeps]

On 8/22/2023 at 4:20 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

 

At the foot of most CCG (CCG, not CGC) pages you will find these standard links:

It's annoying AF that the PMG and CSG logos each use a different typeface than all of the others. 

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 4:59 PM, GeeksAreMyPeeps said:

It's annoying AF that the PMG and CSG logos each use a different typeface than all of the others. 

Odd isn't it, considering how anal collectors can be about uniformity and details.....

[Dr. Balls]

On 8/22/2023 at 7:57 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

You should offer your services 

https://boards.cgccomics.com/topic/517816-need-a-logo-for-your-comic-business-or-convention-the-doctor-is-in/

I don't think corporations take advantage of "boutique" designers - they have an in-house department that handles this stuff, but I've always felt the problem with in-house design is that they are so close to their own product, it's hard to step back and view their brand from a different perspective.

I would really love it for Jay Z to answer "Who did your branding?" with: 

"Some dude named Dr. Balls."

[namisgr]

On 8/22/2023 at 4:20 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

I think what CGC are trying to do with the new logo is to differentiate all the separate product components which now fall under the 'CGC' company banner. Five of them have their own logo now and there are more in the pipeline (toys, concert posters etc):

 

 

The only one of these that I like for both appearance and branding is the one for magazines.  It's the only one where the 'CGC' and the scale of judgement are what catch the eye.  The comics logo does indeed make the company look like another comic book dealer, as do all the others for their respective specialties excepting the magazines logo.

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 8:53 PM, Dr. Balls said:

I don't think corporations take advantage of "boutique" designers - they have an in-house department that handles this stuff, but I've always felt the problem with in-house design is that they are so close to their own product, it's hard to step back and view their brand from a different perspective.

I would really love it for Jay Z to answer "Who did your branding?" with: 

"Some dude named Dr. Balls."

In a way, CGC did choose you though, Doc.

I mean, I look at their design work and I think "that's a right Balls up" 

[Get Marwood & I]

On 8/22/2023 at 1:17 PM, CGC Mike said:

On 8/22/2023 at 11:31 AM, Get Marwood & I said:

...it makes sense for the main CGC page to be the home page, not the current comic-specific one:

https://www.cgccomics.com/

This is a good suggestion.  I'll pass it along to marketing

Give some thought to the log in process. I'm reminded this morning that the log in page for the forum is the comics home page. Changing to the main CGC page may have unintended consequences. 

[Domo Arigato]

They need to add a few......BIF!.......BAM!......POW!......logos around it.

It's what all the cool news stories use to let you know they're hip to the comic book scene.

 

[D84]

I think it creates brand confusion. Was it designed by the QC department?

[GeeksAreMyPeeps]

On 8/22/2023 at 3:53 PM, Dr. Balls said:

I don't think corporations take advantage of "boutique" designers - they have an in-house department that handles this stuff, but I've always felt the problem with in-house design is that they are so close to their own product, it's hard to step back and view their brand from a different perspective.

I would really love it for Jay Z to answer "Who did your branding?" with: 

"Some dude named Dr. Balls."

I doubt they have enough design needs to have an in-house team. They probably work with a design studio that has CGC as one of a number of clients.

[Dr. Balls]

On 8/23/2023 at 8:23 AM, GeeksAreMyPeeps said:

I doubt they have enough design needs to have an in-house team. They probably work with a design studio that has CGC as one of a number of clients.

Yeah, I dunno - they have a CGC Marketing Manager and CGC Graphic Designer, and allude to a "Marketing Team" in this article. I do know that if you only have one person handling all the different marketing and graphic support materials, and then you throw a branding project at them that requires some in-depth studying, research and development time - corners are going to be cut somewhere. One person can do the work, but the quality goes down exponentially because there is zero time left for critical thinking about each project - you basically have to just shoot from the hip, design something and move on to the next project. If that's the case, I feel for them - I have had friends who worked in corporate art departments, and their laments are all the same: too much work, not enough time for development of the message.

But, if they hired an outside firm like you were suggesting - I don't know what to think about that. Those should have more cohesiveness. It's not unheard of for a brand to develop individual identities for different services, but those companies generally have a subtextual style to tie them together.

[GeeksAreMyPeeps]

On 8/23/2023 at 11:05 AM, Dr. Balls said:

Yeah, I dunno - they have a CGC Marketing Manager and CGC Graphic Designer, and allude to a "Marketing Team" in this article. I do know that if you only have one person handling all the different marketing and graphic support materials, and then you throw a branding project at them that requires some in-depth studying, research and development time - corners are going to be cut somewhere. One person can do the work, but the quality goes down exponentially because there is zero time left for critical thinking about each project - you basically have to just shoot from the hip, design something and move on to the next project. If that's the case, I feel for them - I have had friends who worked in corporate art departments, and their laments are all the same: too much work, not enough time for development of the message.

But, if they hired an outside firm like you were suggesting - I don't know what to think about that. Those should have more cohesiveness. It's not unheard of for a brand to develop individual identities for different services, but those companies generally have a subtextual style to tie them together.

I work for a small design studio, and we have some clients that are large corporations with an in-house marketing department, but they don't handle all of their artwork needs in-house. They do some, but I think the nature of the work is that you get periods where there is a lot of creative needs, and periods where there's very little. And companies don't like to pay for people to sit around when there is very little. So they deal with outside studios on a project basis.