Pictorial Mark

A pictorial mark is a logo made from a recognisable, real-world image or icon — as opposed to an abstract mark, which uses non-representational shapes. The Apple logo (an apple), the Twitter bird, and the Penguin Books penguin are all pictorial marks. The power of a pictorial mark is that it carries immediate, built-in meaning: the viewer recognises the image and understands its associations without needing to learn them. The image may be literal (a tech company using a circuit board) or metaphorical (an insurance company using a protective umbrella). The challenge is that a pictorial mark ties the brand to a specific image, which may limit its relevance as the brand evolves. It also requires sufficient distinctiveness to stand apart from other brands using similar imagery. Great pictorial marks are simple enough to be instantly recognisable and reproduce clearly at any size, yet distinctive enough to be unmistakably associated with their brand rather than generic.