Recently Verizon unveiled a new logo designed by Pentagram - one of the premier design firms worldwide. This simpler, more human logo uses check marks as a symbol to convey reliability.
Verizon's previous logo was too complex and confusing, whereas their new design emphasizes simplicity and clarity while positioning them for future growth.
Origins
The Verizon logo is instantly recognizable to Americans. Featuring red and black colors with its iconic tick mark, its visual representation of connectivity remains powerfully memorable. Since first debuting in 2000, Verizon's logo has seen many transformations; most recently with Pentagram's redesign in 2015.
Verizon was formed when Bell Atlantic and GTE merged. Its name, which stands for veritas (meaning truth) and horizon (representing forward thinking and reliability), came about following Landor Associates' initial logo design featuring bold lowercase font in black with stylized red large checkmark that contained gradient, giving off unprofessional vibes while breaking up overall symmetry of logo design.
Meaning
Verizon is one of the world's best-known telecommunications companies, founded as Bell Atlantic back in 1983 and since undergoing numerous name changes and mergers over time.
Verizon's original logo featured a red letter "z" that appeared to mimic an electric spark, an ideal representation of its energy and forward thinking culture.
In 2015, Verizon unveiled their newly designed logo which featured a more minimalist approach and included an iconic red check mark to symbolize their commitment and reliability as a company.
The new Verizon logo comprises three simple elements: masculine black and red colors, Helvetica Black font (with slight modifications), and a red check mark. This new emblem was designed to be easy to reproduce while representing its core values of integrity, respect, and imagination.
Colors
The Verizon logo uses a classic combination of black and red colors - widely associated with power and success - as part of its logo, with red checkmarks serving as symbols of approval and trust.
Pentagram created the logo for their company with their bold Helvetica black font name set against an eye-catching red check mark symbolizing successfully completed tasks.
The new Verizon logo has received mixed reactions from the public. While some have called it boring and old-fashioned, others have praised its simplicity and clarity. One prominent critic of the new logo has been John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile.
Fonts
Verizon's logo embodies minimalism at its finest, inspiring innovation and confidence in their audience. Furthermore, using a sans serif font reinforces this forward thinking spirit of their company.
Landor Associates created the initial logo in 2000 after GTE and Bell Atlantic joined forces. It featured a bold black wordmark, red color and tick mark; with italic font and stylized "z" above name which didn't match well or break up its symmetry.
Pentagram revised the Verizon logo in 2015, simplifying it and eliminating gradients from its red tick mark and lettering. Their new version retains bold lettering but without gradients for proper alignment between details.
Alternatives
Recently Verizon introduced a new logo designed by Pentagram. Although many praised it, some critics found the new design too plain or taking minimalism too far, with some even suggesting that the logo looks as though it were created by a four year old child.
Recent phishing campaigns leveraging variations of the Verizon logo have been seen. Phishers were able to successfully deceive recipients into providing their credentials while defrauding them of them as part of this scheme.
This new phishing campaign stands out because of its use of mathematical symbols instead of letters and icons for messaging, bypassing security measures like SPF and DMARC that would prevent emails from reaching recipients.
