The 80’s are long gone - but look around and notice all the downtown buildings all topped with huge neon lit logos – electrified egos of the top floor executives inside them.

I live in Denver and the evenings here are dowsed with a glowing blue – residents greet visitors with “welcome to downtown Qwest” jokes – and groan. Thanks, Qwest, for assuming we want to be annoyed with your giant glowing Q – regardless of the thousands of signatures gathered by your customers that only wish you turn down the wattage.

I want to talk about “logos” and “brands”.

A “brand” manifests itself in hundreds of ways with your company. It’s generated by your actions, voices, products, services and more. Your “brand” is how people feel about you. It’s NOT the symbol – your logo, that identifies you. Your logo is a signature of your brand.

So, it makes me think about websites. The logo on your website DOESN’T need to fill the top third of your page. Don’t nail your visitors over the head with your logo, impress them with your brand instead. Flavor it with colors, fonts, space and images. Use a voice, a tone that they will welcome – RESPECT your visitors, teach them, listen to them. This is your brand.

No wonder I feel the way I do about Qwest.