Is it bad design to use BOTH a company wordmark (pictures to the right) and a Lettermark (pictured to the left) at the same time in a header of a website or app? or on a businesss card? or ever?
-
1I imagine this is only ever an issue if the two can spell a different word somehow. CO Ckedit Options. In this example, Ckedit Options, my made up company could letter mark their initials CO, but when put too closely together would be...unfortunate.– DasBeastoNov 8, 2016 at 19:38
1 Answer
To answer your question:
Should you use both a Wordmark and a Lettermark Logo together at the same time?
It depends. Not all cases are the same, and in the end it will be a decision that should be validated by testing.
However, when you ask:
Is it bad design to use BOTH a company wordmark (pictures to the right) and a Lettermark (pictured to the left) at the same time in a header of a website or app? or on a businesss card? or ever?
Then the answer is a loud NO!.
Think about this: your example is one of the most famous brands ever. In that scenario, you can add a lettermark (I'd dispute that the F is a lettermark, but anyways), a wordmark, a combination logo or whatever you want. Just because you can.
But in the 99.99% of cases in which you're NOT one of the most famous brands ever... how do you expect users to make the connection between the different parts of your branding if you don't show it? So the obvious answer is: not only is not bad design, but you HAVE to put them together. Otherwise you'd be relying on magic!