People have final say on Gap logo

‘So what?’ you might be thinking. It’s only a logo – how many people really care? But that’s exactly it – it’s because so many people care that Gap’s doing such an almighty u-turn.

Just one week after the ‘new’ Gap logo was launched, it’s being binned because of an online backlash. Over 2,000 comments were posted to Gap’s Facebook page, many expressing a clear dislike for the new branding and demanding that the original is reinstated.

How Gap has reacted to the revolt

Gap’s first reaction was to embrace the power of the people and launch a crowdsourcing project, posting the following message to its Facebook page: ‘We know this logo created a lot of buzz and we’re thrilled to see passionate debates unfolding! So much so we’re asking you to share your designs.’

Now they’ve done a complete u-turn and announced the old logo will stay: “Ok. We’ve heard loud and clear that you don’t like the new logo. We only want what’s best for the brand and our customers. So instead of crowdsourcing, we’re bringing back the Blue Box tonight.”

Power to the people

Wow. Pretty powerful stuff when a huge multinational retailer bows to the voice of its customers. It’s this kind of mass hysteria that I love about social networking. How else could so many people voice their opinions in one place and, crucially, get heard?

Before the days of Facebook, Twitter et al the only options were to write a letter, email or phone the company. Let’s face it, only the most opinionated and determined among us would muster up the energy to do that. Social networking is quick, efficient and powerful.

Now it’s time for the shameless plug, because we’re aiming to get some wins like this through the Conversations going on here. First up, we’re hoping all your comments urging manufacturers to bring back viewfinders on digital cameras will help us do exactly that. [/Shameless plug.]