Over at The Drive, Rob Stumpf says 30,000 people per month are searching for the meaning of “KN car”:
Last year, Kia decided that it was going to bring the brand into the 21st century. And it did exactly that by revamping its logo into something a bit more modern—gone is the old circular logo and in is the new look. There’s just one problem: people can’t seem to actually read it on a car.
I know that you’re thinking that a single Reddit post doesn’t prove that people are confused. But dear reader, it’s not just one Reddit post (there are a few, actually). According to search engine trend statistics, it turns out that around 30,000 people in the U.S. are actively trying to figure out what the “KN car” actually is…every single month.
Whoopsie.
Formally I love the new KIA logo. It’s just a great shape. There’s a strong play between negative and positive space in it. But… but! — it is hard to read. I won’t argue that.
A friend and his wife said they don’t like the KIA logo because it reminds them of the Nine Inch Nails logo. I wanted to tell my friend, A. You have no taste in logos, and B. You have no taste in music. NIN rocks.
So the moral of this story is make sure your logo reads the way you intend it to read.
And find friends with better taste in logos and cars than me.
Stay vigilant.
