So I was drinking a nice hot cup of Dunkin' Donuts hot chocolate the other day (probably one of the last of the season as the damn temps keep going up and up), and I noticed their newish logo (on the right). It needs work.
I mean, I love the slogan, "America Runs On Dunkin'." It's not only catchy, but it firmly establishes DD's national presence very quickly. And the logo is a clever idea. But let's take a look at the four panels one by one and see if we can make the logo even better.
The first panel shows a map of the U.S. OK, that's the "America" part and is well-done (though, sorry Alaska and Hawaii). The second panel shows someone running. That's the "run" part. So far so good. The last panel has the "DD," which is short for "Dunkin' Donuts." That is also well done, as long as people don't think it stands for David Duchovny.
But that third panel. It just shows the word "on," and that's just not good enough. The other three pics are a symbol for each word in the slogan, but this third panel just repeats the word "on." We gotta think of some new pic to put in that third panel. Maybe a light switch? Nah. Then the pics would say "American Runs Light Switch Dunkin'."
Readers? Any ideas?

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3-13-2007 @2:49PM Runner said... Turn it into a rebus - line up the 1st, 2nd, and 4th panels vertically. America
Runs [on]
DD
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3-13-2007 @2:47PM K said... You'd have to change it to "Some part of America runs on Dunkin Donuts, but not the rest of you people who don't have access to DD because you're forced to drive by the grossly inferior Krispy Kreme franchises, instead" but that would be awfully long.
There has never been a dunkin donuts shop here in my city in Northern California, which is a major city with many millions in population. There are none that I know of, either, in 2 hours in each direction. I don't DD can claim that America runs on their product, unless they are pretty much, everywhere in America. And they should be, from what I hear.
KK sucks.
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3-13-2007 @2:51PM Nathan said... Maybe it could be an outline of a doughnut. It would be round like an "O" suggesting the word "on" and also it would be a doughnut, suggesting doughnuts.
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3-13-2007 @3:04PM Mary Sue said... I used to run (on) about David Duchovny all the time!
*sigh* Those were the days...
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3-13-2007 @3:31PM William said... Here's my suggestion:
DD < KKD
They can have their cakey donuts. I'll take a light Krispy Kreme ring of goodness.
http://www.ntscblog.com/2007/03/ok-so-ill-try-new-krispy-kreme-donut.html
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3-13-2007 @3:43PM Lenka Reznicek said... I propose a different, animated logo: the two "D"s in Dunkin Donuts abutted back-to-back (one flipped horizontally) to create a rotating orange-and-pink treadwheel, with an outline map of the U.S. jogging atop it, coffee and doughnut in "hand": the perfect "rat race" symbol!
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3-15-2007 @10:55AM matt said... Wow Bob. Who knew you were an authority on logo design? If you were more of an authority, you might realize that what you are analyzing isn't their logo; it's a graphical representation of their tag-line. I think it's cool.
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3-13-2007 @4:21PM Bob Sassone said... Matt, did you even read my post? I think I said pretty clearly that's what it is.
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3-13-2007 @4:58PM Alexis said... I think it may be simply put as an america, with legs (or maybe lady liberty, or uncle sam, or both!) in a running pose on top of a large donut. If you wanted to animate it, have them running on the donut going in circles, while the donut is half floating on a big cup of DD coffee.
Note: I am not in advertising for a reason, mostly because anything I would come up with is erm... weird *points at the rest of his post*
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3-13-2007 @5:12PM Megan said... Honestly, it reminds me of that old joke
pic of the AOl running man. You know,
the one where he's running to
the bathroom instead of starting
your computer's connectioin.
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3-13-2007 @6:14PM Gobo said... I'm a designer, and I can just see the hundreds of sketches tacked up on boards for the "ON" panel, nobody liking anything, until finally someone says "oh hell, just put the letters O-N and let's get a drink". Honestly, no matter what I think of, it's harder to understand than the word ON.
(If I were going to get nitpicky I'd say that this isn't their 'logo', though, but whatever)
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3-14-2007 @11:14AM JIM BURT said... D.D. RUNS WITH R.R.AMERICA OR RACHAEL RAY AN/DUNKIN DONUTS FOREVER AND AFTER THAT R.RAY. FOR PRES.
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3-14-2007 @11:12AM JIM BURT said... R.RAY RUNS WITH DUNKIN
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3-14-2007 @11:06AM schaefc said... START OVER - lose the blocks, drop the runner - go back to what America craves...COFFEE-and-DONUTS! A (DD logo'd) to-go bag of donuts and a cup of steamin' jo is what the public will relate to - and you can't "RUN" while holding onto that! And, if you need TEXT with the ad, add it like a TEXTED PHONE MESSAGE - and you'll appeal to/convert a whole new generation to Dunkin Donuts!
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3-14-2007 @4:53PM D. Short said... Bob cracks me up hehe
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3-14-2007 @4:55PM Dave said... Yeah, the whole running person icon suggests some sort of healthy connection (at least psychologically) and we all know DD isn't healthy.
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3-14-2007 @9:07PM indivent said... This American Life did it much better (IMHO). They show it at the end of this trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4g4w9e-Xvkk
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3-15-2007 @7:06AM Dave said... I sure wish They had a dunkin donuts Here In Milton Wv.They are the best In The World By Far.I lived in everett mass for 38 yrs,and They Had Two 2 There .population 22000 ppl.I sure wish they would build here.2.200PPL here in milton.Tyhanks So Much.Dave
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3-15-2007 @7:10AM Dave said... Wish i had some dunkin donuts now.mmmmmmm.Dave
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