What is the lifespan of a logo?

I had my logo designed many years ago, and lately I've been wondering whether I should have it redesigned. How long does a logo usually last before it needs to be redesigned?

It's great that you are taking the time to consider whether your logo and brand image needs to be updated. It is good to consider this from time-to-time, because you are correct that after a while, even great logos need updating. Thankfully the life of a logo tends to be much longer than the life of a website these days, so you won't need to reconsider your logo near as often as you website. As with all things branding and marketing, there is no hard and fast rule about the lifespan of a logo design. However, often you'll find that a good, professionally designed logo should last you about 10 years. Keep in mind that this is the guideline if you'd had your logo professionally designed. If you have more of a do-it-yourself logo design from when you were first starting out, you will probably want to consider having it redesigned as soon as you are making enough profit to make the investment. But before you get started, there are a few things to consider before redesigning your logo.

How much equity is in the logo?

Before redesigning your logo, you'll want to consider how much equity—or recognition—you have in your logo. If you redesign your logo, it will take your audience some time to get used to the new logo, and to recognize you by it. This means, you won't want to undergo a logo redesign on a whim. However, if your current logo is giving your audience the wrong impression, this readjustment can be just the shift that you need to help your audience to start seeing you in the light you wish to be seen in.

How extensive will the adoption process be?

Another thing to consider will be how tough it will be to remove instances of the old logo and replace them with the new logo. Things like business cards, stationery and packaging can be much more affordable than things such as signage. So you'll want to consider the extended cost of redesigning the logo. If a logo design would require more extensive changes, such as signage or office decor, you may wish to align your logo redesign with another company milestone, such as moving offices, renovating or reordering your packaging materials. This way, you can roll your logo changes into these other events, making the logo redesign feel like a natural progression alongside your other steps toward progress.

Do you really need a full redesign?

Another thing to consider is whether you really need a full redesign, or if you can do with more of a retouching or realignment. A logo retouch would mean that the concept of the logo stays in tact, but it is refined in some other way to polish and tighten it up. This might mean updating the color palette, the typeface, or simply reworking the existing composition to be tighter and more solid. For companies that feel they have a good amount of equity in their existing logo, this can be a good way to update without making too drastic of changes.