Since the year 2006, the iconic blue and white bird logo has been a large part of Twitter’s brand identity. This logo is where the term “Tweeting” even came from. However, Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk has just renamed the social media platform to “X”.
Overview
On the social platform’s new website, Twitter is no more as Musk has officially renamed the platform X.com and has already begun phasing out the bird logo. In replacement of the vintage blue & white logo, Musk has decided to go with a sleek and futuristic “X” as the new logo.
Embracing Change
Inside Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, there have been reports of the new X logo being hung up around the cafeteria where the old logos used to be. Additionally, the names of certain office spaces have been changed to incorporate the new brand identity of X. Some of these new names include the new names of the conference rooms in the headquarters such as “eXposure” and “eXult.”
Elon’s Vision
For quite some time now, Elon Musk has spoken about rebranding the social media platform he purchased and getting rid of the birds once and for all. However, this was made official on Sunday Morning when Musk said in a tweet that he plans on turning Twitter into not just a social media platform, but also a platform where e-commerce trade and banking can occur.
Brand Value Erased
Many avid users of the social platform are unwelcoming to the rebrand, as many prominent figures on the app have already stated they will still call it “Twitter” and continue to “Tweet.” According to Marketing & Research expert Mike Proulx, when a brand becomes a verb it is the “Holy Grail” for that company. “The app itself has become a cultural phenomenon in all sorts of ways,” he said. “In one fell sweep, Elon Musk has essentially wiped out 15 years of brand value from Twitter and is now essentially starting from scratch.”
Wrap Up
Besides all the internal changes that were made by Musk, this is the first change he has made to the brand image and it is certainly prominent. As time goes on, we will have to wait and see if the newly branded social media platform will thrive, or if the owner made a regretful mistake.