In JCPenney's recent apology ad, it begged customers to "come back" to the retailer. It also featured a redesigned logo, one that used the company's whole name rather than the hip 'jcp' design taken on last year.
According to E-Poll Market Research, a trend-oriented market researcher, every redesign of the JCPenney logo since 2010 has hurt consumer awareness of the brand:
In April of 2010, JCPenney's classic logo was recognizable by 84% of those surveyed. Following a 2011 redesign, awareness dropped to 76%.
And following the radical 2012 redesign, awareness dropped to a measly 56%.
The shift back to the old logo in the apology ad is another signal that JCPenney is looking for a major upheaval of its brand. Ron Johnson-era policies have all but brought the brand to its knees—and top-level execs and market researchers alike agree that new strategies are needed all around.