English | Deutsch English | DeutschSymantec had built a trusted and long-running brand in its flagship product, Norton AntiVirus. But it had yet to develop that same level of name recognition for itself. Meanwhile, the Norton line was gradually losing ground in the marketplace: many users could no longer distinguish between Norton and its competitors, while others viewed the brand as overly technical. Symantec decided to reinvigorate its business by phasing out the Norton sub-brand and establishing a stronger, more unified product line under the Symantec name. The company enlisted frog to develop a fresh, visually rich aesthetic for its packaging that would reflect this evolution.
frog’s design team isolated and evaluated each element of the original Norton AntiVirus packaging, defining key elements of the brand’s visual DNA. We experimented with divergent graphical modes and visual metaphors, taking into account the company’s classic style while challenging preconceptions of what the packaging “should” look like. We sought not to overhaul the design language, but to evolve it – to leverage existing brand equity while revitalizing the product on a global scale.
In order to shift the emphasis from Norton to Symantec, the long-established photograph of Peter Norton was relocated from the front of the box to its spine. The absence of this figure from the cover, the primary visual field, enhanced the value of other, well-known brand images, such as the AntiVirus stethoscope. These elements could now stand alone and develop a strong association with the Symantec name.
The original background color, Symantec Yellow, offers a visual reminder of the brand’s dependability. But in order to amplify the prominence of this brand identity – establishing a greater connection between company and consumer – frog created a white staging area at the top of the box containing Symantec’s logo, the sub-brand logo, and the product’s mission statement. In a product category where differentiators are not always apparent, the packaging needed to be not only identifiable, but informative; this textual inclusion underscores the strength and reliability of the Symantec product portfolio.
Because yellow is a common color for software packaging, this white field also provides an essential visual disruption, ensuring that the products stand out on the store shelf. The revised brand aesthetic operates as part of Symantec’s consistent, visually coherent system.
To ensure the success of the reinvigorated brand identity in the worldwide marketplace, focus groups were employed in the US, the UK, Brazil, France, Germany, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia. By testing throughout the design process, rather than only upon completion, frog was able to guarantee both longevity and global appeal in its packaging.
A comprehensive document of consumer packaging guidelines was handed over to Symantec for extension across all successive product releases.
Symantec enlisted frog to apply the new brand aesthetic to the consumer product section of its website, fully integrating its in-store offerings and online presence. This unified design language has allowed Symantec to strengthen its brand identity, revitalize the Norton sub-brand, and expand its foothold in the software market.
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