In light of 2010 remembrance and looking forward to 2011 with a list of New Year’s resolutions, I got to thinking about advice I’d give myself. To be a bit more specific, I considered the question, “If you could go back in time, what advice would you give the 22-year-old you?”

So Aveus, if you could go back in time, what advice would you give the 22-year-old you?

The new year marks the end of an intriguing, four-year project for us – and the beginning of a newly transformed organization we’ve had the privilege of leading. In 2006, fellow Aveus partner Chris LaVictoire Mahai and I began working with Deluxe CEO Lee Schram and his leadership team to guide strategic market planning and assist in transforming the company. This was in the face of unprecedented industry changes as the traditional checks and business products sector rapidly shifted from direct to digital marketing. Deluxe had also acquired New England Business Systems, and while this strengthened penetration in the small business market, it came with challenges as well. Disparate systems, products, marketing, and processes all needed to be resolved.

Logos and brands are part of the customer experience. They are intangible elements that customers associate with a business, and something they can grow quite attached to.

The Economist does a good job of explaining why a new logo can throw consumers into a tizzy.

“The debate about logos reveals something interesting about power as well as passion. Much of the rage in the blogosphere is driven by a sense that “they” (the corporate stiffs) have changed something without consulting “us” (the people who really matter). This partly reflects a hunch that consumers have more power in an increasingly crowded market for goods. But it also reflects the sense that brands belong to everyone, not just to the corporations that nominally control them.”

If you need further proof, just take a look at the passion stirred up when Starbucks announced a new logo. Opinions run the gamut. There are those, like Rick Thompson on Customer Think who calls removing the words ‘Starbucks Coffee’ and the circle around the iconic siren a “risky and unnecessary step.”