PayPal rebrand

PayPal puts people first in new visual identity

In a move to be more inclusive, the identity has been designed to meet the ADA’s accessible design requirements, while new photography better reflects the diversity of PayPal’s customer base

Online payments platform PayPal has unveiled a new brand strategy and visual identity, developed by it’s in-house brand team in collaboration with New York-based design studio Gretel.

Writing about the rebrand on Medium, Emanuele Madeddu, senior director for brand marketing strategy and branding, discussed the various motivations behind it – from building a stronger connection between the brand’s mission and communications, through to evolving its visual identity to better reflect its work today.

Starting with brand strategy, Madeddu explains that the team focused on PayPal’s role as the “empowerer” and “enabler” of opportunity for people. “The new brand strategy puts the stories of PayPal customers — millions of individuals and businesses who trust, rely on and use PayPal every day — front and centre, championing their needs and wants.”

The new visual identity is inspired by one of the brand’s most recognisable assets, the payment button, which has become synonymous with PayPal itself over the years. “For many people, it is the confirmation of a transaction in a digital commerce environment. It connects function with emotion — linking PayPal with the success of a secure transaction on both merchant and consumer sides. We decided to leverage this powerful equity,” says Madeddu.

All images courtesy PayPal

Historically part of the PayPal checkout experience, gold is now included in the brand’s primary palette along with blue. The brand’s existing monogram, featuring two overlapping Ps that are locked together, is now also used as a framing device – “turning individual users, small business owners, or CFOs of large corporations into the protagonists of their story,” says Madeddu.

One of the most interesting elements of the rebrand is PayPal’s move to create a more inclusive and accessible brand for its customers. Its logo, for example, now meets the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) standards for accessible design.

“PayPal is also taking extra steps in the broader brand guidelines to drive inclusivity — from photography that better reflects the diversity of the PayPal community, to being selective with the language, tone and voice that we use to ensure the PayPal brand is inclusive for all,” says Madeddu.

gretelny.com