Web Design Trends: Mascots - Examples, Tips and Tutorials

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Another trend I have been noticing in web design is the large number of sites using mascots nowadays. In this post, I will be posting examples of popular sites using mascots, as well as tips and links to tutorials.

What is a Mascot?

It an animal, human or any other kind of object, which is used in the branding of a company/website. They are used to identify a brand, and they typically indicate the kind of ideals the brand represents, for example, friendliness etc. A mascot is usually cute, friendly and sweet, and on occasions, it may also be kind of silly :). Mascots are also used on advertising material.
Another thing to note is that mascots aren’t the same as illustrations. Illustrations may not necessarily be used in the branding of the site, and different illustrations may be used on different pages. But the mascot represents the identity of the site, and it stays the same throughout the site.

Mascot Design Tips

The Mascot should represent the ideals of the company. Hence, it is very important to keep in mind, what the company wants to convey, as this will decide how the mascot looks - silly, professional and even what the mascot is holding and whether he is standing or sitting etc.
Mascots are cute, ALWAYS.
Mascots, as can be noticed above, generally tend to be human or animal characters, which we can easily represent with.
Mascots should be friendly too. They man even be silly.
It is also quite important to focus on the mascots pose, what he is carrying and the background.
The Mascot should be unique in the sense that it should be easily differentiated from Mascots of other Brands.