Old logo gets new look

For years, the Shelby County seal has also served as the logo for Discovery Shelby, the tourism arm for the county.

However, it doesn’t represent why people come to visit Shelby County or why someone might want to, said Kendall Williams, Shelby County’s manager of tourism and events.

“We wanted to freshen up the look and use it on many different platforms including social media, the website, marketing and other promotional items,” Williams said.

Rebranding has been a focus since Williams interviewed for the position over a year ago. The goal was to make sure the county worked with the right company, which turned out to be Destination by Design, that only does tourism marketing.

“We wanted to make sure the image portrayed the outdoor economy. We are so blessed to have her in Shelby County,” Williams said.

The new logo image features a compass with a trail and mountain. The image of a compass is used to signify the hiking, running and mountain bike trails throughout the county. A nod to the many trails is also incorporated into the logo, which include a wine trail, brewery trail, bird watching trail and blueway trails at the Cahaba River.

“We also wanted to make sure the actual logo incorporated Alabama in some way,” Williams said. “There are many Shelby’s and Shelby counties, including one in Tennessee.”

It was tricky trying to identify an iconic image to represent the county in its entirety, but Williams said no matter where you go, you'll find a beautiful park or trail of some sort.

The new logo has been released organically, and has been on display at several events this summer.

Guests and residents are also encouraged to use the #Discovershelbyal. Williams said people can use the hashtag on photos they take throughout the county and the hashtag can also be searched on social media.

The next step in the rebranding process will be a website redesign for discovershelby.com.

“We want it to be a better resource for our residents and visitors alike,” Williams said.