Do not begin with the question “Can I download this image?” Begin with “What claim does this particular logo help me establish?” If the answer concerns its lettering, colour, composition or development over time, showing the mark may be necessary. If the image simply signals which company a section discusses, the company name will often do the job without reproducing the logo.
Analytical evidence is not visual decoration
A scholarly quotation has to serve a recognisable purpose in the surrounding work. The text should engage with what the reproduced material shows. A marketing dissertation might compare how a word mark changed after a merger. A design-history thesis might analyse the relationship between symbol and type. In both cases, readers need to see the object that supports the observation.
By contrast, placing five company logos across a chapter opener does not automatically contribute evidence. The marks may create a polished appearance, but they are not sources for revenue, organisational history or customer behaviour. Cite the documents that support those claims. The logo is not a substitute for them.
Make the exact version traceable
Public availability does not make an image source-free. A useful figure caption identifies the organisation or rights holder, the version or date where known, and the precise page from which the file came. Add an access date when the online asset is likely to change. Your list of figures can use a shortened form, while the bibliography or source list gives the full record required by your citation style.
A generic link to a corporate home page is weak when the image actually came from a press kit, archived brand manual or annual report. Record the direct location before the site changes. Keep a lawful local research copy and a note of when it was accessed. A filename supplied by a browser is not provenance.
Citation and permission answer different questions
Attribution tells readers where the material originated. It does not, by itself, establish that reproducing the material is permitted. German copyright law, which applies to the German site publishing this guide, permits quotation where the particular purpose justifies the extent of use and expressly addresses reproductions of visual works. Other jurisdictions frame exceptions differently, so an English-language thesis submitted elsewhere must follow the law and institutional requirements that apply there.
Trade mark considerations are separate again. The presentation should not suggest endorsement, certification or partnership. Avoid turning the logo into your own page furniture, changing its proportions or using it as if it were the thesis publisher’s mark. If the analytical case is uncertain, seek advice from your library, institution or a qualified lawyer. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Worked example: documenting a rebrand
Imagine a dissertation chapter examining a manufacturer’s identity after a merger. It places the old and new logos side by side, then identifies a precise shift: the product name has disappeared from the new word mark, while a distinctive shape and base colour remain. Those visual details are evidence for the argument, so the reproductions have a clear analytical role.
Each caption records the organisation, logo version, year, exact source page and access date. The prose points readers to the relevant figure numbers and explains the comparison. The author does not reproduce the whole brand manual because two selected images are sufficient. A short note also makes clear that the logos are shown for analysis and that no affiliation is claimed.
A six-step pre-submission check
- Underline the sentence that genuinely requires readers to see the logo.
- Confirm that the chosen version and resolution are necessary for that point.
- Record the rights holder, exact source, version and access date.
- Separate scholarly attribution from copyright and trade mark analysis.
- Check consistency across the caption, list of figures and bibliography.
- Remove the image if its only function is decoration or implied endorsement.
Use the broader media citation hub for related image cases. Our guide to adapting a figure explains how to label changes, while the plagiarism overview clarifies why attribution and originality are related but not identical questions.