This was done by
someone's graphic artist friend, who has never actually seen a logo or sign of any kind before. Maybe one time he or she overheard someone else's description, and the premise simply blew his/her graphic artist mind. This is a terrible logo for a few reasons.
1. Curvy words. Most road signs only consist of symbols, because simple pictures can describe, at a glance, a lot of information. Reading takes a lot more concentration, especially when it's upside-down. The words are just as a confusing border.
2. Way too busy. There are a lot of basic shapes in this picture, and they don't automatically congeal into a face, let alone the face of a headphone wearer. This text is all askew, there's a lot of overlapping lines, shapes, and colors... even the face in the middle looks astonished at this RGB-splashed mess. This logo is far more complicated than it needs to be.
3. Way too many colors. This compounds the business. Typical signs are one or two colors. Three, is pushing it, but allowed. Simple coloration makes it easy for people to pick actual signs out from nonessential ones, like advertisements. The colors are meaningless and only serve to dazzle viewers like the coloration of a poison dart frog. There is nothing about this random swath of colors that portrays a particular message, other than "What am I?"
4. Headphones aren't even the main focus. Really, this sign looks like MS Paint minimalism, like a
Paul Frank monkey, or any "hip" internet ad. The only clear indicator of this sign's intent is partially upside-down, and is nowhere near as eye-catching as the Rorschach rainbow in the sign's center.
Our question is, if the only message you're trying to portray is "No headphones" -- if you'll notice, there's nothing that mentions jogging here -- why not just go for a really basic symbol inspired by road signage?
Example:
The cool part about this sign is you could actually put it on a race course, just in case you needed to remind people that they can't be trusted with their own gadgets. It'd probably make anti-headphone activists glow with self-righteous pride.
It's ok: no one is wearing headphones. You're safe.
