• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, March 18, 2020

                    Did you ever think about all the handshake signs, symbols and logos you’ve seen in your life? 

They’re pretty ubiquitous, in the brand world and elsewhere. Just Google it and hundreds will pop up. Makes sense, right? A handshake is a universal symbol of friendship and goodwill. 

But in the age of social distancing wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ve become a liability — and another problem for brands to think about. 

But now, Latin American ecommerce giant Mercado Libre and its agency Gut Buenos Aires have designed their way around the problem. They’ve created an alternative logo, in which the shaking hands in ML’s logo are replaced by an elbow bump. 

How brilliant is that? They elegantly solved the problem in a way that provides a public service by reminding people to use an alternative way to greet others. 

The new logo rolled out late last week and will remain in place for the duration of the current health crisis.