It is a simple, straightforward logo: a pair of cupped hands and the words "Allstate Arena."

But placement of the Allstate Arena logo on the building once known as the Rosemont Horizon culminates an 18-month effort in which the insurance company took great care to deliver the right message.

"It's interesting what a small symbol can do for the image of your company," said Jody Mack, Allstate's corporate identity manager. "We spent a lot of time making sure it was done right."

Developing the Allstate Arena logo actually began with an exercise to redesign Allstate's corporate logo, said Mack, who spearheaded both projects.

The goal was to modify the logo to be consistent with the Allstate brands' identity.

When Mack started working on the project in early 1998, no one at Allstate knew the logo eventually would be displayed on an arena. That opportunity didn't develop until a year later. But having completed the corporate logo process made designing the arena logo much easier.

The focal point of the new Allstate logo is the cupped "good hands," a symbol that has drifted in and out of the picture over the company's 67-year history.

The original design was a set of rather large, boxy hands that sometimes held a house, a car or people, representing the company's home, automobile and life insurance lines. Over time, the hands were used with the Allstate name, and sometimes with the slogan, "You're in good hands." Sometimes the hands weren't used at all.

"It had been more than 20 years since we had changed the logo, so we thought this would be a good time to take another look," said Jill Weaver, vice president of advertising and brand communication. "We knew we could improve the consistency of use, and better communicate the soul of our company. And consumer research indicated that coupling the hands with the corporate logo would help humanize the company's image."

But designing the right pair of hands proved to be a big challenge.

The traditional boxy hands were viewed by focus groups as being somewhat crude and awkward, made more so when they held a house or a car.

"It suggested a product-orientation rather than people-orientation," Weaver said. "We're a company that provides people with a service - protection against risk. That wasn't coming across with the old logo."

Numerous design ideas were evaluated over the course of a year.

"You wouldn't believe how many different types of hands there are," Mack said. "There are loving hands, mother-child hands, and religious hands. It's not an easy process finding the right ones."

The field was narrowed to 20 designs, and Allstate conducted one-on-one interviews with its customers to see what they thought. Most liked the cupped hands with the Allstate name, featuring its distinctive slanted "A," and the slogan, "You're in good hands."

"It's interesting that even though the 'good hands' weren't always in the Allstate logo, people thought they were," Weaver said. "It indicated that people were very familiar with them. While only a symbol, we knew the permanent addition of hands made the difference in being viewed as a strong, trustworthy institution, and one that adds a human and personal touch. We knew they had to stay."

Or as Mick McCabe, Allstate's senior vice president for marketing and brand development put it, "We brought forward from the past the good hands to remind people of Allstate's strength and concern for the customer."

Bridgewater Design, a Chicago-based graphics desing firm, was brought in to help with the final design. The new hands were modernized for a cleaner, more unisex look. and while retaining the font and distinctive slanted "A" in the Allstate logo, the letters were spaces out slightly to make them easier to read.

In most cases, the new hands will accompany the Allstate name and slogan as an integrated whole.

Just about the time the corporate logo was selected, Allstate was inking the 10-year agreement to secure the naming rights to the Rosemont Horizon. The company turned to Mack to start the logo process once again.

This time, Mack's job was much easier. She knew the good hands were the cornerstone of the logo, as was the Allstate name. It came down to designing the word "arena."

"We chose a design that was crisp, strong and had a presence" Mack said.

Thus, the message of the Allstate logo will be conveyed each time a motorist passes on the Northwest Tollway and see the arena's sign. It will be repeated to airline passengers flying by and looking at the logo painted on the roof. The logo will be present on tickets, on signs in the arena, and under the hockey ice.

"Every time someone sees that logo," Weaver said, "they will be reminded that Allstate is part of the community."