Agoda was first launched in 2005 by two friends with a shared passion for entrepreneurship and travel. Since then, we’ve expanded from a small startup into a leading global company with thousands of employees while remaining true to our mission of making travel easy and affordable. The Agoda brand has grown alongside us, continually evolving to reflect our customers, their needs, and the world around us.
The beginning of our brand
Did you know that Agoda is a made-up word with no meaning? When our founders started the company, they wanted a unique and catchy name that began with an A so it would be more findable on the Internet. SEO has always been a priority for us!
See the world for less
At Agoda, we want travel to be easy and rewarding, no matter what your destination is. Through our tech, our partnerships with accommodation suppliers, and our round-the-clock support teams, we take the stress out of booking and empower people to explore the world.
“We believe that travel is about more than just taking a break from routine or spending time with loved ones. It’s an eye-opening experience; an opportunity for self-discovery, connecting with diverse cultures, and gaining new perspectives on life. Our purpose is to bridge the world through travel by making it simple and affordable,” says Panos Vatsis, Agoda’s Global Head of Brand.
Our new tagline says it all: see the world for less. It’s our promise to customers, our biggest claim to fame, and the reason travelers choose us when they travel. You’ll see it brought it to life in our campaigns in Japan, India, and Indonesia, and more to come!
Our logo
At Agoda, our teams are always innovating and growing, and our branding is no different. The Agoda logo has evolved, with today’s version featuring our custom font. It’s a sleek, rounded typeface that echoes our signature multi-colored dots – one for each letter in Agoda.
The five dots have been with our company for over fifteen years. They’re our strongest brand asset with the most equity and are as much a part of our DNA as great travel deals. But why does Agoda’s logo have five colors when most brands only have one or two? Conventional wisdom in design cautions against using too many colors in a logo, but we decided to use the multiple colors to our advantage. They visually express the diversity of Agoda and our employees, who come from over 90 nationalities. They also make us stand out from the crowd.
Meet the Agoda brand mascot
In 2019, we worked with an agency to transform our five colors into more than just dots. This led to the creation of our mascot: the Agojis. Since starting life as featureless dots, they’ve evolved to have eyes, a mouth, limbs, accessories, and endless expressions and poses.
Our Agojis inject a unique burst of color and personality into a marketing landscape filled with generic travel images. Their strength lies in simplicity, making them distinctive, easy to scale, and universally relatable. It’s not just customers who connect with the Agojis! They’re also loved by our employees. You’ll spot Agojis around our offices, in our communications, and on our Agoda swag like T-shirts, tote bags, and even elephant pants.
We recently brought the Agojis into the 3D realm, keeping all their different facial expressions and poses but adding perfectly spherical bodies. “The natural next step in the evolution of our much-loved brand mascot was to take them from 2D to 3D. Giving the Agojis the ability to interact with characters in our campaigns and other types of media helps create a positive association with our brand for consumers,” shares Jennifer Jones, Senior Brand Creative Manager. The 3D Agojis now feature in most of our digital marketing and star in our big brand campaigns, including our Japanese TV commercials with comedy duo Bananaman.
Taking the Agoda brand to new heights
In 2024, we launched an AI-powered advertising campaign featuring Bollywood star Ayushmann Khurrana. Using cutting-edge AI technology, we created over 250 customized videos for different locations across India and abroad, allowing an even wider audience to connect with our brand and discover Agoda’s offerings.
In honor of World Children’s Day, we challenged ourselves to push the boundaries of our brand and create a children’s book, titled ‘Maya and the Secret World of Agoda’. Created using Generative AI under the supervision of Agoda’s marketing, tech, and translation teams, the story encourages kids to get curious and excited about the world of tech and all the possibilities it holds. Download it in multiple languages here!
