Physician finder and appoinment scheduling service Zocdoc, perhaps hoping to move past charges of sexism, or perhaps to represent growth since paying $80 for its original logo in 2007, has rebranded. Gone are the blue hues, Helvitica wordmark and cartoon physicians, replaced by a yellow-heavy look featuring a mascot called “Zee.”

Zocdoc also dropped the capital D from its name, formerly written as “ZocDoc,” and redesigned its website. The site has improved its search function, notably making it clearer which providers are in each user’s insurance network.

The New York-based company explained:

Meet Zee, a line drawing of a dynamic letter Z and two eyes that evokes an always-changing patient face. In resting pose, Zee is friendly and warm – eyes open with a subtle smile shaped by the curved foot of the Z. Other Zees are cheeky (with a smile and a wink), feel meh (with a zigzag mouth and downturned eyes), or are puzzled (with an S-shaped mouth and open eyes).

This is what the new logo replaced:

Zocdoc called the former look an “unremarkable two-tone, two-weight Helvetica stamp.” The new one “simplifies the company’s identity by dropping the capital D and leaves no confusion about what a Zoc is,” according to the company. (Hey, what is a Zoc anyway? That’s a new one for us.)

The new color scheme is supposed to be “optimistic” by avoiding the “blues” that Zocdoc said predominate in healthcare.

In marketing-speak, that means, “The new face of Zocdoc looks the way healthcare should – friendly, simple and, most of all, reflective of patients and real life,” Zocdoc marketing vice president Richard Fine said in a statement. “With this redesign, we are finally matching our design philosophy with the ethos of our brand.”

Um, yeah.

Zocdoc is backing up the rebranding with an advertising campaign.

We can’t help but wonder if the legacy of recently departed music legend David Bowie didn’t play into the redesign. The “Z” on the face evokes both Bowie’s Aladdin Sane face paint, as well as his Ziggy Stardust persona. Or are we over-thinking this?

Photos: Zocdoc