Your logo is an image and text version of your brand values, your brand identity.
In an article from Infoentrepreneurs.org, the article mentions how your brand extends to the core values of your business, to “every interaction you have with customers and suppliers.” The article further says how “your brand is what you are really selling to your customers, not just a product or service for which there may already be many existing providers.” That’s why it’s important for your brand to match your logo style. Here are a few tips from Creativeblog.com on how you can make this happen:
Check what others have done
Chances are you want a logo design in a field or industry where plenty have succeeded before you. Don’t let all that good data go to waste. Do your research. Find out which styles won over consumers and which ones left them indifferent and bored. That way, you already have a kind of benchmark or history of what successful logos look like. You can use that knowledge to guide you as you pick through one design after another, looking for the logo style that’s going to be perfect for your brand and business.
Determine your audience
The question of choosing the right logo style often involves knowing who your target audience is in the first place. What appeals to them, what they think is remarkable, what works for them—you should factor all these in when you settle on a final logo design?
Know everything about the brand
History, competition, company data—find out every available bit of information out there on your brand. Immerse yourself in all that data. Be familiar with everything. That way, you’ll find it easier to pick which logo styles will work with the brand and which ones you should toss. That makes for a faster selection process too. The more you know about the brand identity you want to build and spread awareness for, the more confident you are in dismissing everything else that’s not going to be important or relevant to that.
Be original
It can be tempting to copy someone else’s work when it seems to perfectly fit and capture the essence of your brand identity. However, you must resist that urge. Copycat logos aren’t made of win. You can admire all you want but don’t ever stoop to plagiarizing someone else’s work. It’ll never lead to anything good and may even cause trouble for your brand—regarding copyright issues—later on, something you want to avoid at all costs.
Explore typography
Try as many fonts as you can. However, do keep in mind certain limitations. If the logo is for a brand that’s associated with travel products, you’ll definitely have a different set of fonts than if you were working on a funeral service provider or banking firm.
Be wise with color
Sometimes, the right logo style is a matter of color. However, make sure to check cultural connotations, especially if you want your logo to be known in certain markets around the world. Red is the color of luck in China. White, while a symbol of purity in western culture, means death in India. So be careful with the colors you use. Also, keep in mind that there will be times your logo will be printed in grayscale. When that happens, your logo should survive the transformation. If it loses any of its brand message or impact, then maybe you should go with a different logo style.
Settle on a type
There are basically three types of logos, according to an article on Entrepreneur.com. These are: font logos, illustration logos and lastly, logos made up of abstract graphic symbols. Which one do you think fits your brand the best? Which one is appropriate for your industry?
Timeless appeal
Choosing the right logo style also means rejecting others and this includes styles that may be too trendy. When you design a logo, you want that logo to last for the next ten to fifty years—or more! A timeless logo style can do wonders for the brand recall of a product, service and company
Show your key benefit
One great idea for a logo is to create an image that’s deeply associative to your key benefit. Are you known for fast results? Do you have unbelievable customer service? Find a way to incorporate that into your logo.
Hire a designer
Trying your hand at designing your own logo is great. But if you’re pressed for time or you simply have no aptitude for the work or knowing which logo style works, better call in the services of a professional to handle this for you. Not looking forward to the hefty fees? Try crowdsourcing at sites like Designhill. With a huge network of freelance designers, logo design by Designhill artists will run you to only a thousand dollars or less.
