The business logo serves as a visual representation of the company and demonstrates what it stands for. Having a well-designed logo can help raise your visibility, build your image, build loyalty, give you a professional look, and can help lead to more business by enhancing your company’s first impression. It is the visual representation of your company after all. You want your logo to serve as a recognizable and positive symbol of your company, but this can be easier said than done. However, with the right knowledge creating a solid logo can be easy.
If you are looking for some pointers on how to create a well-designed logo check out our logo design tips and guidelines for some guidance and inspiration.
1. Have a Message
Before you dive in and start designing your logo, first know the message you want your logo to convey to the audience. Write down the business’ mission statement before you even attempt to create a logo. It is important that you stay true to your mission statement when you are designing your logo.
2. It’s in the Name
The name of your business should affect and reflect your logo design. You don’t want to have a logo that misrepresents your business and what it does. Keep the name of the business in mind when designing your logo, and only use icons and fonts that align with the underlying message so you have a logo that gives an accurate representation of the company.
3. Look at Businesses in your Industry for Examples
You don’t want to be doing the same thing as your competition, you want to stand out from the pack. Look at your competitor’s logos and see what they do. Look to them for inspiration, but don’t copy what they do exactly. You don’t want to blend in, you want to differentiate your logo from the competition by having a distinctive and memorable design.
4. Know the Different Logo Types
There are three different types of logos, abstract, font-based, and literal illustrations. For abstract logos think Nike’s swoosh logo, font-based logos consist of type (think Sony, IBM, and Microsoft), and the literal illustrations show what the company does. For example, if the business is a painting company, then a literal illustration logo would be using a graphic image of a brush in the logo.
5. Make it Easy to Reproduce
You want to design your logo to be easy to reproduce. You want a logo that will look good at any size, no matter how much you have to shrink or enlarge it. It is important to make your logo design versatile. With this in mind, you probably will want to stick with an icon logo, not a photograph. Photographs can become indecipherable when reduced or enlarged, so be sure to avoid.
6. Design in Black and White
A good rule of thumb is, if you have a solid design that conveys your message in black and white, you have an effective image. You want your logo to work in black and white, as well as work in color. If you have a logo that only looks good in color it won’t have the same effect once it’s faxed or photocopied. Your black and white design essentially should be just as effective as your design in color.
7. Use Only Original Art
If you want to stand out from the crowd and set your business apart, design a logo that is totally unique. This means no clip art! While it may be tempting and simple, clip art can be replicated way too easily. You want your logo to be unique and impressive, and using clip art is not the way to do this. If you find yourself having difficulty doing this, consider hiring a professional designer.
