5 useful logo design tips

In this guest post, Jacob Cass briefly covers five of his logo design tips, mentioning a few logo resources too.

1. Learn what a logo is and what it represents

Before you design one, you must understand what a logo is, what it represents and what it is supposed to do. A logo is not just a mark – it reflects a business’s commercial brand through the use of shape, fonts, colour, and / or images.

A logo is for inspiring trust, recognition and admiration for a company or product and it is our job as designers to create an identity that will do its job.

One must first know what a logo is before continuing.

For further Reading on what a logo is, check out Wikipedia’s definition or CreativeBits’s discussion on what is a logo?

2. Know the rules and principles of logo design

Now that you know what a logo is supposed to do, and what it should represent, you now must learn what makes a great logo aka; the basic rules and principles.

As David says:

1. A logo must be describable
2. A logo must be memorable
3. A logo must be effective without colour
4. A logo must be scalable i.e. effective when just an inch in size

For Further reading on the rules and principles of great logo design I highly recommend reading these logo design tips from Logo Factory before continuing.

3. Learn off other’s successes and mistakes

Successful Logos

Now you know what the rules are, you can distinguish the difference between a good and a bad logo. Knowing which logos have succeeded, and why, gives an insight into what makes a good logo.

For example, let’s look at the classic Nike Swoosh (shown above). This logo was created by Caroline Davidson in 1971 for only $35, yet it’s still a strong, memorable logo, effective without colour and easily scalable. It is simple, fluid and fast, and represents the wing in the famous statue of the Greek Goddess of victory, Nike (something perfect for a sporting apparel business). The Nike logo is just one of many great designs, think about other famous brands that you know about and check out their logos. What makes them successful?

For more quality, lesser known logos I recommend browsing LogoPond or visiting your local book store or library and reading some books on logo design.

The Not So Successful Logos

We can also learn from logos that have not been too successful, such as the ones on the right of the above picture. Some more very bad logos can be seen in the post is your logo design phallic? As seen in that post, some logos can depict things that may not always be noticeable to the designer (as in the middle logo above) or they could just be plain bad design, as in the logo to the right (above).

4. Establish your own logo design process

Now that we know what a logo is, what the principles and rules of logo design are and what makes a successful logo, we’re now prepared to begin the design process. This is the hardest part of these 5 tips, and is a whole topic in itself. Each person’s process is different and experience is usually the key factor when creating your own logo design process. For an example of a well established method, take a look at David Airey’s design process.

In short, a logo design process usually consists of:

1. The Design Brief
2. Research and Brainstorming
3. Sketching
4. Prototyping and Conceptualising (See Step 5)
5. Send to Client for Review
6. Revise and Add Finishing Touches
7. Supply Files to Client and Provide Customer Service

If you ever get stuck before or during your design process, I’ve provided some tips on How To Boost Your Creativity.

5. Learn the software and complete the logo

After you have got your design process sorted out, it is usually a good time to begin mastering your software (here’s a selection of Adobe Illustrator tutorials for reference). But before I get to that, I want to point out that Step 4 and Step 5 overlap, as it’s a catch 22 situation – you can’t design a logo by just hopping straight onto the computer, nor can you complete a logo design without knowing your software (the Adobe Creative Suite is a popular choice with professional designers).

Putting this aside, once you have arrived at your initial ideas and sketches from brainstorming, you can then move onto the computer to start digitizing your logo. After you have digitized the great concept(s), your client is ready to review your work, ask for possible revisions, and complete the design project. Thus, you have successfully created a professional logo.

http://www.davidairey.com/5-vital-logo-design-tips/

The Things People Overlook When Searching For A Logo Designer

When looking for a logo designer there are some things people take into consideration more then other things, and sometimes for the wrong reasons. Here are some things I noticed in the past that people overlook, overestimate, or underestimate about logo designers.

Experience: Years in the internet world do not mean much. Its the experience that counts more. I have seen people say: "I have been in the logo business for 15 years", and their logos were worse then the two year old down the street. Though years are a good stability factor in the company, it does not mean they are a good designer. Take a look at the samples to really find out how the designer is.

The Website: A bad website design does not mean the logo designer is bad. Maybe they are the best logo designer in the world just never learned HTML that well. If you are looking for a logo design, take a look at the logo design samples. Don't be a website critic.

Search Engine Positioning: The placement and exposure of a website is what many people base their designers on. For one because they are easier to find giving the other designers less chance to get the client. Maybe your best designer would be toward the end of the search engine, but you don't know that. So always search a little bit deeper when searching for a designer. Logo Designers are not always internet marketers or search engine specialists.

Age: There are many designers. Some designers are old some are young. Don't let age play a role with your design look at other things listen in our other articles. Some young designers might know the latest trend if you want the latest logo design. The older designers might have more experience. This isn't to say though that old designers don't know the latest trends or young designers don't have experience. I am just saying don't let age play the biggest role when selecting your designer.

http://www.pear-logo-design.com/article_54.htm

Why A Professional Logo Design is Valuable to a Small Business

Why A Professional Logo Design is Valuable to a Small Business Imagine doing business without your most important tool: a computer, your knowledge, your personal assistant, or the telephone. You sit, unable to work. Without that tool, your company's future success would be in danger. And the same is true of any company functioning without a professional logo design.

Logos as Identification

The importance of logos may be traced back to the industrial revolution. Images on crates and boxes helped differentiate between mass-produced goods. That's why you can tell Morton® Salt, for example, from other salt packages at a glance. And if you're going to advertise, don't bother—not until you have a professionally designed logo that will be instantly recognizable. You could do more harm than good.

Logos for Professionalism

Would you want to do business with unprofessional company? Neither would your clients. A custom logo can give a five-person service firm an air of professionalism that is equal to that of a thousand-person company—and when you are competing in a global market, a professional image is essential.

Logos for Brand Identity

With a professional, custom logo, you can build a brand and go beyond simple advertising. You can use viral marketing with related products that promote your brand as a lifestyle.

Many companies think of themselves as brand-marketing companies. Starbucks® and Tommy Hilfiger® are two examples. In Tommy Hilfiger's case, all product manufacturing is hired out. What makes Hilfiger clothing instantly identifiable is the trademark red and white logo prominently displayed by Hilfiger customers. AT Starbucks®, coffee, music, clothing, and more other products build the Starbucks® brand.

It's Your Logo

You would not conduct business without your most important tool, nor should you conduct business without a professional logo that identifies your company. We live in what has been termed a "branded world": consumers purchase products based on brand reputation, and even promote brands by wearing logos on their clothing. Is your logo worthy of being worn on a customer's chest? If not, it may be time for professional logo design.

http://www.logodesign.com/logo-design-article-display/1/Why-A-Professional-Logo-Design-is-Valuable-to-a-Small-Business-/