If you're in the market for a new logo for your business or brand, or if you're a designing one yourself, here are 10 design essentials you must consider.
If you're in the market for a new logo for your brand, or if you're a designing one yourself, here are 10 design essentials you must consider!
A logo is the one-and-only visual stamp that reflects your brand. A logo triggers your familiarity with the brand; if done right, it instantly connects you with the brand's personality, message and trust. It has the power to make, break and sustain carefully built identities.
Major brands like Nike, Apple and National Geographic have iconic logos which automagically elevate the value of any product they appear on. These logos are excellent messengers of the value of their respective brands.
In today's ever-changing world, with the consistent downfall of the average attention span, the value of a logo's instant impact is more consequential than ever.
So if you're in the market for a new logo for your brand, or if you're a designing one yourself, here are 10 design essentials you must consider!
Before you start thinking about your new logo, you need to truly understand why there is a need for one. It's very important to dig deep and understand why the current logo isn't working and what the new logo aims to achieve. Get a sense of the brand they are and the brand they want to be.
More than just the logo, understand the business and its competitors in the industry you're designing for.
A few questions to consider:
Every author has its readers, every artist has their fans, every brand has its audience. Before you build something, you need to understand your audience. Who is this logo for?
Your design will soon be out there in the world. You're not creating this for yourself (or your client), but you're doing this for all these eyes that will fall on this logo.
For example, designing a logo for a Boomer dominated TV channel will be very different from designing a logo for a Zoomer heavy internet-video subscription service.
Where will people be interacting with your logo? The way a logo will interact on food packaging will be very different from how it interacts on an app. Consider these use cases before you start designing a logo. Depending on where it's used most, you may decide to craft your logo differently.
Below is a list of the popular spots for logos:
Logos should scale well. Your logo should be able to function well at different sizes and orientations.
As mentioned in #3 Where, think of how your logo would look on a billboard vs. an app icon vs. magazine cover. Don't let the message get lost with size.
Additionally, always consider the different ways your logo can be presented: vertical, horizontal, with/without text, only text, only icon, etc.
Here's the fun part: colour!
Before we jump into the bright and loud colours, ask yourself this:
“Will your logo look good if it is only black or white?”
When you answer "yes", that's when you should start seriously considering colour. If your logo successfully works in black and white, it is an indication of a strong framework and foundation to start building on. Designing for Black and White will take care of any contrast and accessibility problems which may arise. When you choose a colour, you want to do your research well. Always consider colour psychology when picking a colour scheme. For instance, red triggers a sense a hunger and excitement (Lays, KFC) and green is considered healthy and natural (Animal Planet, Whole Foods).
However, remember to consider context as well. White, for instance, is considered the colour of peace and weddings in the West; in the East it is the colour of death and mourning. Starkly different.
Scenario: Think of the last slideshow presentation you created. Now flip that font to Comic Sans.
There we go –– you're cringing aren't you?
What I'm saying here is that fonts have personalities. The same logo can have a drastically different effect with a standard Arial, a old goofy Comic Sans and suave Montserrat.
Below are a few font properties you should consider when picking (or custom designing) one for your logo:
Check out https://www.1001fonts.com/ or https://www.dafont.com/ for font inspiration.
Simple logos are easier to remember. Try keeping it abstract in order to help with memory, meaning and storytelling.
This ties back to #4 Versatility: simple logos are versatile, whereas complex logos are limited in their use.
For a quick simplicity test, show your logo to someone for 5 seconds and ask them to draw it from memory. If they can vaguely replicate it, your logo has passed the simplicity test.
Once you think you're ready, don't just introduce your logo to the world yet. Show it to a select few from your target audience and ask them for their thoughts. Survey people across your target audience and see how they react to it. Take their feedback, understand it, interpret it and build something that connects better with them. Iterations often work better.
Let's talk through some technical details here. Always make sure your logo is available in multiple formats and sizes.
Think about the different alignment styles you'll need:
Make sure you've got different colours of the logos planned out:
Always supply logos in Vector format so the sizing can be blown up. PNGs and JPGs get pixelated when blown up. Cover your bases with the following file formats:
If you want to take your logo execution to the next level, you can also consider coming up with a Usage Guide for your logo. This could cover topics such as logo usage on different media, how to not use your logo and acceptable logo variations. Many organisations have a Brand/Logo manual/guide specifying usage under different scenarios.
Lastly, if you tell a story on how you got to your logo, your client and audience will love it. They will buy into the story and better connect with your brand. Additionally, seeing the growth of the new logo in front of their eyes will get them to love it more!
Supercharged Studio is a creative technology agency that has created dozens of logos and brand identities for emerging innovators, industry leaders, startups, and small businesses.
Work with us. Your ideas will like it here.
Supercharged Studio is a creative technology agency that crafts websites, apps, logos, and brands. We help emerging innovators, industry leaders, hustlers, and dreamers create a competitive edge through design.
Your ideas will like it here.
