- Sarah Lindsey for Advantage Embroidery
A Beginners Guide to Designing a Company Logo
Let's start by guessing which logo goes to which company:
You probably didn't need much time to decipher which companies the above logos represent. Those symbols above are so iconic that you know the company name without even having to see it written out! Since 1366 (the year the first logo is said to have been created- the Stella Artois logo) logos have become a business essential, a way of speaking about your brand without saying words. When it comes to being a business owner, whether big or small, a logo is a necessity for creating your brand identity and marketing it to the world. Designing a logo can be intimidating and you may even think it’s unnecessary but, the truth is, logos can help grab attention, make you stand out, and create brand loyalist. Below are a few tips to help you design your first logo.
What is your brand all about? At the core what really defines your brand? What are three words that you want others to use when describing your brand? These questions all help you form a brand identity. Brand identity will be crucial in helping you stay true to design and marketing decisions for your company. Brand identity and brand personality go hand in hand so make sure to define it how you like it.
Time for some inspo! Here’s when you scope out other logos that you like. Find logos that you like and then begin to brainstorm your ideas- not all of them will be good and that’s ok! When brainstorming it’s important to think of what your audience would like and to include others in the design process. Multiple drafts are good when it comes to designing your logo, try to match stylistic decisions with the brand personality to create an effective look. The best logos come with some sort of reasoning behind the design. Take the company Shell Oil- have you ever wondered why a shell is used as a representation for an oil company? The reasoning actually dates back to about 1897 when Marcus Samuel and Company began shipping kerosene from London to India. On the return trip from India the ships would carry seashells back to be sold in Europe, so Samuel decided to incorporate them into the design. Don’t be afraid to be bold in your design, sometimes the most random designs will fit your brand best.
Once you have a rough idea of what you want your design to look like it’s time to select the typography, color scheme, and graphics, basically it’s time to define the aesthetics of it. Use free design platforms like Logo Crisp, Graphic Springs, and Looka to help you design it.
The nitty-gritty details: Your logo should be scalable (meaning it can be used across a variety of platforms while looking good), unique, appealing, and recognizable. A good way to test this is to run it by members of your audience and have it appear in a variety of different media- if you’re still happy with it by the end then you’ve got a new logo; if not then you can always redesign!
As your brand begins to grow so will recognition of your logo, as time passes you can always adjust and adapt your logo but keep in mind that logos take time to become engrained in the public eye. While the details may seem overwhelming it will all be worth it when you have a beautifully designed logo that is reflective of your brand.
*This article was inspired by an article written by Antonia Gesch entitled "How to design a logo: the ultimate guide" you can find it here.