So you’re wanting a new logo. Perhaps it is for a brand new business, or for an existing business that is needing an updated, polished logo. Regardless, it is important to make sure your new logo is not only timeless, but also accurately portrays your brand. Designing a logo is definitely hard work, but at IM Design Group, we believe that a great new logo is more of a process than an exact science. By following these simple steps, we assure you that you will be on the path to creating a new logo that you love for many years to come.
- Focus on Your Brand
The brand identity of your business is far more than its logo, so it is important to get in touch with your brand before diving into the logo process. Your logo, in addition to your brand, should represent everything that your business stands for. To help understand your brand’s unique identity better, ask these questions:
• In comparison to similar businesses in the city, state, country, how do we rank? Are we cheap or expensive?
• What do we offer that our competitors don’t? Why are we different?
• Who makes up our primary customer base? What do those people have in common?
• What does our brand look, smell, and sound like?
• What is the overall experience that our customers have when visiting our business? - Understand How Your Logo Will be Used
A logo can look great on the screen or on paper, but not necessarily out in the field. Think about the overall daily use of your future logo. How will your customers see it in action on your website, in ads, direct mail, billboards, etc.? How will your employees use it on clothing, letterhead, business cards, social media, etc.? Spend some time thinking about all of the ways your logo will be used and try to understand how that might affect the way people interact with it. This will also help you as you establish your brand guidelines. - Test, Test, Test!
After designing several new logo options, test it as much as possible to make sure it really works. You may have your heart set on a design that will not work in all situations. To make sure your logo will look good across all mediums, run these tests:
Size Test – Adjust the size of your logo from blowing it up large for use on a banner to shrinking it down for use on a business card. By doing this, you can ensure that your logo holds up visually across any size use.
Color Test – Have your logo professionally printed in various color formats: color, black and white, and greyscale. How does the logo change? Does it lose visual appeal or does it retain its visual impact? Double check your colors against a Pantone color book to see how your colors may change from what you see on the screen vs. what you see when it’s printed. Always judge the colors based on how they will appear when printed. All screens are different and are not an accurate representation of the actual colors.
People Test – Ask a variety of people to evaluate your logo. Have them answer questions and evaluate whether or not their answers align with what you believe your brand identity to be: Does the overall design make your business look cheap or expensive, common or unique, traditional or modern? How about the colors? You may think that you are accurately portraying the brand that you desire for your business, but your audience will be able to let you know if you are actually on track.
Once your logo passes these tests, there’s a pretty good chance you have a logo that you will not only love, but will also successfully enhance the brand of your business!
Author: Courtney Huber
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