An inspired logo can work wonders for your business. In this article we discuss the huge potential of a great logo and ways to achieve that strong brand recognition.
Every business in the world wants to become a recognised brand and their logo is a vital ingredient in creating that brand identity. Since the logo can make or break your business, you should take the time to consider your logo and branding. There are many small businesses and start-ups that have flourished and a lot of that growth can be attributed to an inspired logo idea which became their brand and identity.
It isn’t only about stunning graphic design but a logo concept that communicates your ideas to the target audience. A well-designed logo can act as the face of your business and create an aura around it. Your customers then 'prefer' trading with you as you are the only company with that corporate image that they like.
Earn Brand Recognition
What is the core objective behind designing a logo? It is to earn brand recognition and to create a strong impression in the minds of the customers. When you have a great logo, all of your products and services are then identified with your brand and logo. Brands are often built around great logo symbols and people start associating the symbol with the brand. The moment we think of a brand like Nike the Swoosh logo comes to our mind, or with Coca Cola we think of that cool font that they use.
We then tend to associate all of those companies products with the icon. If you saw 'Coca Cola' and 'Mouse' written in that famous Cola Cola font you would probably recognise that font. Or if you saw that Nike 'swoosh' symbol on it's own you'd recognise that too. This is the perfect example of ‘brand recognition’.
Simple Logo Concepts Work Wonders
Think about the most recognizable logos in the world such as BMW, IBM, Apple or even Facebook. What is it that these brands have in common? Their simplicity. A child would be able to sketch out these logos if you show him/her the original logo for a few seconds. Simple logo designs can work wonders for your business as they are memorable, and quick and easy to recognise.
Logo designers would always tell you, designing a simple logo is the biggest challenge! A lot of new website owners initially want a logo with a host of details in it, and they logo ends up more like a letter heading. The 2 should be kept separate. The logo is attractive, appropriate, sends a strong message and is simple – the letter heading has all the other things that you want to add with your logo to make up a letter heading.
Emphasises Brand Affirmation
Creating brand identity is challenging but sustaining brand loyalty is an even bigger challenge. This is where businesses try every trick in the book to dominate the mind space of their target audience. An inspiring logo is one of the best ways in which to do this. Get your simple and strong logo identity into the memory/mind of your target audience.
If it's a clever and simple logo then it will stick in there and now you need to reaffirm it a one of more times per month by keeping contact with your sales prospects and clients. Whenever the logo comes in front of the target customer though print adverts, social media campaigns, email marketing campaigns etc. it will reaffirm the branding message and rekindle the customer loyalty factor.
The Path to a Successful Logo
Keep Communicating – Logos represent your company brand, they represent the business philosophy and most importantly they cast a lasting impression in the minds of your clients and target audience. So never rush into a logo design process and spend quality time thinking about your company and brand. What makes your company different?
How would you like to be remembered by your clients? Does your logo cover all aspects of your business? From the graphics to the design and color scheme, consider every aspect of your logo brand before you get the design process started.
Focus on Being Exclusive
It is good to draw inspiration from things you see but bad to copy them. The reason you are creating a logo is to generate a niche identity for your company. Your target audience should be able to distinguish your logo from that of a competitor and so we should make no compromises with the logo and aim to be different. You need a logo that is appropriate within your business sector but with that sector let you be the brand that stands out. Be exclusive and memorable.
Text That Is Easy To Read
While graphics may dominate your logo, you shouldn’t ignore the power of text that will be in your logo. If you are mentioning your brand name, trading name or company name, make sure it is easy to read the text. Nothing as bad as falling in love with a logo and the first week your hear a few comments that the logo is 'cool' but they didn’t know it was your company.
The logo needs to be a lot of things and readable is definitely on of them. The essential idea of promoting your company brand gets truly defeated if you use text that is difficult to comprehend. You could generate a test set of clients, friends and family that will be your sounding board for the new logo. Do not say anything to them other than, here is the new logo what do you honestly think? What does it say to you? Is the message clear?
Remember: Print & Digital
There are some company logos that look superb in digital media format on a PC screen but look terrible when they are printed on paper flyers, shop signage, banners etc. Similarly some logos appear as an eyesore in the digital medium and look great on paper. When you are designing a logo you should think about both mediums: digital and print. As soon as you start to focus in on a logo you like and you have had your feedback from clients, friends and family – get the logo printed on A4 sheet, small sign and flyer to see how it looks. It will cost a lot less to test this out now rather than changing the logo again in a few months time.
Think Of The Future
You may be starting out small now but you may have big growth ideas for your business in the future. Will your logo be able to work for you if the company was 4 times the size it is now? Is the new brand too rigid to communicate ideas other than your present ones? What about if your product range or service range changes – will you still be able to stand behind the logo then? Always think about the future of your company when designing your brand and logo and make sure it is as 'future-proofed' as you can make it.
Change Isn’t A Bad Word
It is perfectly understandable that you hold your company logo close to your heart – a lot of businesses do. But if your logo has outlived its usefulness, it looks dated, doesn't represent your company correctly or fails to strike a chord with your present company ideas and brand then you shouldn’t hesitate in modifying it or going for a complete new look. Discuss this in-house and get organised. Weigh up all the pros and cons and think about the company in 1 years time and 5 years time – will this logo be able to serve you best?
Should You Do The Logo 'Designing' Yourself?
Since the new logo represents so much about your company, you may be oozing with enthusiasm, ideas and energy to do it yourself. It is one thing to be passionate about your brand and it is quite another to translate that passion into an inspiring logo design. It would be much better use of your time, resources and money to hire the services of a professional logo design company as they will bring to the table a professional approach and a huge skill-set in this area. They can come up with graphic/visual ideas and concepts that you couldn't dream of because this is what they do.
They would of course listen to your ideas and requirements, and create a novel graphic concept that drives your brand for the foreseeable future. Just make sure you are choosy when hiring a new logo designer and communicate your ideas clearly from the start. If you have some logo ideas and need a brand that will propel your company, give us a call for an informal chat and let us get the ideas flowing.
