A logo is an essential element of building customer confidence. He is the one who helps to express himself and stay in the memory. The client may not remember the name of the company representative and all the arguments for purchasing services from you, but a properly designed symbol will complement the impression and even lead to a second visual communication with a business card.
In this article, we’ve compiled the most important tips on how to design a logo to help you make your own way into the complex world of branding.
What a logo
To better understand each other, the same information needs to be in the field – for both the client and the organization.
A logo is an element Corporate identity Which is necessary to identify and understand the essence of a brand.
Its functions are almost the same as those introduced before introduction:
- Image formation
- Isolation from competitors;
- Uniqueness protection, since business registration is often carried out graphically – using a logo;
- Quality Assurance – The presence of a logo among consumers is associated with the reliability of the company;
- Brand identification.
Logo design tips
Author: Mahjabin Afrin
Find out who your competitors are
In the 80’s of the last century, the rise of Apple marked a real revolution in the computer industry. Apple is now one of the top brands in the world. Before you start developing your future logo idea, take the time to research your target market.
Study and compare competing company logos. During this type of research, you can discover the trends and traditions that are common for branding in this market – common colors, fonts, visual images methods. This will help you play in visual associations that viewers are already familiar with.
However, keep in mind that the most recognized logos in the world have become so precise because their authors refuse to follow the trends and choose to go their own way.
Ask the right questions
The role of strategy in the process of brand building is constantly growing. Regardless of the size of your project, strategy development always starts by asking the right questions.
According to experts, you should ask six questions about the brand you work for. Here they are: Why are we here? What do we do and how? What sets us apart from our competitors? Who are we here for? What do we value the most? What is our personality?
Logo is only one element
People communicate with a brand through a large number of touchpoints, and the logo is not always the first touchpoint. Keep this in mind when designing your icon. Try to create a versatile and flexible design. Pay attention to how the logo fits in with other branding elements, from packaging to communication style with the target audience.
Consider using a unique handwritten font
For more than a century, the Coca-Cola Company has made slight changes to its iconic logo, proving that handwriting can stand the test of time.
Sometimes none of the standard fonts fit well and the handwriting looks perfect. The most striking example of such a visual image, which has gradually changed over the course of a century, is the Coca-Cola logo.
Unlike its arch-rival Pepsi, which has significantly revised its visual image at least seven times, the Coca-Cola Company has virtually not changed its logo since before the end of the last century. If Coca-Cola abandons their signature fonts in favor of a strict Sun-Serif (as Pepsi did in the 1960s), it will make a real fuss.
Experiment with random character combinations
Monograms are not only used in gowns and wedding invitations. With the right approach, company initials can create a concise, but at the same time, attractive logo. A great example is the symbol of two fashion houses – the C and S letters of the Coco Chanel brand and the dollar sign peeking out the initials of Yves Saint Laurent.
Landor’s FedEx text logo regularly tops the list of best logos of all time, thanks to a cleverly hidden arrow.
Sometimes, even in a simple font, you can find interesting “random” combinations that will give your symbol a new meaning. A classic example is the FedEx logo, designed by Landor’s professionals The arrow between the letters “e” and “x” instantly translates a remarkable text logo into a real masterpiece of design. Apply different fonts to your brand name, look for interesting details and combinations and you may be lucky.
Returning to the primary level
As a student, Carol Davidson received only 35 35 for the iconic Nike symbol. An amazingly simple symbol that can be sketched with a few strokes of a pen has become the most recognized symbol in the world. The first golden rule that all professional logo designers follow is simplicity.
Think carefully about the idea of your future logo, but don’t overdo it. Don’t complicate the logo just for the aesthetic effect. The logo should be easy to recognize and easily scalable. Think about whether it will look equally good on the footer of the website and on the front of the building?
We suggest an effective method for you: Remove elements from your symbol until it is as short as possible. If you sketch a few quick strokes, will your logo still be recognized? What are its most characteristic features? In other words, the simpler the logo, the better.
Learn the psychology of statistics
The yellow triangle, the red square and the blue circle have become visual symbols of the Bauhaus Design School. In this print called Bauhaus Revisited, Marco Ugolini shows how size psychology can be successfully applied to logo design.
However, there are a few visual clichs that are already close to the edge and can put a juicy smile on the face of any professional designer. For example, omit the light bulb as a symbol of new ideas or the globe as a symbol of international reach.
But the psychology of size and statistics is not as simple as it may seem. Yellow triangles, red squares and blue circles are often used as symbols of the highly respected Bauhaus Design School. This combination of shapes was designed by Wasili Kandinsky, who believed that shape and color could transcend cultural and linguistic barriers.
According to Kandinsky, bright, cheerful yellow successfully complements the angular sharpness of the triangle; Blends perfectly with the calm, vibrant blue circle; And the soil, perfectly combined with the innate red square.
Learn the color wheel
Color theory is based on the color wheel. Invented by Isaac Newton in 1666, this tool lets you combine different colors. The standard wheel is based on the RYB color model and has 12 colors.
The primary colors are red, yellow and blue. Secondary colors (green, orange and magenta) are a combination of two primary colors. Finally, a third color is created by mixing primary and secondary colors.
Other color schemes include: with split complementary colors (using two colors adjacent to the original color complementary colors); Rectangular (4-color scheme with two pairs of complementary colors); And squares (4-color scheme with colors located at equal distances from each other).
Use color to control the mood of customers
The color of your choice can either take your logo to the next level or make it fail. This effect is explained not only by aesthetic reasons, but also by psychological bodies that may be due to color. We have touched on this subject briefly while considering Bauhaus’s theory.
In short, the warm colors of the spectrum (such as red and yellow) are bold, cheerful and energetic, while the cool shades (blue and green) radiate calm and restraint. These features are actively used in branding: companies return to certain colors to evoke certain feelings in customers, as well as to stand out from the competition.
That’s it! We hope the tips we provide help you create the perfect logo for your brand. Good luck!