While designing a logo, you need to keep certain facts straight. What are they? Firstly, designing a logo isn’t a simple task. Even though it seems so, there is a long process which we will enlighten you about later in the article. But first things first, if you are short of resources, you should hire a designer. Because at the outset of the business, you will have your plate full of how to make the business better, rather than the visual representation of it. So, outsourcing the work to someone who has a better grasp of the field will save a lot of your time. Additionally, you get what you pay for.
Having said that, there are also times in startups where you will need a logo or a brand image to finalize a deal, or maybe you are waiting for the client’s response, and since initially you don’t have much clients and resources at hand, you have the time. So here we will guide you through the entire method of designing a logo.
To make a logo we first need to be clear about what A LOGO IS NOT.
It isn’t,
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The Brand.
There have been a lot of opinions in this regard, but your logo isn’t your brand. The brand is intangible. It is the reputation you create with the service you provide to your customers. Your relation with your customers creates your brand, not the logo.
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The Indicator Of Your Success.
If you believe that a logo will make or break your business, that is not true. Your success lies in your work principles, your hard work, and your ethical code.
Now that we are clear with what a logo isn’t, let’s learn to design it.
HOW TO DESIGN A LOGO
To design a logo correctly, you will need to go through the following steps. Each step has its process and goals that will lead you to the next one.
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Begin With Your Story
This is the question phase, where you will have to connect your brand and your logo with a story. A successful brand knows what best clicks with their customers, and customers love stories. So before putting thought behind the logo, think about what you want to say through it. Convey the story behind ‘why’ your company does ‘what’ it does. Once you list the main aspects of the story, ask yourself the following,
- Who is your target audience? Research on their taste and preferences.
- Which company’s logo do you admire and why? List them.
- What are the characteristics of your brand that you want to convey?
- Who are your competitors? Go through their logos. Point out the good and the bad according to you in them.
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Research and Discover.
You have a two-fold goal here. To get educated and to get inspired to create. Research on Google the fundamentals of design, colour, shape, typography. Once you research, you’ll get to know that every colour evokes a different emotion. For example, green showcases growth, health, and peace.
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Explore and Brainstorm.
Once you have sorted the basics, go through your immediate competitors’ logos; then broaden your horizon to the industry. Don’t just see the visuals of the logos; learn the story behind it, understand what they are trying to portray with the colour choice and the presentation. Experience the brand visual across multiple channels, social media platforms, websites, etc. Then, brainstorm words that describe ‘what you do’ and ‘why you do it’ the best.
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Design, Test and Refine
Once you are inspired enough and have the discovered points listed, you can get to generating logo designs. The necessary tools for designing are,
- Pencil and paper – For some preliminary sketching outlines. Don’t overthink this, you just need to put your ideas in a visual form for further reference, so it isn’t a big deal if you cannot draw well.
- Graphic designing software – Some of the best free tools are Inkscape and Vectr. If you are confident and want to invest in better software choose Adobe Illustrator.
- Logo Maker – If you have a time crunch and have to create a logo, this is the best place. They have it all sorted for you to just explore.
When you have made a few designs, it’s time to choose the best three. Don’t be too hard on yourself for this. Just go with the ones you keep going back to, then evaluate them. You can use the Logo Grader. Are they memorable and effective? Aesthetics and trends keep changing. Keeping that in mind, will your logo make an impact after 5 to 10 years? Can it be effectively used in various sizes for online as well as offline advertisements?
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Define and Deliver
The logo is finalized, and now you have to make sure that it is used properly, be it the size, the orientation, the colour. Give strict instructions, else you’ll end up with a differently coloured logo during each campaign.
Once you are done, you will realize how much work goes into it, and feel proud of your effort. But remember your logo is the image, your ethics are your brand.
