Don’t Forget About This When Designing Your Logo

When starting your own company, there’s a long list of tasks awaiting you. Some of them are the globally despised administrative procedures, which seem to take up most of your time. And although one of the most important, the bureaucracy is not the only demanding obstacles you’re expected to overcome before being able to actually open your doors and invite potential clients to become part of your company.

One of these is logo design, which isn’t as simple as slapping your name on a niche icon you found on Google Images. Not only is it highly unprofessional, but you’re also less likely to be successful in getting recognition for your brand. So, what do you actually need to do?

Firstly, make sure you’re working with a graphic designer, who’ll help you with understanding why you actually need a professionally designed logo, and inspire you with a collection of possible designs. Then, make sure to pay attention to factors, such as your competition, the shape, colour, typography, and style of logo, when deciding on your final logo design.

But why are these factors important in the long run? Don’t you just have to pick the colour and draw up a very general idea for your graphic designer to work on? Well, not exactly. Let’s look at some of the variables mentioned above, and help you understand why you should not brush over any of them.

Your Competition

This is an easy one – you always want to be a step ahead of your competitors. One way of doing that is by standing out from the sea of companies with the same target audience as yourself, and reel them in as soon as you grab their attention. That’s your chance to show them what makes your company different from all the rest, and why they would benefit more from doing business with you.

This is why your job is to analyse whatever market you’re operating in and take a look at your competitor’s logo designs. Maybe you’ll notice a pattern present in most brand designs, whether that be the shape or the primary colours. You could also create a list with the name of your competitors, and order them from the most to least successful. Then observe if there’s any logos that stand out from the top of the list – of course, this doesn’t mean those companies made their way to the top because of their logo designs. But their logos might have played a role in increasing their brand awareness.

Colour choice

The next big thing on your list is the colour of your logo. Here, the choice may be influenced by a number of factors. However, two main ones that you should focus on are your business niche and colour psychology. Let’s take it step by step.

Why does your market niche matter and how can you translate it into colour? For one, you can take inspiration from other companies in your field – you might have noticed food chains often opt for the colour red, as it evokes feeling of hunger (just think of McDonald’s, one of the most popular food brands in the world), but it is also a colour of energy and power, which makes the logo stand out and invite new customers. 

Orange is playful, which is why luxury and traditional brands tend to avoid this particular colour – however, it is quite popular with kid-oriented brands. Yellow is the sunshine colour, bringing out positivity and happiness. When a company uses the right shade, it effectively promotes the brand.Sustainable businesses normally go for warm green tones, while darker shades convey feelings of wealth and prestige. 

Blue, on the other hand, is a very mature and stable colour. It’s also considered one of the safest choices when designing a logo, with a big number of popular brands (such as Facebook and Twitter) boasting a blue logo. Purple is a creative colour, rarely used for logo design. However, this does not mean it’s a bad choice – if anything, opting for a purple logo would make your brand stand out! 

Black, of course, is a timeless colour and although many marketing experts consider it boring, they cannot deny the fact that it’s used by countless successful clothing and other types of brands. Pink, naturally, expresses femininity and romance, while brown shades are often used by companies that promote organic and natural products.

The Design Itself 

Finally, you have to decide on the design itself. Of course, this is something your graphic designer will help you out with – but nevertheless, you’ll still need a basic idea of what you want your logo to look like. Keep in mind you don’t want your final result to come across as basic or boring – while minimalist logos are all the rage now, that doesn’t mean that a simple letter in a traditional font and your favourite colour is good enough.

However, also remember not to overcomplicate your logo. This is important for a number of reasons, with the number one being reprinting. Whenever you decide to print your logo on something (when handing out promotional gifts, for example), the printing area might be very small. If your logo is too detailed, it might come out as a glob of shapes and indecipherable letters.