“Sometimes when an idea flashes, you distrust it because it seems too easy. You qualify it with all kinds of evasive phrases because you’re timid about it. But often, this turns out to be the best idea of all.” – Saul Bass, Logo Designer
Pitching ideas and the benefits of marketing services is all part of my job. When discussing the prospect of a new logo design, clients often want to understand our creative process. Below I have outlined some general standards we follow to create an effective logo design.
Collect Data
Our very first step when starting a new logo design is to gather as much information from the client as possible. What is the name of the business? What is their mission? What messages are they wanting to send to consumers? How long have they been in business? Who are their competitors? What are their key distinguishers? Basically, we cannot ask enough questions at this part of the creative process. We will ask our clients everything we want to know about their business and welcome any design inspiration they may have in mind as well.
Research Audience
Who does this business serve? What are the consumers like? What is the general demographics? What are their preferences? This is important to know right off the bat so we can plan to design accordingly. If we went straight to design without collecting data and researching our market, the final product would be aimless and therefore, ineffective. This is why we spend the first portion of a logo design project focusing heavily on research.
Sketch
Once we are extremely clear on the topic at hand, we then begin sketching ideas. We hand draw concepts in a free flowing manor without restriction. The sketching process is to stimulate a brainstorming session and allow brilliant ideas to present themselves. Eventually, rough doodles will inspire the final art.
Keep it Simple
A good logo is simple. Simplicity helps the design be more profound and therefore, memorable. It should be easily recognizable with a single glance. We believe the more complicated the design, the more room there is for misinterpretation. Also, it can be hard to easily recall a design that is more complex. So for the sake of providing an easy-to-remember logo, we try to keep the design simple.
Be Purposeful
Not only should the logo be simple, it should also be appropriate to the topic of business at hand. Depending on the type of business, the design may have a wide range of characteristics from whimsicalness to sophistication to grunge to modernity. Whatever style we choose, it is always purposeful to achieve a certain look and feel to engage our specified audience.
Custom Craft
While it’s helpful to look to other logo designs for inspiration, when it comes to designing a logo, it is especially important to fight temptation to imitate an existing design. Of all the art and design in the world, logos are like sacred little entities that really help distinguish brands from one another. It’s the one element that should be truly unique and unmatchable. In order to create designs that stand out, we always create completely custom art.
Use Grid Systems and Geometric Shapes
Once we have come up with our concepts in sketch form, we refine to perfection. We like to use grid systems and geometric shapes to create stylized looks in our logo designs. It’s what separates a logo design from a digital illustration.
Choose Typefaces Carefully
Some logos are word marks themselves, however often times logos are icons or symbols with associated text. When non-custom type is included in a logo design, it is a very important element not to take lightly. Typefaces dramatically alter the whole look and feel of a logo and will certainly affect the messaging that comes across. We always make sure to experiment with various typefaces before settling on the one to be used in the final logo design.
Export Vector Art in Various Formats and Sizes
We always create our logo designs in vector format so they are scalable. Final art will be available in horizontal and vertical orientations in ai, eps and png formats.
