One of the most important elements of your brand is your logo. It is the vital cornerstone to every other part of your brand. The most important part of your logo is how you incorporate that into your overall brand strategy, but there are some important things to consider when designing your logo.
- Keep it simple - Think of Target, Pepsi, McDonalds, BMW...their logos immediately came to mind, didn't they? All of these logos are simple and have been around for years. Logos should not be too intricate wth a lot of extra elements. Keep in mind the different ways you may use them. A photo or graphic with a lot of intricate background going on may look good on a website, but won't transfer well to a shirt or promotional item and won't be able to be seen well at smaller sizes.
- Make it work in color and black and white - Unless you are designing your logo for a team or something else color-specific, logos should be color transferable in case you change your mind about colors down the road, or need to change it up for a special event or campaign. Most organizations should design their logos in black and white and then change to color once the design is complete.
- Choose a graphic that provides a snapshot of who you are - ideally your logo should tell people who your organization is at a quick glance. Most companies don't have the marketing budget McDonalds has so they have to be recognizable without a multi-million dollar marketing and advertising campaign. Many organizations choose to use the name of their company in their logo to help that process.
- Marry the logo with the perfect tagline - Every logo should be accompanied by a tagline that represents your company in a brief sentence or phrase that packs a big punch. Remember any of these?
- Melts in your mouth, not in your hands.
- Takes a lickinig and keeps on ticking.
- Just do it.
- Drivers wanted.
- Got Milk?
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Kerry Brooks is Co-owner of ProfessionalEdge Associates, offering a wide range of marketing and support services to businesses that want to increase their success, but aren't in a position to add to their staff.
Kerry Brooks is Co-owner of ProfessionalEdge Associates, offering a wide range of marketing and support services to businesses that want to increase their success, but aren't in a position to add to their staff.
