When you see the face of a friend, you don’t have to wonder who it is – they are known.
A good logo can help make a company into a friend, into “someone” who is known, liked and remembered. There are infinite faces, and there are infinite logo designs. You want to make yours stand out in a crowd.
The process of designing a logo employs a fundamental set of variables in order to arrive at a simple, yet memorable result. A memorable logo strengthens your brand recognition, distinguishes your product from competitors’ and serves as your identification for doing business. It sends a subliminal message to the viewer that elicits an emotional response.
Consider some of the best-known logos: Apple Computer’s apple, Nike’s swoosh and McDonald’s arches. Each is an uncomplicated mark that immediately conjures in your mind an entity different from all others. It also suggests to you how you feel about the company. The power of a good design is remarkable. McDonald’s is probably the best example of using a simple logo as a marketing force. The gold arches enjoy global consumer recognition with complete ambivalence and disregard for your current diet. Similarly, your logo is going to be your face to the public, now and into the future. You need it to be as resonant and memorable as possible.
Graphic Designers execute corporate identity using visual vocabulary, or syntax. Shape, line, direction, color, value, typography, style, space and form are several fundamentals that are centric to such a dynamic process.
The way that these are combined defines your image. Designers know that rectangles indicate stability, while circles suggest movement. Blue has the attributes of trust and power, while green speaks of life and nature. A serif typeface is conservative, while sans serif is informal – perhaps modern. The Graphic Designer uses these tools to reveal your company’s essence.
Typography, is itself an art form
and a standalone profession.
Using elements such as typeface, point-size, leading (the distance between lines), kerning (the space between letters) and line-length, the typographer gives a unique presentation to the words that express your company. Slogans and taglines must be visually shaped to reflect your core message. The better the typography, the more resonance the words carry.
In order to interpret your business to consumers, the artist needs to know as much as possible about its key aspects. Many designers will gather detailed information through a discovery process. The information to provide includes: What’s the consumer’s prime benefit from using your product or service? What’s unique about your company? Who are your competitors? Who is your target market? What’s their average age and background? Other questions concern your preferences. Does your company already have an identifying color? Are there specific colors or features that you want included or excluded? Have you seen logos for other companies similar to what you want? Does your company already have a tag line, or slogan?
How and where your logo will be used has an effect on its character. Will it be shown on the web? In print? On signage? On clothing? On letterhead and business cards?
Each of these applications has its own requirements. You want something that works well in every planned media. This also gives the designer some idea of the sizes involved.
Logos come in several types: text, iconic, illustrative or a hybrid combination. A text logo, or logotype, has no graphic, icon or illustrative standalone elements.
Along with these three main categories are many combinations, modifications and hybrids. An icon may be combined with typography that is either removable or integrated. An illustrative logo often includes typography for the company name. A particular graphic may be neither as lean as an icon nor as fully detailed as a rich illustration. Be sure that the logo design team you work with allows you the flexibility to find exactly the right image for your company.
Seasoned graphic designers help you to answer all of the design questions that arise. You need only to provide information about your company. As long as you know who you are, you’ll get what you need. Thinking carefully about your company’s brand as you go through the design process may be instructive as well as enjoyable.
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Logo Design and Brand Recognition
When you see the face of a friend, you don’t have to wonder who it is – they are known.
A good logo can help make a company into a friend, into “someone” who is known, liked and remembered. There are infinite faces, and there are infinite logo designs. You want to make yours stand out in a crowd.
The process of designing a logo employs a fundamental set of variables in order to arrive at a simple, yet memorable result. A memorable logo strengthens your brand recognition, distinguishes your product from competitors’ and serves as your identification for doing business. It sends a subliminal message to the viewer that elicits an emotional response.
Consider some of the best-known logos: Apple Computer’s apple, Nike’s swoosh and McDonald’s arches. Each is an uncomplicated mark that immediately conjures in your mind an entity different from all others. It also suggests to you how you feel about the company. The power of a good design is remarkable. McDonald’s is probably the best example of using a simple logo as a marketing force. The gold arches enjoy global consumer recognition with complete ambivalence and disregard for your current diet. Similarly, your logo is going to be your face to the public, now and into the future. You need it to be as resonant and memorable as possible.
Graphic Designers execute corporate identity using visual vocabulary, or syntax. Shape, line, direction, color, value, typography, style, space and form are several fundamentals that are centric to such a dynamic process.
The way that these are combined defines your image. Designers know that rectangles indicate stability, while circles suggest movement. Blue has the attributes of trust and power, while green speaks of life and nature. A serif typeface is conservative, while sans serif is informal – perhaps modern. The Graphic Designer uses these tools to reveal your company’s essence.
Typography, is itself an art form
and a standalone profession.
Using elements such as typeface, point-size, leading (the distance between lines), kerning (the space between letters) and line-length, the typographer gives a unique presentation to the words that express your company. Slogans and taglines must be visually shaped to reflect your core message. The better the typography, the more resonance the words carry.
In order to interpret your business to consumers, the artist needs to know as much as possible about its key aspects. Many designers will gather detailed information through a discovery process. The information to provide includes: What’s the consumer’s prime benefit from using your product or service? What’s unique about your company? Who are your competitors? Who is your target market? What’s their average age and background? Other questions concern your preferences. Does your company already have an identifying color? Are there specific colors or features that you want included or excluded? Have you seen logos for other companies similar to what you want? Does your company already have a tag line, or slogan?
How and where your logo will be used has an effect on its character. Will it be shown on the web? In print? On signage? On clothing? On letterhead and business cards?
Each of these applications has its own requirements. You want something that works well in every planned media. This also gives the designer some idea of the sizes involved.
Logos come in several types: text, iconic, illustrative or a hybrid combination. A text logo, or logotype, has no graphic, icon or illustrative standalone elements.
Along with these three main categories are many combinations, modifications and hybrids. An icon may be combined with typography that is either removable or integrated. An illustrative logo often includes typography for the company name. A particular graphic may be neither as lean as an icon nor as fully detailed as a rich illustration. Be sure that the logo design team you work with allows you the flexibility to find exactly the right image for your company.
Seasoned graphic designers help you to answer all of the design questions that arise. You need only to provide information about your company. As long as you know who you are, you’ll get what you need. Thinking carefully about your company’s brand as you go through the design process may be instructive as well as enjoyable.
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