Brandopoly

Logos are often confused with positioning statements. A logo is not meant to describe a business, it’s simply meant to identify a business. Meaning is created by what it symbolizes, not the other way around. Ultimately what it means is more important than what it looks like. Your logo represents your brand and becomes a symbol—a symbol that’s faster to recognize than words, more memorable than words, and works in any language.

Here are some basic guidelines and questions that you can use to help guide your logo design process.

3 Logo Questions

1. What does the competition look like? Do some research, look at what your competitors are doing and think about how you can stand out from the crowd while at the same time look like you belong in that market.
2. Is the mark relevant? A logo may not need to describe your business, but it does represent it. Tone, style, imagery should all make sense and work to support what your company does.
3. Will it work with our future needs? You may be a small business now, but once you make it to the Fortune 500 Club, will your logo still work?

4 Key Logo Ingredients

1. Attractive—no one likes ugly logos.
2. Reproducible in both black and white, and color—think of everything from a black and white fax sheet to an online directory ad to the side of a truck—your logo needs to work for you everywhere
3. Reproducible at any size—your logo needs to be easy to read both small and large—on a business card or 48 foot wide outdoor billboard, and everything in between
4. Memorable—that’s the bottom line after all, make sure your logo leaves your audience with one thing to remember, that’s all you need.

7 Logo Benchmarks

Once you’ve designed your logo make sure it passes these benchmarks:

1. It has a strong, balanced image with no little extras that clutter its look
2. It’s distinctive and bold in design, making it easy to see at a glance
3. It has graphic imagery that looks appropriate for your business
4. It works well with your company name
5. The type is handled with an easy-to-read font
6. It communicates your business clearly
7. It looks good in black and white, as well as in color

Logos work when they reduce complex ideas—you, your company, your market, and your mission statement— to a symbol, conveying the essence of your company directly, simply, and effectively.