Simple tips for designing your company logo

Often when someone starts a business they are eager to begin designing their company logo. While they may already some ideas on what it will look like, the process of designing an effective logo is much harder than traditionally thought.

The logo is often your company’s first visual impression on potential customers and carries with it the overall perception of your brand. Even young children can instantly recognise a logo and immediately know the type of business it is, what it can offer them and its overall quality.

This is why creating a standout logo that effectively represents your brand is a crucial part of your standard marketing. Let’s take a look at some of the best tips for creating a great company logo.

Aim for originality

With so many companies out there, it’s hard to create a brand mark that is truly unique. Many companies have issued lawsuits to others for their logo being too similar to their own.

While being totally original can be hard, it’s nonetheless what should be aimed for. It’s not just important to have an original logo but one that is clever too.

Don’t just resort to using imagery of the product or service you offer in the logo. For example, Apple has one of the world’s most recognisable logos but it does not include imagery of phones or computers.

It’s important to create something that you are sure won’t be confused with anything else. It’s crucial that when audiences see your logo they can easily match it to your brand.

Incorporate your brand’s ideology

The best logos are not only visually appealing but are able to communicate the deeper ideology of the brand they represent. Consider the unique attributes of your brand and ask yourself what the core messages are.

Consider the overall visual themes associated with your product, service or industry. Many construction companies use geometric shapes in their logo design while an interior design company might use cursive fonts and soft edges.

Use colour to your advantage

In terms of the psychology behind advertising, colour is crucial. The prevalence of certain colours evokes different feelings in the audience.

For example, many fast food brands will use red in their branding to evoke hunger while other brands will use green to imply they are organic and natural. There is plenty of supporting evidence to show which colours work best for different marketing messages and this should be researched prior to deciding on a logo.

Using a wordmark or a symbol?

Many of the most recognisable brand logos are simply visual symbols without any text. Before attempting to do this you should consider the time it took for those brands to become universally recognised with a symbol.

Other brands with use logotype exclusively (think Coca-Cola) but they also have very unique names. If your name is not very unique then consider a combination of logotype and a symbol.