You’ve always enjoyed playing with colors and drawing since you were in elementary school. As you got older, your love for design grew stronger, to the point that you wanted to pursue it as a job. You’re on your way to being a brilliant logo designer for logo design services if you pay attention to detail, are creative, and can play around with colors. You join a logo design firm to make your ambition a reality. Unfortunately, you began to stray from the fundamentals of logo design and began to follow the most recent logo design trends. Although this strategy may work in some cases, it can also backfire, therefore it’s vital to stick to the basics when designing business logos.
You’ve come to the correct place if you want to brush up on some of the golden laws of logo design that you may have picked up along the road. Here are the golden laws of logo design which will help you become a better logo designer.
1. Inquire about the brand with your client.
The first rule of design is to understand your client’s business, and we’re not just talking about asking for a brief here. The majority of clients prefer that company values are defined first, then a design is created to support them, rather than the other way around. Encourage your customer to think about the company’s beliefs and goals. Ask:
- Why/how did the company get started in the first place?
- What distinguishes them, according to them?
- What is one thing they plan to do differently as a business owner?
- Rephrase your query to include the whys, hows, and whats of a business’s existence, and utilise the facts to determine the brand’s and logo design’s relevancy.
2. Build a Firm Foundation
Every assignment, any logo designer would tell you, teaches them something new. Every client is unique, and each designer has his own flair when it comes to logo design services. It is critical to reach a consensus in order to ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page. When you ask the correct questions of your clients, this will happen.
This will assist you in laying a firm basis for your logo design job and determining exactly what the client wants of you. Conduct thorough research and set the foundation for your logo design tasks, which you can use to develop outstanding logo designs that your clients and their viewers will adore.
3. Sketch
With all of the focus on digital tools, logo designers have almost forgotten how to use a sketchbook. It’s sometimes best for logo designers to put down their computers and mice and take up a pen and paper and start sketching. Sketching, on the other hand, makes it easy to experiment with forms and place them exactly where you want them. You may also use your sketches as a prototype to demonstrate to your clients what your logo will look like in the end.
This also allows clients to see the finished product and request modifications on the spot, saving you time and money on rework. During one of her earliest meetings with CitiBank’s higher-ups, Paula Scher, a designer who created the CitiBank logo, made the first sketch of the CitiBank logo on a napkin. The famous umbrella was placed over the evergreen wordmark in the sketch. That rough doodle evolved into the CitiBank logo we know today.
4. Maintain Relevance
A logo can reveal a great deal about your company. It can generate a perception about your brand in the mind of the spectator based on its shape, colour, and typeface. As a result, it’s critical that you pay close attention to little things. Choose logo elements that reflect the personality of your company. For example, a high-end brand will benefit from a more elegant typeface than a low-end one. Ascertain that your logo logic corresponds to the client’s brand personality.
Amazon’s logo is the best example. The arrow pointing from “a” to “z” indicates that Amazon’s online store sells a wide range of products. Another excellent example of a relevant logo is the McDonald’s logo. The iconic golden arches represent mammary glands, which are an indication of feeding. McDonald’s cuisine is both nutritious and tasty, as seen by this.
5. Make brand recognition a top priority
Simple is usually preferable when it comes to logo design. Customers will have a difficult time remembering your brand emblem if it is complicated. You want your customers to recognise your brand by its emblem from a marketing aspect. Only if you have a straightforward and clean logo design will this happen.
Just take a look at the Nike logo to see what I’m talking about. The black swoosh is well-known all around the world, and anyone can recognise Nike products just by looking at the black swoosh sign on them. Unlike other designs that have evolved, the Nike logo has retained its initial appearance.
6. Make It Unique
There are millions of brands in the world, and each one aspires to be different. That is why each brand has its own distinct logo. As a logo designer, you’re required to think outside the box, come up with original logo concepts, and then translate them into physical form. Instead of duplicating other brands’ logos, you should try to make yours stand out.
There’s a frequent belief among logo designers that you’ll need to come up with something out of this planet to make your company’s logo stand out. You can give a logo a totally unique look with tiny modifications and touches here and there. The classic bitten apple logo of Apple Inc. is an excellent example of how logo designers can develop innovative designs with little effort.
8. Let your logo do all of the talking.
It’s best not to strive too hard to show what a company does using its logo because it’ll almost always destroy it. Giving your logo a voice and allowing it to speak for itself is a much better option. You do not need to include your company name in your logos. Shell’s logo is a great illustration of how a logo can convey a lot of information without saying anything.
9. Fill In The Colours At The End
Always start with a black and white version of a logo when designing one. This will allow you to keep laser-focused on your logo concept and pay attention to logo aspects rather than colours. After you’ve finished the monochromatic version of your logo, add colour to it to give it a fresh lease on life.
The UPS logo perfectly exemplifies this notion. Initially, the black and white version was made by paying close attention to details. Colors were applied to the black and white logos shortly after they were completed. The UPS logo now has a much more sophisticated appearance. By following the same steps, you can get the same refined look for your logo.
10. What You Should Take Away From This Article
When developing a logo, it’s crucial to remember the golden conceptual guideline in addition to the technical criteria. These guidelines lay the groundwork for understanding the conceptual element and incorporating it into the design. You should educate yourself with the brand values, brainstorm ideas and eliminate cliches, avoid generic design, and concentrate on features such as colour representation, timelessness, and preserving the logo essence in all situations.
