Identity: Logos

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Published on Sunday, 30 December 2012 15:40

Written by Jerrica Jones

A good logo will help your business. A GREAT logo will help MAKE your business. This guide to establishing a strong identity will help you make the most of your brand.

Identity:

What portrays you to the public. A combination of elements. Your logo. Your brand. Your style. This simple guide will help you make the decision that will launch your business into the public eye. Chosen correctly the logo can propel your business to national recognition and become household symbol.

By keeping a few simple ideas in mind as you look through possible logos you will be able to find the “perfect” fit for beginning the branding process. Remember that the logo you choose will be around for a while. Once an identity has been established it should ONLY be updated every 5 years or so. This ensures that the public will be familiar with your business and easily recognize it. If a brand is updated too frequently, the result is confusing to your clients.

Scale-Ability:

Will it be easy to see and clear under a variety of situations? You want a logo that can be understood as a 1” square as easily as it can be enlarged to fit on a billboard.

Less Is More:

A good logo should be complex enough to portray a little about what you do, but simple enough to be scaled down. Because a logo must be scaleable it’s important that there are not too many elements crammed into the artwork. Avoid adding unnecessary or cliche elements to the logo.

Focus:

Your logo should express the focus of your business. Think about your business. If you had to sum it up in one word, what would it be? Now, is that word symbolically reflected in your logo? Does your logo say trust, stability, efficiency, pride, confidence, luxury or faith? If the symbol, graphic, or text arrangement you’ve chosen doesn’t express who you are, consider a revision.

Recognizability:

The most successful logos are those that can be recognized with a quick glance. If consumers have to look closely at the logo to determine what it represents, you might want to re-evaluate your logo based on these logo development principles. Check for scaleability, unnecessary elements and focus. Chances are therein lies your problem.

Color:

Last but not least, be sure your logo will translate well into black and white. Color logos are common, but there are still definite applications for a black and white edition. You want to make sure that when translating your logo, you don’t lose any detail or inferences.

A good logo will help your business. A GREAT logo will help MAKE your business. Just remember, that as the first step of the branding process your logo can either make or break your business. Choose wisely! Once you establish your “identity” this will be the way people recognize your business. Business Cards, Stationary, Brochures, Advertising, Web Presence. The list is infinite.