An important marketing tool that’s often overlooked when starting a new business is the company logo. The logo is the foundation of your brand. It offers potential customers an immediate insight into what your company is all about, and can be a key factor in persuading them to check out - and buy - your product or service.
Because it’s central to the success of your company, it’s very important to design an effective logo.
Stick To A Simple Logo
If I were to show you a pair of golden arches or a stylised apple with a bite taken out of it, it’s highly likely that you’d immediately be able to name the companies represented by the logos. Both logos are incredibly simple – and the most effective logos are usually the simplest! You may only have a split second to capture the attention of the person viewing your logo, and so it must make an immediate impact on the viewer.
There’s no need to design a complicated and detailed logo - in fact, complex logos can be a bad idea.
Complex Logos Aren’t Versatile
Many people immediately open a graphic design program to help them design a new logo, and try and incorporate all manner of fancy effects - colouring, shading, and drop-shadowing. The finished logo might look great on your computer monitor and a website, but what about if you need to resize it for use elsewhere? You might need to make it much smaller, for example, to print on a business card; or much larger, for use on a poster or billboard. Create a logo that can be used when scaled both up and down in size.
Bear in mind that you may need to use the logo on different kinds of backgrounds, both dark and light, as well as in white, and even on different textures.
Create A Positive Impression
Branding is a marketing technique in which a company uses a name, symbol or design to help customers identify their goods or services, and differentiate them from those of other sellers. The logo is a key element of your brand, so as well as being simple it must be memorable, and if possible, define your product.
It should create a positive image, so that people begin to associate your logo and the product it represents with feelings of positivity and goodwill. Choice of colour can play an important role, as certain colours can enhance particular moods or feelings in the viewer. Do you want to give viewers the impression that your business is warm and friendly, or high-tech and scientific? The colours you use will help give the desired impression.
The Importance Of Testing
Ask for the opinions of as many people as possible before implementing your logo. Someone might interpret your logo in a way that you weren’t expecting, by seeing a shape or image in a way that you didn’t intend. If left unaltered the logo could give other viewers a negative impression – even subliminally! Also ask friends about the feelings your logo inspires in them, to ensure that it’s being received in the way you intended it to be.
It’s important to test the logo as much as possible, to avoid having to change it at a later date. If a logo has to later be changed, customers associating the current logo with your product will need to become accustomed to the new design, meaning that you’ve wasted time and money.
We hope the logo for your startup is a great success!
Featured image on home page is provided courtesy of bazstyle.
