Five Tips for Good Logo

So you’ve just been awarded your first logo design job. How can you ensure your client will be pleased with the result?

1. Start simple

The best logos are the simplest ones, particularly if it’s also clever. They take on a timeless quality, something that is important in a logo. Companies shouldn’t completely redesign their logo too often as it erodes brand recognition. For example, McDonald’s and Dove Soap have continually updated their logo in small stages through the years, so the recognition remains strong while keeping the logo fresh-looking.

2. Keep it portable

Sure, the logo you just designed for that coffee service company looks great on-screen, but what if your client decides he wants to give away an embroidered shirt with every delivery? That funky graduated screen won’t work so well anymore, will it? What if they sponsor a local charity event? Will your logo hold up to being printed at ½” wide in the local black-only newspaper along with 30 other logos? Short of coming up with dozens of versions for every application (which will water down the brand), you want to come up with a solution that’s going to work for almost any situation.

3. Don’t try to say everything

If your client’s organization is Canadian, is celebrating its 100th anniversary, is ISO9000 certified, and was named one of the country’s 50 best companies to work for, the owner may want to say all of this is in a new logo. This is a recipe for disaster. You will end up with something that looks like a Swiss Army knife with all the tools pulled out, not to mention the fact that in a year, the 100th anniversary component won’t be very relevant.

4. Don’t be too literal

If the organization for whom you’re designing a logo delivers apples and oranges from one place to another, you don’t need to draw a truck filled with fruit driving on a highway, complete with a happy driver behind the wheel. Look at some of the sporting goods logos as an example – Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, etc. They don’t depict people doing sports, do they? Yet they convey their brand to their audience effectively.

5. Refine

Once you have your oh-so-clever and elegant logo, take a step back and ask yourself if it can be further refined. Those fine details you put into it may not be necessary. Try to break it down to its most basic essence.

In short, it’s all about simplicity and elegance. If you can achieve these, you will get a logo that will stand the test of time.