a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

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A QUICK AND EXTREMELY AWESOME GUIDE TO L G O O DESIGN

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A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design.

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Page 1: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

a quick andextremelyawesomeguide to

L G OODESIGN

Page 2: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

So you’ve decided to take the plunge and start a business. Congratulations!

2 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Your future is sure to be filledwith lots of exciting mile-stones: product launches, first customers, reviews from news outlets, and (hopefully) finding that you’ve achieved the goal of starting something from scratch and bringing it into the world.

But for all the celebratory moments of establishing a business, there are many

tasks - big and small - that you have to attend to. One of these is coming up with a logo for your business.

Creating a logo isn’t something you should take lightly. If your business is a manifesto stating your purpose and worldview, your logo is the envelope you put it in. In other words, it’s one of the first things a customer will come into contact with, a visual cue that will hopefully stick with them long after

they’ve left your store or walked away from your advertisement. That means it’s hugely important to design a logo that is memorable and makes a consu-mer feel the way you want them to feel.

In this eBook, we’ll talk about how to go about creating a striking logo that at-tracts customers, sets your brand apart, is easy to understand, and uses color in a way that that elicits the emotional reaction you want.

Page 3: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

3 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

A logo isn’t something that was cooked up by 20th century advertisers and marketerslooking for a way to makemoney off their clients. Logos are actually complex represen-tations of how human beings use language and visual cues.

The word “logo” is technically short for “logotype,” which is descended from a Greek term that roughly means “word imprint.” One of the earliest examples of a logo is the coat of arms, a medieval symbol often worn by knights that iden-tified their family or state. Another early

precursor to the modern business logo is the wax seal, a tradition that began in the 16th century as a way for people to seal letters with an identifying marker. It’s important to note that in each of these cases logos had to be unique in order to identify the knight or letter sender.

The increasing focus on artistry and creativity and the introduction of mass-produced goods that came about in the late 1800s could be considered to be the beginning of logo creation. However, it wasn’t until 1876 that the first logo was trademarked: the red triangle you can find on every Bass beer.

The Historyof the Logo

Page 4: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

4 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Logos also become more important with the rise of globalization. Business owners and manufacturers needed a way to describe their product in way that could be recognized by people of all linguistic back-grounds. An abstract logo allowed them to bypass translation issues and offer an easily digestible way of identifying their business.

It’s important to keep in mind that logos began as primarily an artistic endeavor, and the artistry behind them can’t be stressed strongly enough. Whether you’re a business owner or medieval knight, your logo is a distillation of ideas and emotions. It’s the de-finition of art. And even if your logo is little more than your brand name (think IBM or Hallmark), a good logo will take these words and use color, font, and design to give them life.

The Historyof the Logo

Page 5: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Know The Facts

5 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

A logo is more thanjust a pretty design.

By the age of eight, almostall children are able to correctly

match a logo to its product.

It's tells a story that lodges itself in a consumer'sbrain for a very long time.

A few years later, childrenaged seven or eight are ableto regularly recall the logo.

A recent study found that humans begin to recognize the fact that certain logos stand for certain products around three to

five years of age.

Page 6: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

6 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Before you start actually design- ing your logo, think aboutwhat you’re trying to accomplish. How are you trying to portray your brand? Edgy? Sophisticated? Whimsical? Feminine?How should your logo makeyour customers feel?

As a business owner, you’ve probably learned the importance of making lists. In this early brainstorming stage, write down the answers to the questions above. If you’re feeling creative, free-associate a list of words that you’duse to describe your brand.

It’s also important to think about where your logo will appear. Sure, the huge intri-cate design you came up with might look amazing on your business card,but how will it look on your storefront window? Your business card? Your website? You company’s softball team? You get the picture. A logo has tobe like the perfect bottle of wine: suitable for an almost endless array of situations. So while it may be tempting to think about your logo as a haircut, something that you can change with ease, it’s better to think about it as a tattoo, a telling sym-bol that will be with you for a long time.

a logo has to be like the perfect bottle of wine:suitable for an almost endless array of situations.

Define Your Purpose

Page 7: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Get InspiredAfter you’ve come up witha list that describes the logo design goals, make it yourjob to look at as many logosas possible.

You’ll definitely want to take a look at the logos of some of the world’s most iconic brands: Nike, Starbucks, McDonald’s, Apple, IBM, Reebok, Hershey, and Proctor and Gamble are all good places to start. Figure out what it is about them that you like. Is it their simplicity? Their use of text and abstract shapes? Their color? Their font?

If you don’t like some of them, try to figure out what you’d change.

Again, a list of words or ideas, no matter how abstract, can help you figure out what it is about these iconic logos that you do and don’t like. You don’t only have to look at logos for inspiration. Art books, magazines, websites, even long walks, can help you figure out what you want your logo to look like.

You may also want to ask friends or family members what logos they like. If that’s too difficult of a question for them, ask them what they think of when they think of your business. Some of the answers you get may be better than others, but you can never have too much inspiration.

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8 | A Quick Guide To Logo Design

a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Ask For Help

At this stage, you’re ready to start designing your logo.

If you feel confident your grap-hic design skills, you should by all means go about coming up with logo concepts on your own. The key to success is coming up with as many concepts as possi-ble. While it may be tempting to come up with one concept and tweak it for a long period of time, putting a couple dozen ideas on paper will help you figure out your options and determine what you do and don’t like.

If you get stuck, ask for advice. Ask a trusted friend which versions he or she responds to. In some cases, the less they know about graphic design and mar-keting, the better. After all, you want to know how the average person walking down the street experiences your logo.

You should also consider hiring a pro-fessional to create your logo for you. If you don’t know anything about graphic design, this may be a foregone conclu-sion, but even a business owner who knows (or thinks they know) how to design a logo can benefit from turning to a professional for assistance.

LOGO

help!

help!

Page 9: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Ask For Help

Having a stranger or professio-nal work on your logo can offer valuable perspective. For instance, you might thinka whimsical, floral logo is best for your restaurant, but an outsider may introduceanother element - a futuris-tic font, or an unexpected use of color - that totally changes how you envision your logo.

However, even if you’ve turned to aprofessional for help with your logo, don’t be afraid to voice your opinion. Be sure to tell them what you do and don’t like. Don’t worry about hurting

their feelings! And of course, that list of words and phrases you created to help identify will definitely come in handy about now.

Hiring a solid logo designerdoesn’t have to cost an arm anda leg. there are plenty of places online where you can findtalented creative professionals willing to work for a relatively low price in order to build their design portfolio and help out business owners in need.

Page 10: A quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

One of the most important considerationsfor a business is the color or colors they useto identify their brand.

Colors can leave a lasting impression and elicit a wide range of reactions and emotions, making it an important thing to consider when creating your logo, painting your offices, or designing any of your marketing materials.

So what exactly do those colors mean?

Consider the Color

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Blue YellowEntrepreneur says this color is one that stands for being “trustworthy, dependable, fiscally responsible, and secure.” Makes sense when you think that this is the color is central to the identities of Facebook, WalMart, AT&T, and probably your town’s police department.

Fast Company calls yellow an optimistic color that has the benefit of being bright enough to grab a consumer’s attention from a distance. It makes sense that Denny’s and McDonalds both use yellow in their logos since they’re eager to attract hungry travelers on the interstate.

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Orange RedConsidering using orange in your business branding? Fast Company calls orange a “friendly” color that is used by everyone from Nickelodeon to Hooters. Entrepreneur says that orange tends to appeal to an upscale market, and that lighter oranges can work well in beauty salons, restaurants, and even hospitals.

Red is a tricky color for markets. Fast Company says it stands for “excitement,” but that it also can cause an excitement in consumers that isn’t always welcome. Entrepreneur agrees, saying, “Count on red to evoke a passionate response, albeit not always a favorable one. For example, red can represent danger or indebted-ness.” In addition, red is often used to announce big sales, which might not be the vibe you’re looking for.

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Green PurpleGreen is the easiest color for eyes to process, according to Fast Company, and also one that brings to mind (what else?) money. Entrepreneur calls it a serene color that brings to mind health, freshness, and serenity. All these things explain why green shows up in the logos of brands like Whole Foods, Land Rover and Starbucks.

Purple is a strong color with strong connotations. Fast Company says it’s the go-to color if you’re look- ing to portray your brands as imaginative or wise (see Yahoo! and the SyFy Network). They note it can also be a soothing, calming color, which is why it’s a popular way to promote anti-aging products. Entrepreneur says light lavender can evoke feelings of nostalgia and sentimentality (e.g., the Hallmark logo).

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Pink BrownDepending on what shade you go with, pink can be used to say a few different things about your brand. Entrepreneur says hot pink evokes feelings of fun and youthfulness, while pale pinks are more romantic. As Fast Company points out, any shade of pink is going to lend your brand a feminine touch.

Entrepreneur calls brown a dependable, sturdy color that also happens to be good at hiding dirt. This may explain why it’s the color of UPS and other trucking companies. However, note that the dirt connotation can be a turn off for some customers - so maybe don’t give your bridal boutique a brown logo.

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

Black WhiteBlack means business. That’s why it’s the preferred color for glamorous eveningwear and stretchlimousines. If you’re looking to convey drama andsophistication, Entrepreneur says this color willdo the trick. Fast Company wholeheartedly agrees, calling this the color of upscale luxury items.

When you use white in your logo or marketing materials, you’re telling people you have nothingto hide. Fast Company points out that Apple, Wikipedia, and Honda all rely on white for their branding. Entrepreneur calls it out as one of the more eye-catching colors, and notes that it can also denote purity and cleanliness.

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a quick and extremely awesome guide to logo design

So this is the down and dirty of creating a logo. That being said, there’s no single way to comeup with a logo.

You may be the least design minded person in the world, but if inspiration strikes you at 4 a.m. and you find yourself still loving the results three orfour months later, just go with it.

The most important thing is coming up with a logoyou feel perfectly encapsulates your business.

Bringing Your Logo to Life!

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