Your Logo’s Future

Before you even start conceptualizing your logo, plan on the future life of the logo. Make your logo flexible, so the client can use it in all types of media and marketing mediums. Begin with the potential of multiple end products in mind. Your logo may travel through all types of media that you wouldn’t have imagined.

It may end up on a storefront sign, car wrap, or on something small like a pen or keychain. Be prepared to have your logo embossed, embroidered, silkscreened, watermarked, blown-up, or shrunk down.

Logos aren’t just for pretty business cards and stationary. They are widely used for marketing and communication in an array of forms. Ensure that you have thoughtfully prepared your client for success. They are not the experts at what they need to make this happen, you must help them here.

There have been many times when a vendor is tearing their hair out because the only logo the client can find is the 12k .gif off of their website. Not a good choice for a billboard or backpack.

How To Create The Most Versatile Logo

Here’s how you create the most versatile logo:

• Create your logo in a vector-based program. Illustrator or CorelDraw not Photoshop. (Vector-based means that the software is based off of a mathematical formula not pixels like Photoshop. This allows you to scale your logo without losing any detail.)
• Set it up to a good beginning size: a common size such as 4” x 4” or 6” x 6”.
• Keep it simple. Minimize your usage of gradients, shading, shadow, anything that will lose its detail when shrunk down in size.
• Use PMS colors. This allows you and others a quick way to identify the correct color usage for the brand and logo. Vendors will also use this information to closely match when a PMS is not available in materials like plexi-glass, vinyl, fabric, and thread.
• Plan on multiple color usage. Do several versions for your client: full color – CMYK, 2 or 3 Color – your PMS colors spotted out, Black, and White.
• Plan on multiple files variations: .ai, .eps, .jpg, .gif, and a .png with a transparent background. Your client will most likely use the .jpg, .gif, or .png files, since those are the ones that they are likely to be able to see on their computer. However, they will be asked for the .eps or .ai file when they need promotional materials created for an outside vendor.

Make this “variety pack” part of your finished product delivery. If you want to give them an added bonus, size one of the logos down to email signature size and let them know how to add it to their outlook.

Now you can rest knowing that you have given your client all the tools they need to make themselves and their logo look good – no matter what!

What Is The Designer’s Goal

The whole goal of design is to elicit a response. You are trying to organize and convey information to an audience. Typography is the key to getting this information out. It is a subtle art and easily the quickest way to determine if you are an amateur or a professional. Correct use of typography can sometimes be more important than the logo itself. Correct use of typography is meant to complete the logo.

Did you ever see a logo that used too many fonts, too generic of a font treatment, or just didn’t have the proportion of the words right? Does it automatically associate in your mind a cheap or unprofessional product? A logo can speak volumes about a company and the people and product behind it.

There are a few simple rules when designing a logo:

• Choose a typeface that is easily readable scaled down.
  San Serifs are usually excellent choices, but not the only choice you have. You just want to make sure that it is legible.
• Balance your type so that it is appealing.
  This means when you have it close to what you want, convert it to outlines in Illustrator and adjust the spacing between words manually so that it is impeccably spaced.
• Work with your negative space.
  White space is almost as important is what creates it. You want a fluid sensible flow to your lettering and eyeballing what is in-between can help you there.
• Use Complimentary fonts.

Experiment, Play Around, And Have Fun!

If you are using more than one font, make sure they are complimentary. For instance use a San Serif with a Serif, a bold with a non-bold, or a larger font with a smaller font pairing. These generally have a way of balancing the logo out. Important information should be largest and boldest. Taglines should be secondary.

Experiment with many different combinations until you hit the one that feels right to you. Then pair it with your mark, if you are using one, and determine if it is spot-on. With a good logo, you should be able to separate the mark and the text comfortably with both maintaining their strength.

Play around and have fun with your fonts, experiment with drawing out a letter and manipulating its form to make it truly unique to you.

This Isn’t Abstract Art!

One of the hardest things you learn as a Graphic Designer is to simplify. It’s easy to fill a page with information, colors, and graphical treatments. Anyone can do that. The first thing we learn in school is how to operate filters in Photoshop and create garish word art. While they might be fun school projects, most clients won’t pay for that cool psychedelic landscape you painfully created.

Now, simplicity doesn’t mean that the design was easy to create, by any means…but, what it does mean is that if the presentation is so busy or flashy that there is no reference to the focal point, or it’s hard to find the meaning behind the design because of complexity, there’s a big problem… This isn’t abstract art!

Restraint is a subtle skill, the more you use restraint, the more sophisticated your work will become. Study Swiss Design to master simplicity at it’s best. Practice organizing your content into a Swiss Grid system. There are many templates available online that you can use. While it might seem rigid and restrictive at first, you will soon find out that it is commercially and visually appealing to many people.

Think Of Your Page As A Fish Bowl

Organize text first and then add in your images last. This will keep you from falling into the trap of treating your text as secondary and designing around the image. You can always go in and coordinate and tweak after you have added your images. Organize your images to gravitate the eye to the important information. You should be able to almost draw a line directionally from one corner to the opposite corner without falling off of the page.

Pair down your font choices to one or two font families and treatments. Create a set of colors that you want to use, makes sure they are in harmony with the rest of your piece. And as always, leave plenty of negative space. Make sure your text breathes and has plenty space around it. Your logo and contact information should also have adequate spacing.

Think of your page as a fish bowl where everything is living in harmony. Would you prefer to see so many fish swimming around that they are suffocating together or just a few healthy, happy fish with plenty of space?

Ask These Questions First Before Establishing Your Brand

You probably already know this, but branding is not just for livestock. As a designer, you own your own business whether you work for a corporation, small business, or you are on your own. You need to establish your brand in order to market yourself and your services to others.

Your brand is not just something to slap on the top of your letterhead, or emboss on your business card (although it will reside on these items). Your brand is your professional identity. So before creating anything, you should ask yourself these questions:

• Who is my target audience? Are you targeting a particular market, such as technology or medical? Do you want to get business from your local community, or are you thinking more regional?
• What does my company stand for? Every business should have a soul. What does the soul of your company value? If you haven’t already created a mission statement, do it. A mission statement will give clients a more concrete idea of what you stand for.
• What do I want my brand to represent? Make sure your brand reflects the unique skills and services you have to offer. You want clients and prospects to know what sets you apart from the competition.

Now Is The Time To Create Your Logo And Tagline

After you know who your target audience is, what you stand for, and what you want your brand to represent, you can create your logo and tagline.

Create a logo that is simple and consistent. Don’t create one that is hard to read, or is visually cumbersome. If you have different logos for your business card, letterhead, and webpage—nobody is going to remember any of them. If you are using a tagline keep it simple, representative, and memorable. You can be descriptive, but make sure your tagline doesn’t read like a novel.

Establish a theme. Select specific fonts, color schemes and specific color toned photographs to apply to collateral. This will help you establish brand recognition. Create a style guide and follow it faithfully.

After establishing your brand, maintain it. This doesn’t mean change it schizophrenically, but check periodically to make sure it is still fresh and relevant to you, your clientele, and your business. Remember, your brand is going to be what people think of when they think of your company, make sure you’re presenting a brand that represents you best.

13. Get Credit – Print design credits and designed by links

You have a lot of great talent, feel confident in your abilities and are now ready to take it to the next level. You are ready for more business. You are ready to take it to the streets. Lucky for you, you already have the most basic, effective, marketing tool already. Most designers intuitively know how to market themselves. The only limitation for you will be how many relationships you can build.

The best way to start is to work with the relationships you already have to make more viable business. Try to get a credit on some of your print design work. You can score more business by getting credit on your work. When creating a logo or web page for someone, see if you can get a credit placed on their website with a link to your page. A lot of times you will see a “Site Design by” link on the footer of a page. Try getting a “Logo Design by” link. If the client says, “No,” don’t worry about it. It’s no big deal.

Name Recognition?

What you are doing by accomplishing these little “wins” is telling people indirectly, who you are, what you do, and why it’s important. It will gain you name recognition and compel others that like your work style to do business with you. Get in the habit of asking every client before hand if they would be willing to allow you to have a small credit on their site and testimonial when you wrap up the project.

If you have done a good job for your client, it shouldn’t be hard to get them to sing your praises. Also, if you have done any deeply discounted or pro-bono work, that can be easily worked in as a trade option. In the graphic design industry name recognition is key. This highly competitive field requires your name to become a beacon of light guiding people to you. It’s not just about them knowing you, but knowing the work you are capable of doing.

12. Rights for your logo design work

When creating your online portfolio, one of the key areas of focus should be on your logo design. Make sure you have permission to display logos you’ve created for clients on your website. This will help your online portfolio grow. Most of the time people are happy to display their business name somewhere else, but you never know…

Technically, you have produced the work but you do not own the product. You have entered into a contract with your client. Goods and services exchanged for money and rights to any creative you have produced for them. There will be many occasions where your contract can end as soon as the logo is created. The logo then will become the property of the client.

Trademark registration of logo designs

If your client is really vested in their logo they will register the logo as a trademark thus claiming rights to the graphical representation of the logo as a whole. This is a deterrent for discouraging others from registering with similar marks.

Companies will go to great lengths to protect their marks especially if they are in a highly competitive market. It’s their claim to ownership, legal jurisdiction, and may be as wide ranging as foreign goods, etc.

Get written permission for use of logo designs

Keep this all in mind when you are showcasing your work. First, get written permission, the green light from the client, to use the logo. Show them a mock-up of how it will be displayed and give the company credit or even a link to their company website. Second, make sure that the logo image is protected either by a watermark or a no right-click script. This will keep others from downloading the image for other purposes. If you have a slideshow set up in Flash, this should make it difficult to download as well.

Utilizing these precautions will ensure that you maintain a good relationship with your client that can be mutually beneficial. Most companies will appreciate any cross-pollination they might receive from your site and vice-versa. This also will show a display of good faith and your continued interest in the future of your work and the intellectual property of your client.

Thank you for reading this graphic design tip about logo design rights. Please be sure to subscribe to our blog using the social links below to stay up to date with our posts.

All the best,

ThePerfectDesign.com Team

…but, to a designer, we feel it means about a million things more because designers can get so emotionally involved in a project to give it, and make it, their very best…to ultimately help the client be successful. Designers see it from the business side as well as from a design side.

We’d like to compile a list of over a thousand things that a logo design “is,” to show the importance of a quality, relevant, logo design; and we need your help. Here’s what we need:

We need you to answer to the question “Logo design is what?” in your own words and experience. You can give us as many answers as you want and we encourage you to give us all your answers by posting a comment below. The format should be as follows:

“Logo design is… art” or “Logo design is symbolic” or “Logo design is nature” or better yet, get more detailed, “Logo design is the fulfillment of a need that a business has; to give ‘guts’ to the establishment of the company brand in order to create awareness of the company and its services.”

You can say it however you want… but, we love longer answers that include more thought and information , so tell us what logo design is to you.

Here’s how you’ll benefit…

• You’ll be helping fellow designers, or business owners, and that makes everyone feel good to know they’ve helped someone else

• We will do a spotlight of everyone that participates in answering the question, “Logo design is what?”
  • After you’ve given us a response, we will send an e-mail to you asking you some questions about yourself

  • Then, you’ll be able to send us your answers, along with a picture of yourself, and a link to your website or portfolio, or both (It’s okay if you don’t have site. You can still participate)…
• You can then put a link to your spotlight on your website to show off your spotlight

We’re looking forward to the creative answers we’ll be receiving. Once we receive over a thousand answers to what logo design “is”, we hope to compile a list that even Santa would be proud of and post them in a separate blog post to showcase the answers.

All the best!

ThePerfectDesign.com Team

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