Top Ways to Design an Effective Logo
Logo design is often an unexpected part of a web designer’s life—one of the countless “little things” you didn’t necessarily plan for or learn about beforehand. Yet even though a logo is just one marketing element, there’s a lot riding on it. Logos physically embody a brand’s personality, and they also entice customers to work with one company above another. Essentially, your design has to effectively connect a brand with an audience. The creative team at Company Folders has compiled these top tactics for designing effective logos to help you do just that.
Research your target audience
It’s pretty hard to entice an audience to work with a brand if you don’t know who that audience is. The key to a good logo is to start with research. Learn everything you can about your audience, including their interests, education, and demographics. This knowledge lets you market to them easier.
Avoid industry clichés
Some industries have claimed certain branding elements as “theirs.” That’s why so many construction companies have orange brand colors and why so many real estate agencies have logos shaped like houses. While these clichés are popular, using the same design as everybody else makes your logo blend into the background. Think of ways to be bold and noteworthy instead.
Choose timeless designs
If you want to create an effective logo, you’ll have to get the web’s ever-changing nature out of your head. Logos aren’t meant to be redesigned every couple of months (thank goodness, because that’s a lot of work for you). Building your logo on classic elements instead of current trends helps it last longer and avoid all those painful redesigns.
Make it innovative
Another way to help your logo last is to add an innovative element that’s ahead of its time. When your logo has a bold, eye-catching feature that no one else is using, your audience will be intrigued by its unusual design and pay more attention to the brand it represents.
Simplify your design
If you’ve ever encountered a clogged drain, you know what a mess it can be. But you may not realize a complicated logo is actually the same as a clogged drain. It’s got so much junk in the way, the brand can’t get through to the audience. Your job is to remove anything your logo doesn’t need, so its message can come through crystal clear.
Make consistent choices
The way to create a simple logo (besides removing unneeded elements) is to make consistent choices in the first place. That can include symbols, white space, negative space, colors, and fonts—any design element that has the power to help convey a brand’s personality. Be sure all of those components work together, rather than contradicting one another.
Adapt to any situation
Logos often appear in different sizes on websites. Large logos on a homepage may become small icons elsewhere. Make sure your logo scales to fit any situation. And just in case, check that it works in grayscale. You never know when a client might decide they want a black and white website.
Conclusion
Creating an effective logo is a skill that you will improve over time, especially when you jumpstart your expertise with these top ways to design a logo.
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