It’s hard to imagine that one simple image can encompass everything that your business stands for, but that’s exactly what you’re trying to do when creating a company logo. While this is one of the most exciting steps in your brand-building journey, it can also be one of the most challenging.
We’d all like to have the same kind of luck that Nike founder Phil Knight had back in 1971 when he paid graphic designer Carolyn Davidson just $35 to design the iconic Nike swoosh logo. It’s much more common for a company to have to experiment with a variety of logo designs before finding one that sticks. For example, Amazon has gone through six different logo variations prior to landing on their current logo featuring the organe arrow imagery.
In this article, we’ll explore what makes a logo truly great, the tools you’ll need to craft an outstanding logo, and some logo ideas that help get your creative juices flowing.
Let’s get right into it!
- Why a Logo Matters More Than You Think
- What Makes a Good Logo?
- Key Elements of Great Logo Design
- Finding Inspiration: Where Great Logo Ideas Begin
- How to Create a Logo
Why a Logo Matters More Than You Think
If you’re a small business owner who’s just launched your company, you might be hesitant to invest precious time and money into developing a logo. This response is completely understandable since your primary focus is on growing your business.
However, you shortchange yourself if you don’t spend at least a little time establishing your company’s branding. The word “branding” is thrown around a lot in the world of marketing, but what does it actually mean? David Ogilvy, a British advertising tycoon known as the “Father of Advertising,” offered a comprehensive description in his 1983 book Ogilvy on Advertising:
“The intangible sum of a product’s attributes: its name, packaging, and price, its history, its reputation, and the way it’s advertised.”
Your company’s logo plays a massive role in the overall branding equation. This is especially true for small businesses that are looking to make a good first impression with potential customers. Studies have shown that 94% of first impressions are related to design. So, take the time to design a logo that shows off your brand’s identity and everything you have to offer.
If you’re a small business owner looking to design your first logo, FreeLogoService‘s suite of AI-powered logo maker tools and thousands of fully customizable templates make the process a breeze.
What Makes a Good Logo?
What makes a logo good is really rather subjective. Many say that a logo should be bold and flashy to grab people’s attention. But there are plenty of famous logos that have embraced minimalism and subtlety to amazing success; look at the Target logo for example.
With that being said, there are some general guidelines that you should follow to make sure your logo is received warmly by your audience. One of the most important elements of good logo design is legibility. You can certainly experiment with abstract forms, but at the end of the day, you need to make sure your brand name comes across clearly.
An example of a brand forgetting the importance of legibility is Kia’s logo redesign in 2021. The redesigned logo compressed the K, I, and A letters, making it look like it spelled KN. There was actually a spike in Google searches with people asking what the new KN car brand was. While the company explained that the redesign was meant to illustrate its dedication to innovation, it ultimately missed the mark.
Key Elements of Great Logo Design
Legibility is just one aspect that you need to consider when designing a logo. Here are some other elements that you need to keep in mind to make sure that your image stands out.
- Simple: A cluttered design can confuse customers. Keep it clean and minimalistic.
- Memorable: A great logo sticks in people’s minds long after they’ve seen it.
- Timeless: Avoid trends that may look outdated in a few years. Aim for a design that lasts.
- Relevant: Your logo should reflect your industry, values, and brand message.
- Adaptable: A design should work in a variety of settings, including websites, business cards, and other marketing materials.
These are just a few of the many elements that make up a great logo design. Now, we’ll delve into some more specific aspects that can make your designs iconic.
Choosing the Right Logo Colors
The signature McDonald’s arches would not be nearly as iconic if they weren’t that memorable shade of golden yellow. Colors play a massive role in branding. They evoke emotions and influence customer perceptions. Here’s a quick guide to logo colors and their meanings:
- Red: Passion, energy, excitement
- Blue: Trust, professionalism, reliability
- Green: Growth, sustainability, health
- Yellow: Optimism, friendliness, warmth
- Black: Luxury, sophistication, elegance
- White: Simplicity, cleanliness, purity
Choose colors that align with your business values and industry. Also, ensure your logo colors work in black and white for versatility.
Selecting the Perfect Fonts
Circling back to the issue of legibility, your logo’s font and typography should be visually interesting and easy to read. Fonts contribute to the overall personality of your logo. Here are three main font categories:
- Serif Fonts (e.g., Times New Roman): Classic, traditional, trustworthy
- Sans-serif Fonts (e.g., Helvetica): Modern, clean, approachable
- Script Fonts (e.g., Pacifico): Elegant, creative, personal
Keep fonts simple and readable. Avoid using too many fonts in one logo to maintain a clean design.
Icon vs. Wordmark: Which Works Best?
Some businesses use just a wordmark (text-based logo), while others include an icon. Both variations have been used by iconic logos all over the world, so you need to decide which works best for your business. Consider these factors:
- Wordmark logos (e.g., Google, Coca-Cola): Best for unique business names.
- Icon-based logos (e.g., Apple, Twitter): Great for creating a strong visual association.
- Combination logos (e.g., Adidas, Burger King): Ideal for businesses that want flexibility.
Customizing Your Logo for Print & Digital Use
Your logo must look good across different mediums, including digital screens, social media, merchandise, and print materials. Create multiple versions:
- Full-color version: For websites and advertising
- Black and white version: For print materials
- Simplified version: For small sizes like social media icons
Tip: Make sure to download your finished logo designs as vector files. Vector logos are created using mathematical formulas and can be scaled to any size without losing clarity. Your logo will look just as impressive on a massive billboard down the highway as it does on a tiny business card.
Finding Inspiration: Where Great Logo Ideas Begin
It’s always difficult being greeted by a blank page when you first sit down to design your own logo. Before you dive headfirst into the design process, take time to explore some fresh ideas. Look at your industry’s top competitors and global community trends to see what works. Browse platforms like Pinterest to spark inspiration.
Another way to get inspiration for your logo ideas is to look at logos that you admire from famous brands and see what you can learn from their design ideology. We’ll go over a few famous logo designs to see what lessons we can pick out.
On the surface, the Google logo is rather simple. It’s just a clean wordmark using a four-colour combination, nothing fancy at all. But that’s exactly what the founders of Google had in mind, they wanted their search engine to be the portal for all the world’s information, and thus needed a logo that emphasized their name rather than focusing on icons or imagery.
Samsung
The Samsung logo is a perfect example of how you can break the rules of traditional logo design with intention. At first glance, the Samsung logo looks asymmetrical as the elongated oval shape cuts off part of the “S” and “G” in the name Samsung.
This design choice accomplishes a few things. First, it adds a visual flair to the logo that immediately draws your attention. Second, it invokes the imagery of a galaxy shape, which symbolizes Samsungs mission of making appliances that are ubiquitous and universal.
Beats
Another simple logo, the Beats by Dre logo, is a white lowercase “b” enclosed in a white circle. However, the circle is not just a circle; it represents a human head and the “b” represents the brand’s headphones. This a great example of a creative use of simple icons to craft an image that works on multiple levels.
Mr. Clean
The Mr. Clean logo is truly unique, featuring a muscular, bald man in a white t-shirt. This is an example of a mascot logo where your logo highlights a person, animal, or other character to serve as an avatar for your brand.
While many companies have mascots that have little to do with their actual products, Mr. Clean is very relevant to the cleaning company’s goal of fighting hard to get rid of dirt in your home.
Using a mascot logo can be a very effective way to create an emotional connection with your audience as opposed to logos just using shapes and icons.
When you’re designing a custom logo, you’ll have thousands of ideas in your mind of intricate and expansive logos, but sometimes, less truly is more. Facebook is the model of simplicity in logo design.
Facebook is a multi-billion dollar company, but its logo is just a lowercase “f” in a blue circle. This no-frills logo design is a great lesson for first-time logo designers.
How to Create a Logo
After you’ve narrowed down your logo ideas, it’s time to bring your design to life. There are two main ways to create your own logo: hiring graphic designers or using a logo maker.
- Hiring a professional: If you want a custom logo with a unique touch, working with designers is a great choice. They can provide industry insights, fresh ideas, and a polished final product.
- Using a logo maker: For a budget-friendly and quick option, a logo maker platform can generate dozens of logo designs for you. Many free and paid options allow you to customize fonts, icons, colors, and layouts to fit your brand’s identity.
The Benefits of Working With a Professional Designer
Graphic designers are professionals and can help you through the entire design process, from coming up with logo ideas to crafting the final product. Some benefits of using a professional designer are:
- Professional expertise: A specialist has skills and experience in graphic design, guaranteeing a high-quality logo that reflects your company’s professionalism.
- Time-saving: Entrusting the creation of your logo to an expert saves you time, allowing you to concentrate on other important aspects of your business.
- Brand consistency: A specialist will know how to align your logo design with your overall brand identity, ensuring visual consistency across all your communication media.
The one major drawback to using a professional designer is the cost. This can be a significant hurdle for small businesses that are working on tight budgets and might not have enough money to hire a graphic designer.
The Benefits of Using a Logo Maker
If you don’t want to spend the extra money to hire a professional designer to help with your logo, there are plenty of logo design tools that you can use to do the job yourself. Here are some of the main benefits of using online logo editors:
- Affordability: The most obvious and significant advantage of using online logo makers is their affordability. In most cases, you can create a logo for free.
- Quick turnaround time: If you have an amazing logo idea you want to jump on right away, you can create a logo in just a few minutes using an online logo maker.
- Ease of use: Free logo design tools are usually developed on simple platforms to facilitate easy handling by users, which includes drag-and-drop interfaces and AI intergration.
- Templates: As we discussed before, designing a new logo from scratch can be very difficult. Many online logo makers provide you with logo templates that you can use as a basis when you make a logo yourself.
- Built-in support: If you decide to create a logo for your business yourself using an online logo maker, you will often have access to technical support and customer service, as well as tutorials and design tips.
FreeLogoServices: Best of Both Worlds
FreeLogoServices’ logo maker allows you to create professional-grade logos in just a few easy steps. And if you’re struggling with inspiration, there are thousands of fully customizable logo templates that can help kickstart the design process.
Even with FreeLogoServices’ initiative and easy-to-use interface, you still might want to consult a professional designer to help with the logo creation process. The good news is that FreeLogoServices has a team of hand-picked professional designers that you can work with to help your logo really stand out. Our team of experts listen to your story and ideas to collaborate and make a custom logo design that you will love.
Conclusion
Your logo is the foundation of your brand’s identity. Whether you choose to hire graphic designers, use a logo maker, or brainstorm cool logo ideas yourself, ensure that your final design captures your business’s essence at a single glance.
A perfect logo will not only make your brand stand out but also create a lasting impression on customers. Keep our advice in mind, and explore your own creativity to create a logo that is truly outstanding!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I know if my logo is good?
A good logo is simple, memorable, versatile, and relevant to your business. If people can recognize and associate it with your brand instantly, you’re on the right track.
Should I use a free logo maker or hire a designer?
If you’re on a tight budget, a free logo maker can help you create a decent design. However, hiring a professional ensures a custom logo with a unique touch tailored to your brand. If you want to have access to a high-quality logo maker along with affordable advice from professional designers, try FreeLogoServices!
How many colors should my logo have?
A great logo typically has 2-3 colors. Too many colors can make it look cluttered and unprofessional.
Can I change my logo later?
Yes! Brands evolve, and a logo refresh is sometimes necessary. However, drastic changes can confuse customers, so ensure any redesign maintains brand recognition.
Where can I use my logo?
Your logo should be everywhere—your website, social media, business cards, packaging, advertisements, and even merchandise. Make sure you have different versions optimized for various formats.
What’s the best format to save my logo in?
Save your logo in vector format (SVG, AI, or EPS) for scalability. Also, have PNG and JPEG versions for digital and print use.
