Logos might just be one of the many visual elements involved in the Branding Process, but it is also what will appear on most touchpoints with potential customers. From websites to brochures to packaging and to marketing materials, your logo will be everywhere.
That is why your logo is a vital part of your brand identity.
People should instantly recognise and connect with your logo. A good logo not only makes your brand more memorable but can also boost brand loyalty by triggering positive emotions in connection with your brand. In this way, it serves to create consistency across all your communication channels and distinguish your brand from the competition.
Here are 4 critical characteristics that make a good logo:
1) Simple
A simple logo allows for easy recognition. You want your logo to be as clear and visible as possible while still conveying your philosophy and representing your aesthetics.
A good test for this would be the replication test.
If an individual can notice your logo, remember it, and be able to replicate it on their own, chances are you’ve got a good one.
Think of the Nike swoosh or the McDonalds arches, I bet you could draw those with your eyes closed.
Typeface, colour scheme and graphics are all essential in this step. Your logo should not be overcrowded or illegible. You should also make good use of white space and balanced spacing to give your logo room to breathe and stand out to your audience.
2) Distinctive
One of the goals of a good logo is to generate interest in your brand. A logo that looks like anyone else’s or is mistaken for something else won’t be much help in this area. Even in industries where there are standardised practices and norms, your logo should still aim to stand out from the crowd.
Your logo should be original and that required an original design concept. Some people may think that logos need to be literally representative of your products or services but this is not true.
Although your logo can be informative of your business, in reality, it only needs to be interesting enough for viewers to want to know more about your brand.
3) Timeless
An effective logo should be able to stand the test of time. In 10, 20, 50 years, your logo should become irrelevant. Although it may be tempting to design a logo based on a current trend that catches attention, this is not always a good decision. Logos that play into the current fads may benefit you in the short term, but will often lose their meaning as time goes on.
This usually means focusing on your brand’s core values and ideas, and how to convey them more efficiently and without unnecessary clutter. Your colours should also be kept simple and you may want to stay away from any big, complicated patterns.
One of the best examples of a timeless logo is Coca Cola, whose logo has remained practically unchanged since it was trademarked in 1893. In comparison, their competitor, Pepsi, has made over 10 changes to their logo in a similar timespan. Now which is more memorable to you?
4) Scalable or Responsive
Your logo should be versatile enough to adapt to any size. Whether it needs to be on a large poster or a tiny pen, your logo should be scalable to be able to represent your brand in any context.
It should therefore not include too many small details which would be lost when scaled to a smaller size. It also needs to remain legible when small, and look good and clear when large. A handy tip would be to create your logo in a vector format so as to not lose any image quality when scaling.
Another way to maintain “scalability” is to create a responsive logo. Responsive logos are logos that can change in size, complexity or even colour to accommodate any size they need to be. The best example of a responsive logo is Walt Disney, which you can recognise when it has a castle behind it or even if it is just the D from Disney in that iconic font. You can design your logo to be responsive by thinking of them as separate visual elements that would work together or on their own.
Still not sure how to design a good logo to represent your brand? De Mellows has the solution for you. Kindly email us at ask@demellows.com for a free consultation on branding and marketing.