In an age where design templates are common, making your business stand out with a logo has never been more important. If you’ve been wondering how to make a perfect logo – you’re on the right track.

Branding helps your company stand out from the crowd and create a lasting impression. The logo is the first thing customers see, so it should be relatable to your brand. Of course, quality is a must.

What Is a Logo?

Before getting into what makes a perfect logo, it is important to define what a logo is and why it is used.

Put simply, a logo is an identifiable symbol or image associated with your brand that gives customers a lasting impression of your business. Ideally, customers should see your logo and think of you.

The phrase “a picture speaks a thousand words” is very true with logos.

Logos absolutely speak about your brand, just with a simple image rather than hundreds of words.

Types of Logos

Depending on who you ask, there are varying amounts of logo types. Some people say five, some people say nine, who knows, maybe it’s 23?

Our partner Wix published an excellent piece on the Wix Creative blog about types of logos. It can give you a well-rounded idea of the different logo types you could implement, which is helpful for relaying your request to the graphics team you hire.

The Nautilus graphics team have noted that there tends to be about six types of logos in the vast majority of cases.

• Wordmarks/ logotypes – The name of a company written in a distinguishable typeface.
• Letterforms – One letter logos of the brand name’s first letter (example – Netflix’s ‘N’)
• Lettermarks – Typography logos of the brand’s initials
• Symbols – A symbol that reflects the name or messaging of your brand. For instance, the Apple logo.
• Mascots – Friendly and engaging symbols of fictitious characters or animals. This may need tweaking for official dealings, but a mascot can be a strong boost for a brand.

All you need to know (for now) is the major principles of logo design. There are plenty of resources online if you wanted to get further information.

• Emblems – Badge logos, similar to crests. They combine text and symbolic imagery. Emblems are somewhat of a trend for newer businesses, owing to the space emblems leave for a strong slogan.

Having an idea of the type of logo you want is great and can be super helpful when talking to a team. If you have no idea where to start, usually a graphic designer can walk you through different options and help you decide.

Try not to overthink which type of logo you should go for. Make a measured, but fairly off-the-cuff decision and see it through.

Too many people get caught up on what type of logo their business should have. Most of the time, it’s unnecessary stress.

What Is the Logo Design Process?

The logo design process sees some differences depending on the company. Businesspeople can spend hours agonizing over logos and struggling to get past this stage because of so much conflicting information out there.

We keep it simple. Generally, our logo design process goes like this:

• Brief: We conduct a phone call/email conversation with you to get an idea of what you are looking for.
• Research: We research your company history, its competitors, and the company itself.
• Mocks: Our design team create some logo varaitions and different ideas which we present to you.
• Final Tweaks: Feedback is important. We’re okay with a couple of revisions if the first version is not quite what you’re looking for.
• Files: When everyone’s happy, we’ll send you the final image files, design files, and copyright.

And just like that you’ll have your new logo. If you wonder how much a logo design costs, you can look around and see if it matches your expectations and your budget.

You can also use a QR code generator to transform your logo into a QR code. This not only serves as a unique visual identifier but also offers a functional benefit, seamlessly connecting your audience to your website or online content with a simple scan.

What Are the Most Important Logo Design Principles?

So much can be written about logo design principles.

All you need to know (for now) is the major principles of logo design. There are plenty of resources online if you wanted to get further information.

1. Stick to Clear Fonts

The main things you should keep in mind are that your logo should contain clear fonts, so that they are easily read.

Only when your brand is stratosphere-levels of recognisability should you risk having cursive or stylistic fonts in your logo.

2. Two Colours Max

Your logo should have no more two colours, so that it is more simple and easily memorable to the customer.

No point in trying to break the wheel here, your customers need to get a clear, concise image of your brand.

3. Clear Symbols and Elements

If you want to express your logo in a symbol, make sure to keep it clear and memorable.

If you have a complicated symbol, it’s not going to stick in anyone’s mind. You want a striking image, something that’s easily memorable.

It’s not the easiest thing to come up with a small symbol or image that captures your entire brand. This is why a lot of brands opt to go for text-only logos.

Keep in mind that you can always change your logo over time (infrequently), so you’re not glued to one type of logo forever.

4. Get A Vector File Version

Your logo should be designed in a vector file, as vector files do not lose quality when you resize and stay in proportion.

Your logo should look good placed on a light background or dark, with you being able to invert the colours according to the background.

Who Should Make Your Logo?

You may be wondering who should make your business’ logo. We advise using a top-notch graphic designer, preferably one that has a wide portfolio of successful logo design examples for you to check out.

Fiverr and Upwork graphic designers are also an option, though you should consider that many of these will be new starters to the trade. It may cost you less, but high-quality work is less assured.

Before designing a logo, you should have a clear concept, understanding of your target market, and some examples from competitors/collaborators in the industry.

Kickstart Your Brand With a Stunning Logo

The logo will never be as important as your product, but it will certainly help. You shouldn’t prioritize a logo over the basics of your business.

Equally, you shouldn’t delay on sprucing your brand up with a stunning logo to give it a marketing kickstart.

Designing a logo that captures your brand can be done in one meeting. Why wait? Book a discovery call today.