subject: Logo Design Tips [print this page] A logo is a imperative step to creating a business. It is the face of your business. And like your face expresses the tone of your business, indicates the service and displays the professionalism or lack there of.
People spend a lot of money on the creation of their logo and walk away with no artwork files. Then a couple months down the track when they need to put signage on their new building they cannot track the design studio down that formulated the original logo for them and so incur costs to have it recreated. This is needless and may cause difficulties when trying to recreate the logo exactly as created originally.
We have created some basic tips you for to think about when creating a logo. Hopefully these will help you from experiencing any future difficulties.
Tip 1 First things first - you need to decide if you would like your logo to have an accompanying icon. It is hinted that if your service or product name is not in your business name then perhaps an icon will help in getting a clear message across to your target audience.
An icon can add an extra element to your branding in that you could use the icon on its own on collateral where perhaps you are looking for a more illustrative finish without losing recognition.
A excellent example of this is the well-known and executed Nike logo.
Tip 2 Colour can be an crucial decision as it not only could change the output costs but can also hinder your output use. Consider the end result and what you will be assigning your branding onto in the future. Make sure your designer is aware of this as they should design accordingly.
Tip 3 Make certain you get a back up disk of your logo as a master file and make certain that it includes all the files required for the different printing formats.
Creative software updates frequently and some programmes become obsolete. Confirm you have a copy of your logo as a PDF - with the text converted to curves.
Tip 4 Using images in your logo is not very easy to arrange. For example it is difficult to reverse into black and white. Images also have limitations when it comes to size - they can only be reproduced to a certain size before they start pixilation.
Tip 5 Using gradients in your logo is not recommended. This too can have limitations when it comes to output for ie: gradients are hard to reproduce when embroidering fabrics.
Tip 6 Confirm sure the font is legible. Some logos need to be reproduced on small pieces of collateral ie: post stamps. It is important that in this case the text is legible.
Tip 7 Ensure that you acquire a copy of your logo in CMYK high resolution 300 dpi (for printing use) and RGB 72 dpi(for web use).
Tip 8 It is important to have a style guide of your logo. It will clearly show you how to use your logo so it looks exactly the same every time it is reproduced. This allows you to keep your corporate image consistent.
Tip 9 Make sure that you get a letter from the design studio declaring that you own the copyright to your logo.
If you follow these tips then not only will you collect a well-designed logo but you will also own the artwork. And when it comes to reproducing your collateral you will be doing it the most cost effective way.
