On the most basic levels, everyone knows what a logo is, but do they really know what all goes into a logo? A logo is a graphic representation of a company, product, YOU! Almost anything you see has some kind of logo or lettermark, something that identifies it and makes it memorable. When it comes to an identity for yourself or a client, a well-crafted logo is key.

More often then not, I see some very BAD logos. With the pseudo popularity of clip-art and other microsoft derived products, companies have just let this important part of their identity slide. What’s worse is that a lot of places will hire someone to do a logo, get a jpg or eps of the file, but never own the file or have it on hand. As a designer who has had to recreate thousands of logos because of this, it’s an extreme pet peeve of mine.

Every company should own their logo, have files on hand and be able to hook you up with it on a moments notice. As a designer, if you create a logo, make sure that the client gets the full copy of the logo… even if they dont have the programs to open or edit it, they should have it… just tell them to make a folder, throw it in there and forget about it… when someone needs it, they’ll have it… boom, bang, zip… whats the problem with that?

Now, as far as a good logo… forget your swooshes and techy curves… please. Unless those things have something to do with the client, drop that technique, its been far too played out. Your logos are identities, they are what is going to make the customer remember you or your client. SO, lets take a look at the parts of a logo…

First you have the symbol/icon/logo itself. Often a graphic representation of you, your product, service or idea. The key to an effective symbol/icon/logo is its instant recognition. Think Apple, VW, or the Nike ‘Swoosh’. These are noticeable anywhere. Almost anyone can tell you the company name and what they do. You see them so much its almost second nature. These are incredibly effective symbols/icons/logos.

Secondly you have Logotype/Wordmark/Lettermark. These are still graphic, but they are specialized fonts or type without a specific symbol/icon/logo attached. These are good on their own because they are just the company name… stylized. Obviously the goal is to have the logotype/ wordmark/l ettermark just as recognizable as your logo or icon, but more importantly is to have it READABLE! Think CNN, FedEx, etc.

Third is you Combination Mark. Your combo marks combines (obviously) your icon/symbol/logo and your logotype/wordmark/lettermark into one graphic. These can be combined where the symbol and type are together in the graphic (like Starbucks or Domino’s Pizza) or apart with the icon and lettermarks separate (like AT&T).

Important things to remember (which nowadays ‘designers’ seem to forget) are that your logo, whether just an icon, lettermark or combo, needs to be
1. Legible
2. Memorable
3. Identifiable when reduced in size
4. Identifiable when gray-scaled

Today you see a lot of ‘logos’ that dont conform to these standards. And while said logos may look cool on paper or wherever else, if you cant reproduce it how can you market it? I tend to stay away from complicated, detail ridden fonts and graphics that also have too much detail… im not going create a graphic of a tree with no leaves… sorry, but thats not my deal… If im going to logo-out a tree, ill pull something out of it. Stylize the tree, focus on a specific area (still noticeable as a tree of course), or work the type into a ‘tree-esque’ shape… whatever, the point is I avoid creating logos that dont conform to those steps above.

Along with the requirements for an effective logo, you also have to take color into consideration. Most companies have a color scheme that you can work with, but others are just clueless and may attempt to use of-the-wall colors to make the logo more noticeable. While adding fluorescent pink to your logo may make it recognizable, if the color pink has nothing to do with your logo, your logo is now meaningless. Dont try to spice up a logo solely with color… thats cheating and its also bad reasoning. Unless you want to convey cheating and bad reasoning, stay away from quick fixes when it comes to recognition.

We will cover color in detail later, but for now, THINK when it comes to logo colors. Most corporate comapnies will use blues and blacks. More active, sporty, impulse companies use reds, outdoorsy types stick to greens and browns… use your knowledge of what a color means to aid with your logo design.

Another important thing to learn, regardless of if its a logo or any other project, is to separate yourself from the work. There will always be a little of you invested into everything you do. We are creators, we are artist, these things we do, we do because we love them and hence we tend to get too attached to them. Dont! Stay invested to a point, but realize that your logo design may not go over, might not be used, or might not convey what its supposed to because you put too much of yourself into it.

Now once you start doing incredible logos that everyone wants, once you become Paul Rand or some other famouse logo architect, feel free to do whatever the hell you want… because at that time, you know all you need too and you’ve been around the block a few thousand times!

Without designing your logos intelligently or with some thought, they are nothing more then just loose colors and shapes.