Now that you have gone through picking a branding partner, gone through “Insight and Discovery”, developed a brand name and culture, it is now time to create the logo and brand identity.
The logo is an important part of the brand, but in itself, it is not the brand. It is a place holder. Something that reminds people of what the brand is about and visually acts as a trigger to help people remember your story and your value.
A good logo gives hints about who you are and what you do. Through colour, shape, font and tag line, the logo lets people remember why they want to do business with you.
We suggest a couple of things when designing a logo.
Have a logo that can be represented in one colour, two colours and four colour process. You never know where it is going to be displayed and you want options.
Have both a vertical and horizontal version of the logo for the same reason.
Do not use overly thin fonts. The reason why not is that if you ever want to print on something small or embroider onto clothing, it will be nearly impossible to do with a thin font.
Simple designs are better than complex ones. A logo that is too busy can be distracting.
Have your designer develop, Jpeg, EPS vector and PDF versions of all logos for you to have in a library and if you do end up going with a custom or hard to find font, have them provide you with the font library as well.
A Brand book is critical for moving forward. It will give all future users of the logos a set of rules as to how the logo can be used and how it cannot. This can also include how business cards, letterhead, etc, need to be set up. This will lead to your brand remaining consistent, no matter what the medium.
Once the logo has been approved, then it is time to move on to having the other parts of your collateral designed. This could include office stationary, trade show booths, websites that are mobile friendly, promotional marketing, new corporate videos and signage to name but a few.
Next week. . . we will get ready for the brand launch!
