Your company logo has served you well over time. It’s seen your company grow and develop, perhaps overseeing some truly remarkable landmarks in your firm’s evolution. But maybe it’s become a bit stale and now is the time for a fresh lick of paint, so to speak.
Before you dig out your crayons and get scribbling some new ideas, there are a number of essential points you should know ahead of redesigning your company logo…
Kickstart questions
Let’s take a step backwards and ask ‘do you even need to do anything to your logo’? Some of the most iconic and recognisable logos are several decades old and there’s the chance that you’ll do more harm than good by going through the rigmarole of a rebrand.
Writing for 99designs.co.uk, Marisa Belger believes you need to ask yourself some key questions like ‘what’s changed?’.
Has your business changed or expanded significantly in recent times? Or have your customers changed and you now need to connect to a new audience?
Is your current logo dated? Maybe new rivals have entered the industry and you need to realign yourself at the front of the pack?
If the answer to all those questions is no, then chances are that a new company logo isn’t worth the hassle.
Identify what you like and what you don’t like
Browse as many logos as you can – not necessarily famous ones – and try to pick out what you like about them and perhaps more importantly, which aspects you dislike.
During your commute or the next time you’re in a busy part of town, make the effort to look at all the company logos and jot down your favourite elements. You’ll soon have a kind of wishlist that you can then use as a reference point during the redesign process.
Speaking to Forbes.com, Ross Kimbarovsky, the founder of Crowdspring, a marketplace for crowdsourced design, warns that some styles that were deemed cool in 2017 such as stripes, letter stacking, and retro designs can become passé virtually overnight.
He adds that staying true to your brand is vital too: “Even if a trend has some aesthetic value, if it doesn’t support and reflect your brand, it will be a poor choice for your logo.”
Set a reasonable budget
So now you’re ready to spend some money but before you approach any agencies or freelance designers, decide how much you’re willing to spend on your new logo.
Going cheap is often a bad idea though, Kimbarovsky advises. He explains how purchasing pre-made logos from so-called online logo stores can save money, but will likely harm your business in the long run.
“Pre-made logos can’t properly reflect your brand and you’ll quickly notice thousands of other companies with nearly identical logos,” Kimbarovsky warns. “It’s a total waste of money that we strongly discourage.”
He adds that it’s not possible to get a great logo for less than several hundred pounds. That’s because a designer won’t feel incentivised to spend time creating a custom design unless they’re receiving a reasonable fee for their work.
Get the brief right
The better the brief, the better the end product will be in general. It’s just common sense. Whoever is designing your logo needs to have an accurate understanding of your company so be brutally honest with your brief. There’s no point trying to sell your organisation as young and hip when the target market is older with conservative values.
Appoint a project manager
Identify who is going to oversee the process and ensure it is heading in the right direction. This person needs to ‘own it’ and be in a position to make an informed and viable sign-off decision.
But even then one person’s opinion isn’t enough so make sure they are supported and are able to approach others for their view too.
Brits feel a sense of pride when showing off items from a brand they like – find out more on UK’s brand snobbery here.
Sources
“Time for a logo redesign? Why and how to do it right.” 99designs.
“5 Things You Absolutely Must To Do Before You Design Your Logo.” forbes.com. 15.6.18.
