Design a Logo Like a Pro in 3 Easy Steps
The design of your logo says a lot about your brand. Your logo is one of the first pieces of marketing to build trust in the viewer. The job of a logo is to make your brand more memorable, and easier to identify. It also communicates a lot about what your brand offers and stands for. In this article, we're going to be talking about all the different steps in designing a stunning logo.
1. Research
The first step in designing a great logo is to fully understand the brand and the industry. That goes for whether you are designing for your own business or a client. The deeper your understanding of the mission of the brand, the service and the industry - the better the logo design will be. So, take some time to review the visual identities of closest competitors. Consider what creative angles you can take to help the brand stand out in the industry landscape. What ethics mean the most to the brand? Can this be represented in the logo?
Careful research is a complete must for successful logo design. You'll also want to take a deeper dive into the target audience of the brand. Understanding who the logo is being designed to attract or intrigue is crucial.
2. Sketch
The next step in the process of designing a logo is to do some sketches. Experiment with different shapes to create a simple logo shape. There are many different kinds of logo you can design. Wordmark logos feature the brand name as the focus, think of the likes of FedEx or our own Design Cloud logo. Symbol logos include examples like Apple, Twitter and Nike.
Remember to keep the logo quite simple. It needs to work on both large scale and in smaller spaces, and be equally as recognisable in both settings. So play around with the design of a logo that can easily be recognised in both sizes.
Another key to logo design is to get the logo to work in black and white first. The logo should work regardless of the colour choices, so always save that step for after the initial design concept is completed. You can then look at colour theory and the brands guidelines to help you determine the best colours. For example, a more energetic brand might opt for a vivid orange whereas you might use a blue to reflect more calmness. You can learn more about colour theory in this Design Cloud blog.
Once you have sketched out a few rough ideas and decided on three concepts you like the best, then move on to the next step.
3. Design and Select
The next step is take those rough sketches and design them in neat. Once you have the digital versions ready, it's time to select the logo most suitable for the brand. As a general rule of thumb, we'd say three final designs is a good number to choose from. More than that reflects a lack of understanding in the brief, so it's good to aim for three strong options.
In this article, we’ve discussed three different crucial steps to designing a beautiful logo. These steps are tried and tested by our own in-house design team, and will help you to design better logos for clients or even for your own startup. If you’d like professional help with logo design, make sure to check out how our unlimited graphic design subscription plans can help here.
