A logo will always work best as the outcome of a clear brand strategy and as part of a wider visual identity. But we know that sometimes, particularly as a start-up, you just need something to get the ball rolling. Whilst a logo doesn’t have to show what you do literally, it should be packed with meaning and reflect the industry, services, demographic and values of a company so that consumers can speedily decide if it’s for them.
Simplicity is key! A bold and simple logo is more memorable and recognizable than something intricate and detailed. It always ensures your logo is flexible and will work across different media, formats and scales.
It’s important to keep your target audience and industry in mind. That’s not to say your logo should be restricted by the rules and norms of your competitors - sometimes you need to stand out - but it is important to build trust.
Creating a logo that stands out from the crowd is a challenge. If you can tell a story through your logo, great, but think of all the most iconic logos out there - Nike, Apple, McDonalds… it’s easy to recall their logo and describe it.
It’s easy to get caught up in the latest design trends or be influenced by something you’ve seen, but your logo needs to be a consistent thread and symbol as your brand grows. The visual language around it can be refreshed and evolve, but your logo should stand the test of time.
Your logo should work in black and white. That’s the ultimate test of its simplicity and versatility. Colour can be incredibly useful in terms of communicating a mood or emotion, but the symbol itself can’t rely on that. If only in terms of accessibility it’s important to create your logo in black and white first and only then, move on to colour.
A logo is a graphic mark, symbol or emblem that is used to aid in the visual identification and recognition of a company or product. A logo can adopt many different design styles and may or may not include the name of the company or product that it is representing, and alternatively, some brands may opt simply for their company name to be their brand logo.
A well considered and well designed logo can be the cornerstone of a brand, as it helps customers understand what a brand does and what their brand positioning is. Logos can create a strong visual association for a brand, and are as strong a part of their visual identity as their product packaging and website.
Trends in logo design come in their ebbs and flows, but in today’s mobile first age there are a few things that constitute, on paper at least, a well designed logo. A logo needs to be instantly recognisable and distinguishable from other brands in the company’s industry, and ideally should stand strongly on its own.
This usually means a simple design that works just as well in black and white as it does in colour. A simple design means that a logo will be just as recognisable tucked away in the corner of a phone screen as it will, emblazoned across a large billboard, this means that your logo will work just as well across print and web.
Every great relationship starts with a conversation. We’d love to talk with you about your next project and answer any questions you might have about Shopify. But be warned… once we get talking about this stuff, it’s hard to shut us up!