DAY 22

[Maiook]

Day 22: Logo evaluation

Your company logo is important. It reaches everyone who has any contact with you and is the first impression someone will have of your company. Because of its potential impact, your logo must offer a favorable impression of your business. Present yourself clearly and dynamically, and you'll look like a pro, even if your office is in your home's basement.

There are basically three kinds of logos. Font-based logos consist primarily of a type treatment. The logos of IBM, Microsoft and Sony, for instance, use type treatments with a twist that makes them distinctive. Then there are logos that literally illustrate what a company does, such as when a house-painting company uses an illustration of a brush in its logo. And finally, there are abstract graphic symbols-such as Nike's swoosh-that become linked to a company's brand.

Here are some basic rules for a great logo design:

1. Your logo should reflect your company in a unique and honest way. If your logo contains a symbol it should relate to your industry, your name, a defining characteristic of your company or a competitive advantage you offer.

2. Avoid too much detail. Simple logos are recognized faster than complex ones. Strong lines and letters show up better than thin ones, and clean, simple logos reduce and enlarge much better than complicated ones.

3. Your logo should work well in black and white (one-color printing). If it doesn't look good in black and white, it won't look good it any color.

4. Make sure your logo's scalable. It should be aesthetically pleasing in both small and large sizes, in a variety of mediums.

5. Your logo should be artistically balanced. The best way to explain this is that your logo should seem "balanced" to the eye--no one part should overpower the rest.

Read more about it here: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/76186
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/71902


What about color?
When designing a logo for your business, it's important to take into account the way people interpret color. It's the right time to ask, what kind of emotion do I want my brand to convey?

Every colour, including black and white, has implications for logo design. You need to pick your colours carefully to enhance specific elements of the logo and bring nuance to your message with the use of shade and tone.In general terms, bright and bold colours are attention-grabbing but can appear brash. Muted tones convey a more sophisticated image, but run the risk of being overlooked.

Check out these three articles and infographics on colors and their meanings:
http://www.creativebloq.com/logo-design/choose-colours-8133973

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-honigman/psychology-color-design-infographic_b_2516608.html

http://visual.ly/color-psychology-logo-design


Designing a logo doesn't sound simple, so please keep in mind that your logo can change and probably will over time. See this great article on how big brands changed their logos over time:
http://www.businessinsider.com/shocking-drastic-logo-changes-2013-4?op=1


Feel free to post any questions / concerns regarding your logo.

[Former_Member]

Okay, i will go first: I am in between logo's at the moment.

Initially i had an owl logo - picked to represent the fact that i do my jewelry at night given my full time rather demanding job.
The execution though seemed a bit cartoon-like and had no direct link o jewelry. So i changed it to a word logo and added colors to represent the fact that my jewelry is all about colors.

I am still not sure this is the right choice? What is better to reflect in the logo: the colors or the "night time hobby" story ?

You can see the original owls here https://www.etsy.com/transaction/208482376?
and the revised one on my banner today.
Any thoughts?

[Former_Member]

Olya - the one in the banner is an improvement over the owl. While the owl idea is cute, it's not really representative of your brand. I see a cute owl and I immediately think of children, not beautiful jewellery...

One advice I got to help me select a logo was to always look at your logo in black and white as well as colour. If it looks good and makes a statement in black and white, you are on the right track.

That being said - I think your banner needs a little more punch.. Yes, you have some colour in your logo, but it's muted and everything else is muted as well. Your jewellery, however, has a lot of strong colours and is very vibrant. Keep working on it - you are on the right track...

[Former_Member]

Any critiques on my new logo? Just got mine done last week... Simplified version in my avatar, and full design in my banner... I went with black and white so I can keep it consistent everywhere... I do change up the back rounds however. My business cards and thank you cards have my logo over some of my more popular prints and images from my shop. That way I can show off my work, yet keep my branding consistent with my logo

[Former_Member]

Olya
Seems you have already changed your banner as I don't see an owl. I like your banner design but would almost go with slightly brighter colors - maybe pull color ideas from your jewelry.

Tyson - i have a hard time reading your current banner. My eyes do not love the white on top of the very dark background.

So, mine has been as is for awhile now. I've been slowly using the beads on white to create pics to use for things in my shop (custom order, sales notice, etc). I know some folks don't love the font in the first part - but it does match my packaging, marketing etc too -
Always open to feedback.

[Former_Member]

I am happy with my logo, banner and avatar (just changed to the new one) for this shop. It's the same for my business cards, the band that is on the woven goods is basically the same design as the banner, the product stickers are exactly the same as the avatar. I have been using the same font with the spiral for some time, everybody (my customers and commitment team mates) recognizes the spiral and it looks good in black and white. It also looks good on the latest shop layout test.

The logo and banner in the soap shop are still a work in progress. I'm happy with the background and the font which is the same font of the soap labels. I am using a peace sign for the logo (looks good in black and white), but I'm not happy with the one I'm using right now, it's too thick when I use it in the larger size for the avatar so I am searching for large thinner one to use. I have a stamp that I use on most of my soaps for my makers mark that I am happy with so I ordered a new metal one in 10mm for a cleaner stamp of that one.

They are both pretty generic but I like the simplicity of both.

[Former_Member]

logo?

[BlackCrowCurios]

Although my black crow doesn't tie into my reclaimed wood, I think of the crow as a scavenger of objects, sometimes shiny, sometimes not and I took the name from my cottage which is 'Black Crow Cottage'.

My cards are identical to my avatar and my terrific banner was created by the lovely and talented Jo!

ps
Tyson I like your logo

Pamela I like the simplicity of your inkleing avatar

Dawn, I agree that for marketing purposes the avatar, banner and business cards should match

Olya, I like the rings as it reflects what you sell

Alex, your icon/avatar is perfect, reflecting without question what you create!

[TOMgirlApparel]

I am happy with my logo. I have a font based logo that is actually woven into my product. I went through a branding color change last year and I'm happy I did! My new colors, nude and dark grey, represent more traditional male colors but also happen to be the most popular undergarment color choice. So it works for my customer.

Here's a short video on branding:
http://m.entrepreneur.com/article/235539

I love seeing how big brands changed over time from Maja's post above. Reminds me that it is an evolution.

[AlasseArt]

I spent about three hours struggling with gimp and finally came up with something that I really liked. It is very simple (looks like it should have taken me three minutes)

I just created a digital version of my signature- a reverse R flat up against an F

Integrating it into my Etsy shop and social media is the next step, but I have to figure out how to do that first! Luckily I found a ton of you tube videos on gimp.

[swaddlemesnugly]

So today's a free day for me, I don't need to create new logos for my shops. I'm delighted with the new logo that Jo designed for this shop, it's simple, modern, and distinctive, hard to miss in a crowd :-) I ordered Moo cards and stickers with the green version on them. It's on my packaging as well. I think it would look as good in black and white but I prefer the green.

For my other shop I'm committed to that logo, a line drawing created by my daughter 2 years ago. It's distinctive and it personifies my target market - hip young women on-the-go who like simple accessories quality made. I use it on Moo cards and stickers, and on my packaging.

[Former_Member]

are we talking about avi = logo? I like my banner, it matches my business cards, and my avi ties in with my beadwork. I could possibly select a different section of my banner, but I like the cozy cabin...

[Former_Member]

Granny - doesn't snuggle have 2 g's? I look at your banner and avi/logo
and see "ugly" first. that doesn't represent your great shop and items at all!

Unless snugly doesn't convert from suggle the same way it does from snug. Hmm..

[Former_Member]

I just looked it up - you are right. red face, of course you researched this, silly me.

[TOMgirlApparel]

Avi does not = logo, but many people use their logo as their avi.

Maja gave a good explanation in OP of the different types of logos :)

[Maiook]

I'm happy with my logo. I think it fits well with my target market and also with my product. I use it in black on everything. I used dark taupe on my current banner because it tied better with the rest of the banner.

I'm toying with the idea of doing something with the dash / seams part of it. Something in the lines of what I have done in my banner.

I liked the article on big brands changing logos. It feels better knowing that I can change it if I want to.

[Former_Member]

I love my logo. It was designed for me by Jo when she created my banner and I have adopted it on all my necklace and earring cards, thank yous, and packaging.

My Avi is my logo with a product photo shot... I feel like it fits me and my shop.

[swaddlemesnugly]

Hmmm, Debra, you brought up an interesting perspective. I wish I could have used another word there, that wouldn't be subject to misinterpretation - it's too late to change it now, it's my shop name, domain name, the followers/customers I have gathered in the year since I opened the shop recognize it - I think I'm committed to it. I'm glad you like my shop, thank you.

[VintageRescueSquad]

I designed my logo back in about 2005ish. I'm a designer in real life, so it wasn't too difficult for me. I anted something that could be universally recognized with "rescue" and added the stars as a modern touch, and rotated it to signify a quirkiness.

I use it on EVERYTHING: stickers, address labels, correspondence/stationery, invoices, hangtags, etc. as well as digitally (Pinterest, FB, blog, etc.). I like that I can scale it big when necessary and don't need to include any other type along with it (explanatory text) unless I want to.

It's pretty well known among vintage peeps so it ain't changing anytime soon.

One thing I have considered, however, is changing the color of the cross/symbol. I've been thinking maybe a pretty green to signify "recycling" vintage items, or possibly a taupe, which is more of my color palette. Haven't come to a decision yet.

[VintageRescueSquad]

Tyson, I really REALLY like your logo/avatar/banner. It's a great design. Big fan of HUGE type.

[Former_Member]

Thanks Vintage Rescue Squad - Means a lot coming from a designer :-)

And I agree with your thoughts on changing the colour of your cross to green. I just read an article that talked about colour appeal amongst the sexes and green is one favoured by men & women, and your shop definitely would appeal to both sexes...

[Former_Member]

Black Crow - I can't believe after all this time, I haven't wandered through your shop. What a magical little place it is! I suddenly find myself NEEDING a fairy house terrarium :-)
And I love the banner / logo.

Tyson - I can see where the hard-to-read comment comes from - white block letters on a dark background almost always make me see fuzziness at first. But I really like it. It suits the overall feel and message that all your different stories convey.

Olya - I'm really mixed. Definitely agree current is better suited than the owl image (if you want to go owl, perhaps an actual photo worked into a background rather than a cutesy drawing). But the current one doesn't quite work for me either - it's overly simplified. If you're jewelry were either bare bones or outrageously busy, I'd like it because it would either complement or contrast. And while I like the aesthetics of the logo, it doesn't speak to me about your product. So by no means bad, but not yet in that sweet spot.

My logo is what's in my avi, but the simplified text. Gracie is a bit more flowy to represent my daughter's already girly style. Sam is "Schoolbell" font, which is evocative of his curious but slightly awkward nature. I then spruce it up for avi and banner throughout the year to give a bit of change and match seasons or new releases. I use this branding across everything. My shop banner/avi, the website, thank you notes, Moo Cards, little stickers that go on my shipping label, the mandatory manufacturing labels and a visible logo label at the tip of the shoulder strap. 11Main is a new online shopping venue and I like how they use a little logo bubble next to a listing's descriptions (vs Etsy's generic shop name text), and this logo stands out nicely there, too.

In short, I'm glad I like it because if I were to change it at this point, there'd be a whole lot of reprinting and uploading of new files :-)

[BlackCrowCurios]

Valerie ~ thanks for your kind words and for visiting BlackCrowCurios!

[TomboyPrettyJewelry]

I made an attempt at changing my banner and it is less than desirable - back to the drawing board. I am not strong enough in Lightroom or Photoshop to manipulate the picture to stretch to the required pixel size, 760x100. Any suggestions?

[TOMgirlApparel]

Kimberly, how about just a plain white background with your shop name in a nice font? I think simple is best. Yours right now is very hard to read and make out what it is on my desktop. On mobile, forget it, it's a blur.