Have a Brainstorming Session
Your logo is going to be one of the defining visuals of your brand. Your brand goes beyond people simply knowing your company's name. Branding includes the feelings that are generated when consumers think about your business, your services or your goods. What kind of buzzwords do you want associated with your brand? Make a list of these adjectives so that you can have a clear idea of where your design is headed. Do you want to be considered reliable? High quality? Cutting edge? Traditional? All of these types of adjectives may mean different things to different people so narrow down the words even further. Specificity will take you far with logo design.
Incorporate Those Feelings
Incorporate Those Feelings
Once you have the list of the key target buzzwords you want associated with your brand, start thinking about how you can incorporate those feelings into a design. Do you have any seemingly conflicting words? For example, “strength” and “delicate” may be two words that you want associated with a deodorant product. How can you marry those two ideas? Design flourishes, colors, fonts, background and photos are all ways to incorporate different feelings.
Choose Your Colors
Choose Your Colors
You'll want to think carefully about which colors you choose. Colors speak powerfully and can make a great impact. Trying to incorporate too many colors can lead to confusion and clutter. Look at some of the most successful logos of major companies and see what kind of color schemes they have used. Oftentimes you will not see more than three colors that define a logo. Simple, clean and memorable are all essential ingredients when designing a logo.
Familiar Shapes
Familiar Shapes
Using familiar shapes with a twist to make it your own can be a powerful logo choice. Choosing shapes and images that are familiar yet not explicitly related to your business is an effective choice. For example, McDonald's logo isn't a hamburger. It is the letter “M,” but slightly tweaked so that it looks unique. Everyone associates the “Golden Arches” with the McDonald's brand. Now, clearly that is a multi-billion, worldwide business so it makes sense that their logo is known. But it also makes sense to follow the lead of such a known brand.