Did you know what makes the best logos THE BEST? Their ‘instantly recognizable’ nature. Yeah, and the truth is, the objective of designing an epic logo is to make your brand recognizable.
Finding it hard to design a logo that truly resonates with your brand’s objective? Maybe you didn’t know, but poorly designed logos not only destroy your brand image but also affect your current business.
Maximizing brand visibility is crucial to getting more work or making your brand thrive, and logo design plays a crucial role in it.
Mastering how to design a logo may seem daunting, but by following a structured approach and a clear step-by-step process, you can create a visually striking logo with ease.
Whether you have no prior design or incomplete design knowledge, after reading this blog, you will be capable of creating logos that have all the elements to captivate your target audience.
How to Design a Logo: Insider Secrets
With numerous brands emerging, it’s hard to create a brand identity that is capable enough to highlight brand values properly. It’s not the work of a single design element, several design elements work together to create a thriving brand identity.
Brand identity design includes elements such as business cards, billboard advertising, product packaging, online page visual designs, and even the right choices of fonts, all equally playing a crucial role in improving brand appearance.
Just think, how would you remember someone? When the name of any person strikes your mind, you are reminded of their appearance, RIGHT? That’s how a logo works.
The sole objective of logo designing is to create something that people remember when they think about your brand’s service or interaction with your brand’s product.
Here are some of the insider secrets that you can incorporate while designing a logo.
#1 Research First Before Getting Started
Before creating a logo, you should first research all the information regarding the brand and the services or products it offers. If you’re wondering how to design a logo, start with IN-DEPTH RESEARCH. Because without knowing about the brand, you can’t create a logo that specifically speaks to the brand’s value. If you are creating a logo for your client, you should first ask a few questions to know more about their objective, such as:
- What is their brand about?
- What makes it better than others?
- What are their expectations for their brand?
These questions will help you to create an imaginary picture of a logo that aligns with your client’s goal.
#2 Picture Your Idea on a Sketchpad
Before you start creating a logo on the screen, it’s important to try different logo ideas on a sketchpad. This will help you get an idea of how your logo looks. Most importantly, this way, you save a lot of time by avoiding repeated digital creation and edits.
If you are working for a client, you can share your sketchpad logos with them to showcase your idea. Once your rough idea is approved, you can move to digitizing your logo.
Nobody is perfect, especially at the starting stage, and that’s why you should first create a logo on a sketchpad to experiment with all your creativity or whatever you have in mind, This way, you can visualize your creativity effectively.
#3 Start with Black and White
Once you get a rough picture of the logo, it’s better to add only black and white color instead of incorporating multiple color palettes. If you’re learning how to design a logo, starting with a simple black-and-white version can save you time and effort.
WHY? Let’s say you add beautiful colors to the logo and send it to the client, and in case, they tell you to edit more.
This will make all the hard work go in vain, and you will feel disappointed because you have spent hours researching brand colors.
That’s why you should first shade your logo in only white and black until it is approved.
#4 Make Sure the Logo Design Aligns with Brand Values
That is something you should care about. If your logo is not relevant to the brand, it’s a MESS.
For example, an elegant logo design better aligns with a fashion or restaurant brand instead of a finance firm. What’s the point of designing a logo if it overly represents a brand instead of reflecting its true value and authenticity?
Okay, got it. I will give you another example of how to design a logo for a law firm.
Let’s say you get the task of designing a logo for a law firm. How would you ensure its relevancy to the firm’s core values? Now tell me, what will you choose – a panda design or some kind of balancing design element while designing a logo for a law firm? Obviously, a balancing design element, right? But why? Because a panda design looks irrelevant to a law firm, whereas a balancing design element seems much more relevant.
I hope you get my point.
#5 Design a Logo that leaves a lasting impression Effortlessly
The secret to designing a logo lies in the word ‘EFFORTLESSLY.’ It implies that the logo you created is capable of drawing attention and is easy to remember. But how would you create a logo that is easy to remember?
Simplicity is the only way to create a logo that stays in your customer’s mind for a long time. Overly complicated designs won’t be able to leave a mark, as they confuse your customer.
A simple and minimalistic logo is what people remember easily, and that’s your goal when designing a logo.
#6 Add a Touch of Uniqueness while Designing a Logo
That’s why the research stage is necessary before starting to design your logo.
While researching logo design, if you find logos with the same design patterns, it’s a great opportunity to add some uniqueness to make it more memorable.
Designing a logo a bit differently does not mean incorporating irrelevant design elements. It means representing a brand identity using trending and innovative ways.
For example, have you seen the FedEx logo closely?
FedEx is a big exporter across countries. If you have looked at its logo carefully, you will find a hidden arrow between ‘E’ and ‘X,’ which depicts speed and accuracy.
That’s what I’m saying – make a logo different without losing its relevancy.
#7 Imagine a Wider Picture of How the Logo Looks
If you’re getting started with how to design a logo, always visualize the big picture, like how it would look alongside a brand’s other design elements, such as a website, mugs, billboards, sticker banner design, posters, or a business card. While designing a logo, you must focus on creating a bespoke typeface. If you don’t know what it means, let me tell you.
A bespoke typeface refers to a custom-made font that is specifically created for a brand. I know what you’re thinking, “how does it benefit the brand,“ right?
The benefit of a custom-made font is that nobody can use it because you designed it. The second benefit is that it provides a unique look to your brand or your client’s brand.
#8 Logos Don’t have to Show What Companies Do
Not every logo needs to represent what the company does. It should be unique and memorable so that when people interact with a brand, they remember it later.
For example, have you seen any computer or phone icons in the Apple logo? In fact, it is completely the opposite. The reason is to create a logo that acts as a symbol that people remember for its high-quality services and products.
Even though the Nike logo does not represent any shoes, people still remember the company not because of its logo, but because of its quality and excellence. The logo only acts as a reminder, and makes people think, “Ohh, that’s the brand, I ‘m wearing”.
#9 A Symbol is Not a Necessary Element in a Logo
When learning how to design a logo, remember that it doesn’t always need to include symbols. Several big companies have word-based logos that use unique fonts rather than traditional symbols.
Take ‘Google’ as an example. It has no symbol, yet it remains an iconic brand. People recognize it not just because of its logo but because of the browsing service it provides.
Similarly, ‘Pirelli’, a company known for manufacturing tyres for bikes, motorcycles, and cars. Its logo consists of words, where the ‘P’ is sketched to cover the rest of the letters and creates a distinctive visual identity.
#10 A Logo Should be Fully Optimized
A logo isn’t just a symbol of identity, it’s a part of the brand ecosystem that plays a crucial in making the brand memorable. I always ensure that the logo is fully optimized.
Create logos in multiple formats such as PDF, SVG, AI, EPS, PNG, or even in GIF format.
Nowadays, animated logos are also trending. So, focus on including animated logos in your branding material, as you can use them in digital marketing.
Create specific guidelines for a brand, including text patterns, codes, spacing, colour palettes, etc. This way, you can optimize your logo for any format.
Wrapping Up
With over 6 years of experience in graphic designing and marketing, I’ve mastered the art of creating designs that not only look stunning but also effortlessly capture people’s attention. Based on my experience, I always suggest you create a strategy before delving into the art of creating a logo.
Above, I have already explained the 10 actionable tips on how to design a logo, which you can use as a checklist for logo creation. In case you need any help in designing visuals that appeal to a mass audience, feel free to contact us.
FAQs About How To Design A Logo
Q1. Is AI good for logo design?
Ans. Honestly speaking, as a graphic designer, I have experimented with many different AI image-generating tools like MidJouney, Dall-E, and Meta AI. Every time, these tools generate great designs, but the problem is that they are uncertain, unclear, or even not well-defined. Consequently, I ended up spending more hours editing those designs. It’s good to use AI to get a rough idea of the design and then customize it further to ensure it aligns with the brand.
Q2. What are the steps to design a logo?
Ans. Here are 10 steps to create stunning logos:
- Research first before getting started
- Picture your idea on a sketchpad
- Start with black and white
- Make sure the logo design aligns with brand values
- Design a logo that leaves a lasting impression effortlessly
- Add a touch of uniqueness while designing a logo
- Imagine a wider picture of how the logo looks
- Logos don’t have to show what companies do
- A symbol is not a necessary element in a logo
- A logo should be fully optimized
Q3. Which AI tool is best for logo design?
Ans. Several AI tools can be used to create stunning logos that can highlight your brand values and build authority. Here is a list of some:
- Canva
- Picsart
- LogoMakr
- Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe Express
- CoralDraw
- Figma
- Simplified
Q4. What are 7 types of logos?
Ans. The logo is a key identity element for any brand or company. Here are 7 types of logos you can explore:
- Abstract logo marks – Eg. Adidas, Pepsi
- Monogram or letter mark logos – Eg. IBM, HBO
- Pictorial marks – Eg. Apple logo, the Twitter bird
- Mascots logos – Eg. KFC’s Colonel, Planter’s Mr. Peanut
- The emblem-type logos – Eg. Starbucks, Harley-Davidson
- Wordmarks – Eg. Visa, Coca-Cola, and Google
- The combination marks logos – Eg. Burger King, Doritos
Q5. How can I make my own logo design?
Ans. To create your own logo design, you should first choose the style of logo you want. After that, you can use graphic design tools like Canva, Simplified, or Figma to create logos easily.
We hope this article will be helpful to you. Stay tuned for upcoming articles.
READ MORE: Top 5 Logo Maker Online Services for Creating Logos
If you like our article, please subscribe to BsyBee Design for the latest updates on design. If we forget anything, share your creative ideas in the comments section.
Follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube.
