Your First Front; The Logo
An underrated, yet possibly the most important, part of an organisation’s existence is the design of their logo.
From Apple Inc. to McDonald’s, the initial point of recognition for any brand or organisation is their logo.
As the first point of contact between your company and the customer, it plays an important role in building a strong relationship.
Even though it is the job of a graphic designer to produce the logo, the higher management must have a clear idea about what they want it to look like. The following basic rubric should always be kept in mind:
1. Do not bombard the logo with text
The logo itself is meant to remind viewers about the tagline or description. Most logos are glanced at and passed by, and no one is expecting to read more than a couple of words underneath a logo. Adding too many words eliminates the main purpose of the design, not allowing the audience to process what they saw and move on.
2. Be clear
Get straight to the point. Your logo design should either reflect the name of your firm or indicate what market you are part of. Unique and totally out-of-the-box ideas carry extremely high risks and are destined to fail on the majority of occasions.
3. Try to limit the use of colours
Even though designing a logo is an art, there is a method to the madness. Most successful companies have a palette of a maximum of three colours which are designated as the firm’s colour code. Various shades of those select colours may be used to add effects, but having a large number of colours in a logo will fail to register in the audience’s minds.
4. Keep it simple
It is a grave misconception that a more complicated logo will lead to a better design. If we take a look at the most recognisable logos around the world, the simplest ones are those recalled the quickest. Usually, the first letter in the name of the organisation is used as its logo.
5. Make your audience think
One of the keys to successfully designing a logo is creating something that activates critical thinking. If the mind keeps processing information for a longer time, we are able to retain and recall that information more quickly.
The ideal logo design integrates all of the above principles and produces a unique, attention-grabbing result.
Some designs will resonate better with certain target audiences than others, but smart design processes will include psychological research and an understanding of the impact that different colours and shapes have on the human mind.
Every few years, the logo design needs to be updated to stay in line with the times.
