- Hey, folks.
I hope you're well.
Today, I want to talk about a few things
that will help you to develop
a much more effective logo.
Now, this video will be
useful for business owners
who want to hire a designer,
and also for any young designers out there
who are looking to improve on
their logo design process.
Let's get right in and
run through those tips.
My first tip for you is to make sure
that you spend enough time
researching the industry
that you're creating the logo for.
Study the competition in that industry.
What are they doing well?
Also, what are they doing not so well?
Are there opportunities in there
for you to stand above the competition?
Maybe everyone's using
the same typography,
or the same colour scheme.
You could buck that trend, and
go for something different.
If you are going to go
down that route, though,
you need to make sure that
the colours and typography
that you choose are suitable.
For example, blue is
probably not a great colour
to choose for someone
in the food industry.
You probably don't want to choose
that quirky typeface for anyone
who is in the financial industry.
By spending plenty of
time doing your research,
you'll get a better understanding
of where your logo needs to be placed
within that specific industry.
Without doing any research,
or with doing just minimal amounts,
you could find that you end up
creating a logo which just merges in
with everyone else's, or even worse,
that really doesn't suit
that industry at all,
and therefore, the logo
becomes completely ineffective.
I mentioned that you can
make your logo stand out
by the use of colour and typography.
There are many businesses out there
that don't use a symbol
as part of their logo.
There is no design law out there
that says you must have a symbol
as part of your logo design.
You can have a simple wordmark as well.
A symbol can really
help with memorability,
but you can also do the same
with great colour choice
and great typography.
The key here, though,
is to fully understand
the meaning of colour, and to understand
when a typeface is appropriate.
For example, colours
can have both negative
and positive aspects to them.
Take yellow, for example.
In Japan, it represents
bravery, wealth, and refinement,
whereas, in France, it
can represent weakness.
In China, it represents pornography.
You can see, not only do colours have
different meanings in different cultures.
You want to make doubly sure that
you choose the right colour
for the right culture,
and also the right industry.
When it comes to typography,
that can also have specific
moods and feelings.
There's less chance of any culture shock,
but for example, if you
were designing a logo
for a lawyer or a funeral director,
you really don't want to
choose a quirky typeface
for that specific set of industries.
It just wouldn't fit,
and it would give completely
the wrong impression of the business.
Take the time to learn
about colour and typography.
It will really help you
when it comes to creating
your logo designs,
and it could also stop you from having
an international incident.
The next tip is to spend time sketching
before you move into your design
software on your computer.
It can be very tempting to just open up
your design software and jump
straight into creating
that final logo design.
The problem is, you may have access
to an array of design tools,
but without a solidly thought
out and explored concept,
your logo is potentially
going to be very weak.
You should spend a good amount of time
exploring your concept designs.
Ideally, you want to sketch on paper,
or as I do, on a tablet,
something that lets your
mind quickly explore ideas
and iterations around a design.
You want it to be free-flowing.
You don't want to be thinking
too hard about those designs.
If you get too caught up
in refining and tweaking,
you're going to loose the
momentum of creativity.
By pushing forward quickly,
the bad ideas can quickly
be pushed to the side,
and you can develop and hone in
on the concepts which are probably
going to be the more successful.
Sketching allows freedom of expression,
and lets our imaginations run free.
Again, like jumping into your
computer design software,
don't be tempted to just
sit and work on one concept.
The whole point of sketching
is to explore every
possible avenue you can
based around the industry
you're designing the logo for.
What I find useful is creating a mind map,
selecting words which are related to
the industry that I'm trying
to design the logo for.
I can then pick and
choose, and combine words
which will then bring in
visual imagery into my head,
which I will then sketch
quickly onto the page,
and see where that takes me.
It can open up some really, really great
creative avenues for you.
I also know that it takes me
at least half an hour before
I really get into the flow of exploring
the more unusual concept designs.
The first half hour,
you'll be producing designs
which are derivative, and expected,
and what probably 99% of other companies
in that industry have.
What you want is to create
something unique for your client,
and to create something
unique takes time and effort.
Make sure you push through that
first half an hour barrier,
and give yourself the time to let
your imagination truly free up,
and see goals, and see options
that may not have been
there right at the start.
In combination with your earlier research,
sketching is one of the
most important parts
of the entire logo design process.
Now, the next thing is to
try and avoid design trends.
I know, I get tempted myself.
You see something, and it's pretty cool,
a lot of the big designers are using it,
but when it comes to logo design,
you really want to stay
away from design trends
because they come and go very quickly.
Sure, use a design trend in
your marketing or branding materials.
Those things have a short lifespan.
Your logo is going to be
around for a long time.
If you decide to create your logo
on the back of a current design trend,
guaranteed, in a year or two,
your logo is suddenly
going to look very dated.
Rather than ride the trend wave,
what you need to do is
try and design something
that can become iconic for the brand.
I say, "become iconic," because no logo
is iconic on the day that it is born.
It takes time,
and I'm talking years, to imbue that logo
with meaning, story, and emotion.
To help that journey, you want to create
a logo which is simple,
memorable, and versatile.
Think of some of the
major brands in the world.
When they created their logo at first,
it didn't mean anything to anyone.
The Nike swoosh, it
represents athleticism,
sportsmanship, high quality.
It's just a tick.
The Apple logo is a call to
many to think differently.
It represents craftsmanship
and cutting edge technology.
It's a symbol of an apple.
It took years of storytelling,
living their vision, and
delivering on their brand promises
to imbue these two simple shapes
with all of that meaning.
Strip that meaning away, though,
and you're still left with a versatile,
simple, and memorable logo design.
A good test to see if your logo
is simple, versatile, and memorable
is to ask someone to draw it from memory.
It's easy to do complicated.
It's hard to do simple.
My last tip is split into two,
and depends on which side
of the fence you're on,
the designer side or the client side.
If you're the designer, it's your task
to take control of the project.
The client has hired you because
you're the professional, and therefore,
you should take the lead.
Don't let them push you
down avenues and routes
that really aren't right for the brand.
In many instances, the client will try
and get you to create a design
which they personally like.
That's not the focus of the project.
The focus of the project
is to create a logo design
that works for the brand,
not for the client.
If the client questions your motives
and the route for the logo,
you should be able to back this up
by showing them all of the research
that you carried out at the
beginning of the project
to show them that the route you're taking
is the correct one for the brand at hand.
Now, if you're the client,
you've hired a professional designer
to create a great logo for you.
You need to let go of the reins somewhat,
and let the designer
get on with their job.
But how do you know if you
can trust that designer?
Well, before you hire someone,
ask them about their logo design process.
What are the stages that they go through?
How long do they spend on research?
How long do they spend on sketching?
Look at testimonials.
Even contact some of
their previous clients,
and speak to them one-on-one.
Find out the experience they had
of working with that designer.
If you're going to invest money
into creating a logo design which is
to last your business for years,
you want to make sure that
you're going to be working with a designer
that's going to produce the
best possible result for you.
In order for a designer to do that,
they should be carrying out
a certain amount of research,
and a lot of sketching.
Some designers will carry out
two to three weeks of research alone
into the client's industry before
they even put pencil to paper.
I'm one of those.
You'll also need to separate yourself
from your likes and dislikes.
You may not like orange.
You may not like triangles,
but if the research is showing that
your target audience are
attracted to those elements,
which means they will be
attracted to your brand,
which will turn them into customers,
you need to let go of some of the things
that you hold dear in order
to allow your brand to be successful.
It can be really tough to put
aside your likes and dislikes,
but you have to have trust
in the design process.
By putting in the effort
and understanding the
core elements of design,
you're going to end up with
a truly successful logo
that will last for years,
and more importantly,
become recognisable and
memorable to your audience.
Thanks for watching this video.
I hope you've learned from it.
If you have, give it a thumbs up.
Subscribe to the channel,
if you haven't already,
and when you have, make sure you click
on that little bell icon to get notified
whenever I release a new video.
Until I see you next time, folks,
stay creative.
