There’s no denying that the logo creates the first impression of your brand. It connects you with the outside world revealing your identity. Hence, it’s essential that you gather enough knowledge of the logo design principles and create the best logo of all times.
Needless to say, excellent logo design works amazingly well when there’s a blend of design skills, creative theory and skillful application.
The moment when you decide to create a new logo, or you want to revamp your old one, don’t forget to follow the golden rules of logo design.
If you are still wondering how to decide on a logo design, we are here to answer all your questions. You may also be left thinking would you go for a completely different logo or tweak the logo design you already have – here’s we present this article with all design principles explained for you.
Take a look below to know the 9 logo design principles every professional should know.
1. Brand Heritage Provides Competitive Advantage To Your Business
Heritage is the single characteristic that provides a sustainable competitive advantage to a brand. It can be rightly termed as the master brand builder. Heritage exhibits the history of a brand, its social class, its status and speaks of the inheritance. There’s no denying that people get attracted to brands that display a great heritage. A brand’s heritage is expressed through its logo in the form of a narrative. A logo reveals it in a crisp, meaningful, yet relevant way. Just think of it – how do we know brands like Gucci, Mercedes or Philips? We understand and identify them due to their heritage.
Hence, respecting the brand heritage is crucial while designing a logo. Whether you are creating a new logo or you want to convey to customers that you’re evolving, make sure you don’t deviate from your company philosophy or subtle nuances of the brand.
It’s essential to be mindful and not to take any wrong steps. For example, people were taken aback when suddenly the GAP’s original logo that had been serving the brand for more than 20 years was replaced with the new logo. Frankly speaking, GAP didn’t benefit from re-branding at all as people didn’t respond to this company’s action positively.
After much of buzz and negative reviews, GAP reverberated to its original design and naturally today possibly it is one of the fastest branding turnarounds of all times.
Image: Gap Logo
Image Source: https://www.canny-creative.com/10-rebranding-failures-how-much-they-cost/
2. Simplicity in Shapes & Symbolism Play A Vital Role To Make Company Name Popular
One of the vital elements of logo design is shapes and symbols. According to logo design principles, simplicity in shapes and symbols gives more emphasis on the logos. Every iconic brand is recognized by the shape of its logo. There’s no denying that a particular form becomes associated subconsciously with its brand. Several graphic experts are of the view that shape and color can transcend cultural and language barriers.
Therefore, it’s extremely essential for brands to identify which shapes suit your brand personality.
Whether angular sharpness of a triangle would complement your brand or a circle would be a perfect match. Find out which shape or symbol gives your brand the exact identity. Moreover, it’s imperative that you master the principles of grids and structure. Figure out the technical side of a design composition, which grid constructs the specific curves and angles that define the shape. But the bottom line is keeping it simple.
Take the example of legendary Nike, the company’s logo was crafted by Carolyn Davidson who was inspired by the Greek goddess Nike and conveyed her ethereal speed and movement through the swoosh emblem. Interestingly, in 1978 the Nike founder Philip Knight rebuilt the logo and added a bolder font and slightly shifted the swoosh. And since then this peculiar yet simple geometric shape soon became one of the most famous graphic symbols in the world.
Image: Nike Logo
Image Source: https://www.logaster.com/blog/25-famous-brands-logos/
3. Color Theory Proves Monotone Colors Are More Impactful
Strategic use of colors has a pivotal role in logo design. Hues give life and value to your logo. But too much use of colors makes it challenging for people to distinguish the actual elements of your logo.
Philosophy of logo design says that when we use only two colors instead of many, each color complements the other and enhance your logo. However, while choosing the colors, be mindful that the shades aren’t overpowering each other because this approach strains the eyes of the onlookers.
When we take a look at the successful brands, we see that many use a shade for font and the other for the twist. This approach gives the logo a unique look. The best example is of Adidas. The company logo is purely monochromatic as it makes great use of the stark contrast.
Although multiple uses of color are not prohibited, yet most of the graphic designers recommend to use only two colors- black and white. The pros opine that black and white allow the viewers to focus on the elemental composition of the design. Other colors like blue are associated with friendliness and hence, it gets importance in logos of social networking sites, e.g., Facebook , Twitter, etc. Red is an attractive color and when your business’s target customers are the young generation, you might consider using the color. Likewise, pink symbolizes tenderness and is used usually with anything related to women products.
4. Create A Timeless Logo With Modern Design Characteristics
You can’t create a logo every second year! Changing a logo frequently neither makes a positive impression on your target audience, nor it’s feasible for every kind of business owners. Such an approach often leaves your customers confused and directionless. Hence, it’s advisable to design a logo that emanates a modern feel yet have the element of timelessness in it. To create a memorable logo design conduct extensive research and find out which components in a logo don’t get outdated. It’s essential to use specific colors, typefaces, etc. that never go out of the trend.
Are you looking for an example of a timeless design? Look at the Bata logo- it’s an excellent example that has remained unchanged since 1938. Now and then it does a little tweak to keep the logo trendy and contemporary. Bata just added a little color into the mix but kept the basic shape same. Thus the company hasn’t lost any brand familiarity.
Image Bata Logo
Image Source: https://www.brandsoftheworld.com/logo/bata
5. Make Your Logos Adaptable And Versatile
You know that you are not creating your logo only for limited use. Your collaterals will have the logo image as well as the logo will appear on everything from a business card to a billboard. Your business will use the logo on surfaces that are as little as a stamp or a promotional product. So if the logo details are not visible on a smaller space, then logo design doesn’t serve the purpose.
A complicated logo design is not a treat to the eyes; it doesn’t convey any message clearly. Therefore it’s recommended to remove any undesirable elements from your logo, for example, extra colors, lines, typefaces, or additional elements.
As you know, modern electronic displays demand exceptionally high-resolution images, so you need to make your emblem a high pixel density.
The logo design practice says that if you want to remove any kind of limitations of raster graphics, it’s necessary to design a logo in a vector format. Vector graphics allow you to design a logo that is adaptable as these graphics can be stretched to any required size and there would be no loss in detail.
6. Your Logo Needs To Be Distinct To Top The Competition
The market might have similar businesses like yours, so to top the competition you need something great to attract your target audience. Here a thoughtfully designed logo does the wonder. Take a look at the game and carve a design that’s utterly unique in your niche. Don’t set for generic and bland designs. Emphasize visual communication. The thing is, if you want to stand out, you have to create something with a distinction, and a logo is an excellent way to do that.
7. Position Your Logo Appropriately To Convey Intended Message
Placement of the logo plays a significant role in branding. How and where you place the logo must be thoughtful. Maintain alignment and put it in a specific position that instantly grabs your audience’s attention.
For example, if your target audience is children, you need to use colors, typography and shapes that interest the children and place it such a way that is sure to impress them.
8. Use Original Typography – Vital Logo Design Principle
You know typography plays a huge role in any logo design. Hence, to make a truly memorable logo, it is imperative to use original typography. Focus on the fonts, don’t use standard fonts. Be creative and find interesting typography that makes your logo an eye candy.
You can even use custom-made fonts and be the owner of a beautiful and distinctive logo. This way, your logo will be memorable and stand out from the crowd. However, be sure not to sacrifice readability while you focus on creating a unique look.
9. Proportional and Well Balanced Logo Adds Weight to Your Brand
The essential logo design principles are of proportion and symmetry. Take a look at the Apple logo, see how it utilizes circles of proportionate values and focuses on symmetry. This well-balanced design creates a fabulous logo with aesthetic quality.
Scientists claim that when designing a logo- symmetry is more acceptable to a human eye because of every kind of shapes are present everywhere in nature. Apple logo is based on the golden ratio principle and this concept has been used in design since ancient times. Needless to say, the artists are inspired by shapes of nature for creating artworks.
Image Apple logo
Image Source: https://www.designmantic.com/how-to/how-to-design-a-perfect-logo
Your Turn
Designing an eye-catching, meaningful and memorable logo is definitely challenging. But when you understand the elements and principles of logo design, you can turn it out into a unique piece.
Whether you are looking for the best tools to create your logo, visit Logo Design Team who would guide you and help you
