Make Your Logo Work for You!

Make Your Logo Work For You—Not Against You!
Top Five Key Ingredients to an Effective Business Logo

First impressions have the ability to quickly make or break a deal. If you dress in “Sunday best” for a first meeting with an important business client, doesn’t it make sense for your logo to always put your best foot forward? A professional logo is the most visible way for current or prospective customers to recognize you, know what you do, and how well you do it. Here are five key concepts to incorporate into a quality, successful logo that reaches your ideal client.

1. Is your business having a visual identity crisis?
Your business should have a clearly defined identity with one logo and style that appears on your business cards, stationery, brochures, newsletters—indeed, all your marketing materials. Consistency sends the message that your business is stable, dependable and credible. Your logo needs to visibly represent a business that is professional, successful, and at the top of its field.

2. Is your logo unique to your business?
 
Just as your business is special and unique, your business’s “picture” needs to say “unique” as well. When we work with our clients to create a logo identity we spend a great deal of time getting to know our client’s business’s past, present and future so that the professionally designed logo will ensure a meaningful identity mark that is memorable and captures the essence of their business. Be sure that the true essence and unique personality of your business is captured in your logo.

3. Is your logo breaking the bank?
 
Printing business cards, stationery and other promotional materials can be a major expense. Using color, as beautiful as it is, can be challenging price-wise; the more colors in the design, the more it can cost to produce. Color can be used effectively even in small amounts. How many colors are in your logo?

4. Is your logo too complicated?
 
A simple mark is easier to remember than one that is extremely intricate—two good examples are Target® and Nike®. Your logo must be “scalable” and look just as good in a small image on an ink pen as it does on a 10-foot tall billboard. Make sure that your logo also works in black-and-white to allow for maximum flexibility in printing choices.

5. Does your logo have a photographic image in it? 
Stay away from photographic images in your identity mark. “Non-vector art” is difficult to reproduce and re-size, and will often appear fuzzy. And always make sure your logo retains its integrity and legibility when photocopied or faxed; test it on the nearest black-and-white copy machine.

Is your logo working for you—or against you? Take an eye-2-eye look at your logo; is it a worn out t-shirt or your Sunday best? Your logo is a key part of your business identity and ultimately your business's success, communicating an image of your business. Is it the best one? Use these tips to assess your logo and ensure that your logo puts your business’s best foot forward—and moving towards success!