The logo is one of the most significant aspects of any brand. Intended to show the personality of a brand, this conveys the things that a given company does at the very first glance.
Logos should not be hard to figure out and it’s pointless to make it tough unless your target audience loves puzzles and the organization making them. The logo should tell the story of a brand in a clear and non-patronizing manner.
The art of logo design has several pitfalls. These pitfalls must be avoided by all while creating logos. With so many scrutinizing and sharing the work, the designers need to observe extra caution.
Here are some of the most common mistakes that are to be avoided to create a professional and successful logo.
Relying on Trends
Trends come and go often turning into clichés ultimately. Well-designed logos are timeless and this is possible to achieve by ignoring latest design tricks. The job of a logo designer is creating a unique identity and the best way to do that is by ignoring web design trends.
Using Raster Images
The standard practice while designing logos is using vector graphics software like Corel Draw or Adobe Illustrator. Vector graphics is made of mathematically precise points, ensuring visual consistency across different sizes. The alternative is using raster graphics software like Adobe Photoshop. Raster graphic consists of pixels.
Using raster image for logos is better to avoid since it can cause trouble. If you zoom in on raster graphic, it appears pixellated. Significance lies in ensuring that the logo looks same in all sizes.
The chief advantages of vector graphics while designing logo are
- Option to scale to any size without losing quality
- Editing logo later is made easier
- It is possible to adapt to other media easily
Ill-Advised Use of Typeface
Don’t get over excited while working with the fonts. Bad pairing not just looks silly but selecting one that is not appropriate for the brand looks fatal too.
While choosing a font think:
- Of the company you are designing for; the things they do, how formal you need to be and the primary message that is to be conveyed.
- Will the font work with the overall design?
- How to use negative space for gaining excellent result?
Another popular mistake while designing logo is using too many fonts. Stick to one or two fonts, to avoid being in a mess.
Copying Logo
While creating a logo, don’t copy other brands. Having a similar logo, especially copied of a competitor will devalue the design. The sole purpose of logos is to help you stand out of the crowd. Make sure to differentiate self from the rest.
Dependence on Colors
This is a very common mistake. Some designers rely upon it completely. Beginning work in black and white is the best. Opting for colors should be the last decision. The business owners need to display their logo in a single color at certain points of time.
The designers need to check out whether this will cast an impact on the identity of the logo. If you are using colors for distinguishing some elements in the design, the logo will look completely different in one tone.
Too Much Special Effect
Similar to overdoing colors, special effects can also confuse your design. Check out how the logo translates into gray-scale or other mediums. Too much special effects or colors are quite unlikely to help your logo stand out of the crowd.
Being Too Abstract
Even if you don’t want the logo to be so ordinary and bland making it easily forgettable, don’t make the logo too abstract confusing your audience and misrepresenting your organization. Strike a balance to grab attention for the right reasons.
Including Unnecessary Elements
Some symbols and elements like ‘Inc.’ or ‘Co.’ need not be included in the logo. A significant part of designing logo is simplification and reduction of superfluous elements within the design process. Inclusion of the unnecessary additional items is distracting.
While designing a logo, ask yourself, is it necessary? If you get the answer in negative, avoid including it. Simplify is the key to designing great logos.
Being Too Literal
Logos are not instructional drawings or diagrams. Great logos no doubt suggest a theme, but they need not illustrate it. Try hitting on the essence of the object or the organization.
Make things memorable, simple and creative.
Here are some of the most significant considerations while designing a logo.
- Know the audience
- Know the brand inside out
- Make it memorable
- Keep things as simple as possible
- Make it suitable for different mediums
The above-discussed tips on logo design will help to be a better logo designer. Remember that this list is just a starting point and should not hold you back. You can break the rules; there is no ‘right way’ when logo design comes under concern. Just make sure your targeted audience likes them.
