Logo Principles

A successful logo should include one or more of the following positive attributes. Even large companies that have large resources can be significantly hampered with a poor or overcomplicated logo that simply does not work.

For this reason it is important that designers follow some basic design principles that have stood the test of time and have been successful for some of the world's most memorable logos.

Simplicity

First and foremost the goal of logo design is simplicity in design. A logo needs to work across many different mediums to be successful e.g. the web, in newspapers or on a small business card. If a logo is overly intricate, it may work on a flash website but be very hard to distinguish on a business card or in a small newspaper advertisement. As such less is generally more when it comes to the number of shapes, lines and colours included. Colour also needs to be kept relatively simple for most projects, as too many colours can often be difficult to translate on different backgrounds e.g. rainbow colours work on a white background but will not translate on an inverted dark background. All of these aspects need to be considered for a logo to be successful.

As you can see the IBM logo is a classically successful logo that is highly recognizable, very simple and works across different mediums and on different backgrounds.

The NBC logo is also a simple yet effective logo that has good impact and is as effective today as it was when it was first designed. Unfortunately this logo is not as effective on a black background. This can be a problem in the television industry where alternative sets and backgrounds are common place.

Balance

Equally important as simplicity is the balance of a logo. Balance in logo design means that the logo should have an even weight across the typography (wording) and symbol. There should not be an uneven feel about the design unless for an intended purpose. The logo should flow freely from symbol to text with a strong interconnection.

Impact

As our business name suggests we believe that an effective logo should have an Impact on your intended audience. By impact we mean a logo that is instantly memorable in your minds eye. The example above of “M Systems” is a good example of a simple yet memorable logo that "sticks". In this day and age of consumer bombardment in advertising across different mediums it is imperative that a strong and memorable brand is upmost in your designers mind.

Legibility

There is no point getting an intricate and complex arty design if your company name is not even legible. The whole point of business logos is to get your message out there boldly and consistently. An example of this kind of understatement is a trend by some large companies that spend millions on advertising only to be so subtle with their branding that the audience totally misses their target brand.

People are busy and inundated enough with advertising that if you don’t stand out from the crowd, you will get lost in the woods.

Credibility Based

Logos should be credibility based, as this is the foundation of any business especially when trading over the Internet. Credibility comes in many different forms depending on your industry. For example high tech companies want to be credible but also portray innovation and modernity so we would use a modern but credible design. On the other hand a financial institution or related business needs to communicate stability and reliability through strong and stable symbols and fonts.

Market Research has shown that customers definitely respond to strong and effective branding and make certain assumptions about your business based on your business logo before they have even experienced your product or service.

Consistent Branding

Once your logo is completed it needs to be applied consistently to all your Marketing Materials in order for the message to get across effectively. A business should always ensure that all communications no matter how big or small, even at the internal level always include the company logo.