6 Steps To Create An Iconic Logo

A logo is one of the most recognizable elements of a brand and generally has prominent placement on a variety of channels: social media, website, business cards, letterhead, merchandise packaging, etc. I like to think of a brand’s logo like a profile picture on social media or a dating app.

Anyone who’s used a dating app before knows that the profile picture plays a huge part in how you perceive that individual and what kind of impression you’re left with. Most people wouldn’t publish a subpar photo as their profile picture. Why should a brand’s logo be treated any differently?

Let’s take a small step back. Before you start designing your logo, you need to first understand and define your brand identity. Once you know what makes your brand unique, you can make informed design decisions. If you haven’t thought about your brand’s identity before you begin creating a logo, you’ll likely end up with a disjointed design that does little for your brand.

A great logo design allows you to communicate what your brand represents and what consumers can expect. It’s a window into your business. After you’ve defined and documented your brand identity, it’s time to determine the type of logo you need.

There are many different logo styles. From lettermarks and logotypes to logomarks and mascots, you’ll need to select what’s appropriate for your brand. Often, your brand needs a few different logos depending on the application.

Getting started is most often the hardest part, but it doesn’t have to be. Spend some time upfront conducting research on other brands’ logos. What speaks to you, what design elements do you like, what would you change about their logo, are there colors you’re drawn to, do you notice any common themes, etc.?

Whether you create your own logo, work with a freelance designer, or engage a creative agency, make sure you pay close attention to these six steps to ensure success.

DEFINE YOUR BRAND IDENTITY

Brand identity refers to the visible elements of a brand, such as color, design, and logo, that identify and distinguish it in consumers' minds (source). Before you start working on the visible, tangible elements of your brand, you must first consider some of its intangible elements.

By answering questions like “what makes you unique,” “what’s your value proposition,” and “what do you do better than your competitors,” you can start to define and document these aspects. Your brand identity is much like your personal identity.

Take some time at the beginning of the design process to really flesh out these questions, specifically, the answers. This will ensure your logo is not only a great graphic element but also one that helps tell your brand’s story. Diving a little deeper and thinking about why you started your business in the first place, or what words you would use to describe your business, will help solidify who you are as a brand.

Once you feel comfortable identifying these intangible aspects of your brand, you can begin working on the elements that will help bring it to life.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK

Everything is crystal clear in your head now about who you are as a brand, but you’ve hit a creative roadblock. A brain dump is a good place to start; just get everything down on paper. There are no bad ideas or stupid questions. You’ve got to start somewhere.

It’s incredibly important to assess your brand’s competitive landscape. Pay attention to other brands’ logos and specifically what you like or what speaks to you. As you discover what you like and what works for a particular audience, and what your competitors do, pay close attention to what you want to avoid. It’s important to note not only what you like, but also what you dislike, as it will help your creative decision-making process.

If you need more inspiration, consider making a mood board. A mood board is a visual presentation or collage that consists of images, text, and object samples arranged in a composition. It can be based on specific subject matter or on items chosen at random. A mood board can convey a general idea or feeling about a particular topic. It can be physical or digital, and can also be an effective presentation tool (source). If you’re still lacking inspiration, Pinterest and the opinions of your friends and family are also a great place to explore.

IDENTIFY YOUR STYLE

You’ve defined who you are, and you’ve researched your competition; now it’s time to define your unique brand style. Remember when you were defining some of the intangible elements of your brand identity, and you asked yourself those three questions that helped describe your brand?

Now’s the perfect time to put those answers to use and start defining your brand style; how you ultimately present your brand to the world. Colors, shapes, graphics, images, and typography are just a few of the design elements that comprise your brand style. Some of the main brand styles to consider include:

• Classic: a simple and timeless design aesthetic

• Retro: evoke past memories and feelings of nostalgia

• Modern: a simple and clean design taking advantage of whitespace with minimal details

• Quirky: a fun, positive, and friendly vibe that focuses on illustrations

• Handmade: artful, individualistic, and focused on quality

Regardless of your business size, it’s important to have defined brand guidelines to maintain brand style consistency as you continue to grow. Across all internal and external touchpoints, consistency is fundamental to how you look, act, speak, and represent your brand; brand guidelines help maintain it.

DETERMINE WHAT TYPE(S) OF LOGOS YOU NEED

You may not have even known there were different types of logos, but there are, and each has its own respective use. Understanding these logo options will help you select the best choice for your brand and story. You can use one of these variations or combine them to create a memorable and unique logo, just remember and pay attention to your brand style you identified in step three.

Lettermark: entirely made up of text, but instead of the company’s full name, initials are used as the logo. This is a great logo option for minimalism, but it’s not very good at communicating what your brand is about.

• Think CNN, IBM, UFC, HBO, and NASA

Logotype: similar to a lettermark, but the entire company name is utilized. This logo option is centered around great typography. Sometimes a graphic element can be included, but always in a supporting role — the name is the star.

• Think Coca-Cola, Google, FedEx, Facebook, and Kellogg’s

Logomark: what we generally think of first when we use the term logo. This option centers on an icon or graphic element and is easily recognizable as long as the logomark's icon connects with your brand.

• Think Nike, Apple, Target, Starbucks, and Mercedes

Combination Logo: a combination of lettermark or logotype and a logo mark. The brand name is placed next to or integrated with imagery for this logo option. Both elements are associated with the brand, allowing you to use them separately where appropriate.

• Think Spotify, Amazon, Chanel, AT&T, and Rolex

It’s not uncommon for a brand to have one logo option for letterhead or business cards and another logo for social media. As long as acceptable use and applications are documented in brand guidelines, you can ensure your logos are used consistently and appropriately.

PICK YOUR COLORS CAREFULLY

Color is a fundamental aspect of our everyday lives. How we interact with and perceive our world is largely based on the colors that surround us. Color subliminally influences our emotions and our state of mind. Your brand’s primary color palette will most likely rely heavily on the colors that you choose to include in your logo.

The color palette is an integral part of your brand identity, and more specifically, your logo. Your color palette will communicate a specific feeling to your audience. Different colors evoke different emotions and responses:

• Red: attracts the viewer’s attention, exciting and motivating them to take action

• Orange: suggests fun, optimism, and adventure

• Yellow: is very warm, playful, and happy, but can have the tendency to cause agitation, nervousness, and anxiety

• Green: promotes clarity of the mind and the balancing of our emotions

• Blue: the most universally preferred color used to express trust, reliability, and dependability

While it may seem trivial, choosing the wrong colors can have tragic, unintended consequences for your brand. If you’re having trouble finding inspiration, take a photograph of something of interest (think flowers, sunsets, landscapes, etc.). Then, sample the colors within the photograph and see what speaks to you.

DON’T FORGET ABOUT TYPOGRAPHY

Unless your logo is strictly a logomark, typography will play a significant role in your logo design process. All typographic elements, contrast, font choice, white space, font size, etc., allow your brand’s logo to have a unique personality.

Is your brand conservative and formal, or modern and casual? Does your messaging dictate and educate, or entertain and provide value? Something as seemingly innocuous as a font in your logo can impact your overall brand identity and expression. There are four basic types of fonts to keep in mind.

• Serif: In typography, a serif is a small line or stroke regularly attached to the end of a larger stroke in a letter or symbol within a particular font or family of fonts.

• Sans Serif: The opposite of a serif font, a sans serif typeface doesn’t include serifs.

• Display Font: A typeface that’s intended for use at large sizes for headings, rather than for extended passages of body text. Display typefaces will often have more eccentric and variable designs than the simple, relatively restrained typefaces generally used for body text.

• Script: Script typefaces are based upon the varied and often fluid stroke created by handwriting; they’re generally used for display or trade printing, rather than for extended body text.

Good typographic design ultimately allows for a better user experience. Make it pleasant by ensuring that all elements of your logo are well-organized, clear, and easy to navigate. Your brand’s typography can say a lot about your brand and help you stand out among your competitors.

Keeping these six steps in mind when you’re creating a logo will help to ensure success. A good logo is unique and memorable, versatile, timeless, and reflects your brand identity and personality. Throughout the entire creative process of designing your logo, don’t be afraid to stand out. Your brand should be unique; lead the pack, don’t follow.