There are lots of places to seek inspiration for your company logo. Even if you want to work with a graphic designer such as myself rather than Do It Yourself, you will want to think about your company values and the image you want to convey.
It’s therefore a great idea to look at some examples and select some concepts you like that you can show to your graphic designer.
You might be thinking: where do I look for inspiration for my logo?
Well, here are 10 great places to look for logo ideas.
Be aware though – don’t copy another logo. Besides breaching their trademark, part of your business success will depend on you establishing what makes you different to your competition, so make sure your logo is unique.
Your company
Is one of your products unique or iconic and easily representable in graphic form?
Your locality
Does a building you trade from have any interesting architectural quirks? Be careful if using these if you’re not likely to stay there long-term. Or if you’re a local company, are there locally recognisable landmarks that you could use?
Your heart
Do you already have a symbol, image, lettering etc that’s dear to your heart?
Logo inspiration websites
http://www.logoed.co.uk/ is a good example as it’s searchable, though there are many more.
Free logo design tools
Free logo template websites such as https://logojoy.com/ allow you to create mockups for yourself (and then buy one if you like it). Enter your business name, strapline and industry, and select 5 logos and symbols, and three colours.
Fonts
Check out the groovy fonts available on Google at https://fonts.google.com/ to see if something strikes a chord.
Google Images
Run a search on Google Images for “logos”.
Shutterstock
Run a vectors search for logos on Shutterstock for some more inspiration, including vector fonts.
Create a mood board
If your tech skills aren’t up to much, simply insert photos into a table in Word, or into a drawing application like Windows Paint. There are also mood board creation apps.
This doesn’t just have to be things you’ve seen for your logo, but everything that inspires you from a favourite teddy to sky diving. Being able to see all your ideas next to each other will help you choose the important or stand-out elements.
Doodle
Use a notebook or Windows Paint or other basic image editing software to doodle or combine and play around with elements you like.
What next?
If you’re happy with your design, and you’re a physical shop with little competition, there’s less harm in going ahead with DIY.
You can ask friends and family for their thoughts on your design. Remember though, unless they have marketing experience, they will be limited to saying whether they like it or not. And sometimes they won’t tell you the truth for fear of hurting your feelings. So it can be a good idea to get a graphic designer onboard for a second opinion.
If you have a lot of competition, are targeting other businesses, or are selling a luxury product, your logo needs to be really high quality. It needs to stand out, and be flawless, so in these cases it’s best to enlist the expert help of a graphic designer.
You may be on a tight budget, but it is wiser to spend your money on solid foundations than throw it at advertising which proves ineffectual because potential customers get put off by your business image.
Do remember that branding is a key form of marketing. It’s vital to your business, and vital that you get it right.
Alison Wainwright
www.dipitus.co.uk
