How to Design a Logo for Effective Brand Marketing

About Betty

I am a student working as a freelance blogger. I love to explore ideas related to marketing concepts, brand and psychology. When not on campus, I am on my laptop punching keys to get my writing gigs going.

How to Design a Logo for Effective Brand Marketing

If you’re ready to make an impression on the world with your brand, one of the very first elements that you need to have is a great logo. Your logo sets the tone for your brand as a whole, and is key to marketing and company growth.

You can think of your logo as the “profile picture” for your company. If you want your potential audience to save your brand in their memory, the logo has to be striking, memorable, on-message, and effective.

But that’s easier said than done. How can you make sure that your logo design will lead the way for the rest of your marketing?

 

Research Your Market — And Your Competition

When choosing to buy from a market in which they have little experience, most customers will go for the brand they recognize. They’re more likely to buy a brand name than the store brand, for instance, even if they have no personal experience with either brand. This just illustrates how valuable it is to develop a logo that is echoed throughout your marketing.

An important caveat to this, however, is that it’s vital to avoid logo design that looks too much like your competition. Look-alike logos are ineffective for overall success in marketing your brand; they confuse the audience and may end up costing you potential customers.

The takeaway here is to do thorough research both on the expectations of your audience when it comes to visual branding and on your competition. The balance is in designing a logo that appeals to your target demographic without looking too much like other brands in your market.

 

Design A Logo That Reflects Your Brand Personality

With the “do nots” clearly marked so you won’t too closely resemble other brands, it’s time to really define your brand so you can design a logo around it. The most effective logos are shaped around the personality behind a brand, rather than the other way around.

Think of your brand personality as an actual person. The style of clothing a person wears is a direct reflection of who they are, their identity. It’s the same with logo style: it should reflect the brand behind it.

So what sort of person would your brand be? Young and enthusiastic? Family-oriented? Edgy? Unique? Tech-savvy?

The style of logo you choose should reflect your answer to that big question, and that will help your logo lead the way for effective brand marketing.

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Know Your Tools

Speaking of tools, what if you’re designing a logo for your own brand, but you don’t have much design experience? There’s never been a better time to be an amateur designer — mostly because of the plethora of tools and software choices that are available.

Design tools range from software like Adobe Illustrator to open source programs like Inkscape or Gravit Designer. Alternatively, if you want to make it really easy on yourself, you can use crowdsourcing or marketplace options like Zillion Designs. The important thing is to remember that lack of marketing budget or lack of design experience shouldn’t get in the way of effective brand marketing.

 

Choose Colors That Stand Out

If you want to ensure that your brand marketing is being done effectively, don’t forget about the importance of color choice. Statistics indicate that color choice can increase brand recognition by up to 80% , which of course makes it a vital player in effective marketing!

As you choose your colors, make sure to balance current trends with what your competition is doing — remember, you don’t want anything that looks like a copycat.

A great tool to use for choosing your color palette for your brand is analyzing the psychology of color, especially in how it fits your target audience. Different groups of people tend to be drawn to different colors, so the demographic you’re aiming for will more likely be drawn to carefully chosen shades that differentiate your logo from the others in your market.

 

Keep It Adaptable

A final key to designing a logo that will be a workhorse for your brand is making sure that it’s adaptable. This requires a number of things:

  • ● Ensure that the final logo is a vector image, as a raster image will degrade in quality and clarity as it is shrunk down or expanded.
  • ● Double-check the colors that you use. Make sure they show up well against any background. If there is a potential for issues or blending in, try using a thick border around the edges of the logo.
  • ● Check to see how well your logo shows up in black and white, as well as in limited colors, such as a color pop print.
  • ● Keep logo variations on hand for use on different products and backgrounds. For instance, you may want a combination mark that uses both your graphic and your brand name, but it’s a good idea to have a separate file with stripped down versions of the logo, such as the graphic as a standalone. You may also want a variation for your website and a separate iteration for your mobile app, if applicable.

Whatever design you choose to use for your brand, it’s important to remember that a logo is only effective when it is used frequently — and smartly. Don’t hide your logo away, using it solely on your business cards. Make sure it’s incorporated on your website, on product packaging, and on all marketing materials.

 

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