Think of your favorite brand. What do you see in your mind’s eye? Is it their logo? Their color scheme? The vibe in their stores? How you feel when you visit?
While those are all instrumental pieces of their brand, if you wanted to spot that brand somewhere, you’re going to look for their logo. (Roadtrip food stop, anyone?)
Some of the world’s most recognizable businesses are famous for their logos and color schemes. Here are some well-known examples:
As an entrepreneur, branding is one of the first and most important tasks when starting a business, and the foundation of it is your logo. Your logo is your identity when you’re not there; and it serves a purpose as the visual connection to your business, because it should be on everything you do.
Recently, I’ve had a few clients who have wondered if having a logo is right for them and their small business. Every business is different, markets to different audiences, and has different goals; some offer services, some sell products, some do business in person, others market themselves online; so is it necessary that all businesses create a logo? Let's get into it...
What defines a logo?
In a traditional sense, a logo is a graphic and some words put together. A lot of people think a logo MUST incorporate an image or graphic, but the reality is that not everyone resonates with that. Wordmark logos do exist, and don't have any graphics included - think about Coca-Cola or the NYT. The words, how they're laid out, and the colors and the fonts they use combine to create the logo and create a visual identity for your business. This is very common with personal service-based businesses, like business coaches and photographers, where their name is their business name.
The reality is that a logo is a piece of artwork - whether it’s text-, picture-, or graphic-based, ultimately it serves the need of consistently representing your business in print and marketing.
When does it make sense to NOT have a logo for your business?
In my opinion, there really isn’t a situation where a business shouldn’t have some sort of a logo. If you are animately logo-adverse, at a very minimum, you should have some consistent elements that you leverage for branding. Using your name in a consistent font, size and color is three-quarters of the way there.
Consider this as an example: A business owner who is using word documents, invoices, etc, and in each document, our business owner just types their name at the top and applies some style to it based on their mood. They now have five documents that all have their name, but in different spots, different fonts, and different colors. How is the person on the other end supposed to easily associate those documents with the person who created them? It looks like it comes from five different places!
That name at the top is not (what I would consider) a logo, and they’re going to be creating a suite of experiences for their clients that are inconsistent - even if it’s not recognized at the conscious level.
If the same business owner created their collateral using the same font, color, size, and placement, that could be considered as using a logo. Extending that styling everywhere they can - invoices, website, social media, etc. - would help to solidify the brand in their clients' and prospects' minds.
The goal? As a business owner, you should consistently represent your business in a way that you are proud of, across every user experience.
If you are creating an inconsistent experience, that will create confusion. Don’t turn off a prospect because every time they interact with your business they aren’t seeing the same identity. In a saturated small business world, give yourself the chance to stand out. As your business grows and you gain more clients, you want your clients to know who you are; you want them to recognize your social media, your website, and your documents, and what better way to do that than by having everything branded and giving you your distinguished look?
Think it may be time to review your logo or branding? Let’s take a look at it together!
Photos of brands above from Google Images. Jemoy Creative neither implies ownership nor does the use of logos imply that the brands acknowledge, support, or recommend Jemoy Creative.
Don't Know Where to Start?
I've prepared a branding questionnaire to get your gears turning when it comes to figuring out the perfect brand - and it's the same one I use every time I start a new branding project with a client. This two page guide prompts you to think about some of the important elements of a logo, including color, style, and theme.
If you're looking for clarity and direction, this is the best place to start.
Comentarios