Everything You Need to Know About Logo Designs for Brand Growth

TL;DR: A well-crafted logo design builds trust, recognition, and a strong brand identity. Designing one takes careful planning, which is easily achievable when working with the right logo design service. This article lists all you need to know about logo design.

McDonald’s golden arches, Chanel’s interlocked Cs, and Nike’s check – these are just a few of the iconic logo designs that have stood the test of time. Furthermore, these are the perfect examples of logo designs that create strong first impressions, build brand identity, and have helped us remember and trust them.

Without a doubt, a brand’s logo design is a crucial part of its identity. It plays a huge role in branding – much more than you might initially think. Thus, it pays to ensure that you’ve got the basics covered first. Here’s everything you need to know about logo designs that can help your brand push towards growth, and how to get reliable logo design services to help you achieve strong branding.

The Power of a Logo

In business, the importance of logo design can’t be emphasized enough. Whether you’re a small business or an established brand, a good logo can offer the following benefits to a venture:

Identity

A logo establishes a brand’s identity. In the same vein, it also sets up clients’ first impression of the brand. This function is vital because it sets up people’s frame of mind towards the brand even before they use the product or service. Sadly, you won’t achieve this characteristic from DIY logo design tools or online templates. You need to work with a competent design-as-a-service platform to deliver custom logo designs.

Symbolism

A logo symbolizes what the brand stands for as well as their promise to their customers. Due to this function, you might notice that most businesses change their logo when they rebrand and update their goals.

Integration

A logo integrates the marketing efforts of a brand and provides a uniform look or element to all its assets and visuals. From stationery and stickers to actual products, a logo allows for an over-all cohesive look.

Logo Design Guidelines

You can have the best logo maker software, but it won’t do you any good if you don’t know the guidelines for creating a good logo. Here are some of the factors that go into professional logo design.

Unique Selling Proposition

There’s a reason why free logo design and download services don’t work – they’re too generic. A logo should reflect a brand’s unique selling proposition or USP. So, it’s critical to design a logo with the brand specifics in mind. This is something a specialized logo design service can help you with.

Logo Type

There are various types of logos, and each one works differently. Here are common logo types you might want to consider:

• Lettermarks. Also called monogram, this type uses the brand’s initials.
• Wordmarks. Called logotypes, this uses the brand’s name as a logo.
• Pictorial marks. This type is also called logo symbols. They’re images that represent the brand.
• Combination. As the name suggests, this offers a combination of a symbol with a wordmark, resulting in a logo that’s easy to recognize. 

Typography

Your choice of font should depend on the image your brand is trying to project. For example, serif fonts project a high-end and classic look. Sans serif fonts, on the other hand, look simple and sleek. Check out our portfolio and find inspiration as you brainstorm for your logo design or typography project.

Color

Color matters a lot in a logo. The logo color should be in line with the brand color palette. Likewise, you need to consider color psychology to make sure that the image reflects the meanings that you want to be associated with. Aside from the choice of hues, it’s also crucial to make sure that the logo looks well in black and white. Doing so will allow you to print monochrome logo versions on single-color documents and materials.

Competition

As much as you want a unique logo, it’s also crucial to look at the logo of your rivals. After all, you wouldn’t want to look out of place within your field. It’s a good practice to check out your competitors’ logos so that you won’t go too far beyond the visual expectations within your industry.

Best Logo Examples

Here are some of the best logo examples that do a great job of reflecting brand identity and improving brand recall.

Shell

This logo for the British-Dutch oil and gas company features lively hues of red and yellow. In color psychology, red is known to attract attention and is associated with strong emotions. Yellow, on the other hand, is a sign of optimism. Both colors combine to form a shape that aptly represents the brand. This bold color pairing provides high visibility in gas stations worldwide, reinforcing instant brand recognition even from a distance.

Levi’s

The logo of Levi’s is said to represent the shape of the curves on the pockets of a pair of denim jeans. The sans serif font looks modern, rugged, and fuss-free – much like their known apparel line. This clever design ties the logo directly to the product itself, making the brand identity inseparable from the jeans they’re famous for.

Apple

The function of Apple’s logo displays how a good logo encourages brand recall and marketing integration. Just seeing the back of people’s phones or laptops already reiterates the power of Apple’s strong branding. This is why you’ll find many design-as-a-service platforms advocate for simplicity. It allows scalability across devices and marketing materials, proving that minimalism can achieve universal recognition.

Mercedes Benz

The logo of Mercedes-Benz, a three-pointed star in the middle of a circle, has become a symbol for reliable transport. Though the brand also offers trucks and buses, the logo has also become synonymous with luxury in some countries. The geometric precision of the star shows engineering excellence, while the circle conveys unity and global reach.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola’s curvy script wordmark is a well-known symbol all over the world. Though some contest that the brand invented the present look of Santa Claus, their red brand color is surely iconic. The timeless script evokes nostalgia, and its consistent use across decades has cemented Coca-Cola as a cultural icon.

Google

A few years ago, Google changed its wordmark from serif to sans serif while retaining its multi-color palette. The font change made it look more modern and sleek. The playful colors reflect creativity and innovation, while the clean typography signals accessibility and ease of use.

Adidas

Anyone who sees a three-stripe symbol would think of Adidas in an instant – that’s how powerful the logo has become. The logo looks athletic but is still simple enough to appear on various types of products. The three stripes also convey overcoming challenges, aligning with the brand’s ethos of performance and achievement.

Playboy

According to Hugh Hefner, he chose a bunny as the symbol of the media and lifestyle company because of its sexual connotations. Despite this, the logo doesn’t seem too erotic to use in the company’s visual assets. Its whimsical yet sophisticated design makes it versatile, appearing equally well on magazine covers, merchandise, and branding assets.

Conclusion

Your logo is more than just a visual mark; it’s the foundation of your brand’s identity. The best logos are simple, memorable, and can stand the test of time. These are something you get with working with the right design-as-a-service platform, not from templates or DIY design tools. This is where Penji comes in.

Penji offers unlimited graphic design services, allowing you to request as many logo designs as you like for a fixed monthly fee. Click here to start your logo design journey today.

FAQs

• Why is a logo important for a business?

Your brand’s logo is what creates recognition, builds trust, and communicates your values to your target audience. 

• What makes a logo effective?

An effective logo is simple, memorable, and versatile. Of course, it also has to be relevant, work across different platforms, and stay timeless.

• What is Penji’s logo design process?

Once you subscribe to any of Penji’s plans, you get access to a dashboard where you’ll send your logo design request. You’ll get your first draft within 24 to 48 hours, after which, you can either download it or send it back for revisions.