Your brand is your unique identity – your thumbprint so to speak. No two fingerprints are the same just like no two brands should be alike. Branding is much more than a logo, of course. Your logo is the foundation for your brand. It appears on every sign, every piece of literature, your website, social media and every iteration of advertising. It’s even on your invoices. Your logo is crucial to your brand identity and your success.

The definition of a logo is a unique symbol or design used to identify a product or company. It becomes the face of the business and creates the persona of who a company is while establishing their intrinsic value and how they will be perceived. It’s easy to go online to find a template or clipart logo. But truthfully, clipart is not a logo. Would you wear someone else’s face? Of course not. Every face, every thumbprint and every logo is unique.

There are several best practices to keep in mind when creating a logo. Rules are made to be broken, of course; but here are 7 key elements that every logo should have:

1 – Simple. A logo needs to be scalable to any size and/or application. Always start in black and white. Complex shapes or details are not ideal from a production perspective. A simple logo is always more memorable.

2 – Unique. A unique logo is crucial. There are millions of logos, so it is not an easy task to design a logo that is like no other, but it is imperative.

3 – Relevant. A logo must be appropriate for the industry and the target market. If the industry is serious, the logo shouldn’t be fun or trendy.

4 – Memorable. Of course you want your logo to make a good first impression but it’s a memorable impression that makes the difference. You might think the two are the same. If the first three rules are followed a logo will be memorable.

5 – Versatile. If a logo follows the number one criteria of simple, it will be versatile. The usages for a logo are limitless, therefore simplicity allows for creating a version in reverse, horizontal, vertical, even special applications such as a profile or signature graphic.

6 – Timeless. A logo should also be relevant to the time period. In other words, current but not fashionable. That’s not to say rebranding will never be necessary. This ever-changing world changes faster all the time, so brands do need to evolve. However a trendy logo today will be outdated very quickly.

7 – Personality. Does a logo have personality? Every person and every business has a personality and culture. This should be reflected in a logo. Keep in mind, it is one small symbol and it can’t paint the entire picture. The remainder of the brand completes the persona.

David Airey, author of Logo Design Love says “A logo doesn’t need to say what a company does. Restaurant logos don’t need to show food, dentist logos don’t need to show teeth, furniture store logos don’t need to show furniture. Just because it’s relevant, doesn’t mean you can’t do better. The Mercedes logo isn’t a car. The Virgin Atlantic logo isn’t an airplane. The Apple logo isn’t a computer.”

Contact iQbranding for an iconic logo design today. 727.827.2323