A great logo design goes beyond the aesthetics and the obvious components that the eye can easily see. This is not to refute the importance of beauty in design, but other than being appealing to the eyes, a logo needs to serve its greater purpose which is passing the central marketing message to the target audience and help in the branding of the relevant products and services. You may have the most beautiful logo in the entire universe, but if it fails to achieve the branding and marketing goals of the business, then all the beauty and the elegance goes to the drain. To make a great logo, therefore, there are certain logo elements which must be considered in details to marry the physical appearance and the main logo message to make the logo more effective. Here are the four main essentials of logo design-:

The Color

The color of the logo should never be random, and this is one of the essentials of logo design. While considering the color, it is imperative to have in mind that it is one of the visual stimuli to which the brain is highly responsive. Both consciously and unconsciously, the brain will pick or apportion particular meaning to the color that it sees. It is thus important for graphic designers to harvest the power of color psychology to come up with coherence in logo designs which will make the brain pick or give the intended meaning when the target audience lays their eyes on the logo.

Since using different multiple layers of color will evoke different responses in logo, it pays for every designer to have a comprehensive understanding of when and how to use the various colors at their disposal. Most companies will use the responses evoked by colors to determine the color schemes for their designs depending on the particular they would like the target audience to associate with their products or services. Graphic designers, on the other hand, have a duty to have a good understanding of the color psychology so that they can always be in a position of authority to direct clients regarding color use besides using the right colors when designing logos.

Typeface

The typeface will never miss as one of the most crucial essentials of logo design. The choice of typeface can either make or break the layout of a logo design and it is only imperative that it be done very carefully. The fact that there are very many typefaces for designers to choose from sometimes makes it a bit of a challenge to make the right choice without spending a long time thinking. However, this can be shortened and made much simpler if you understand the following about typefaces-:

The moods to be created by the logo – typefaces have the ability to trigger various emotional responses from the target audience. Are you looking to create a serious, fresh, fun, casual or old fashioned feeling on the logo? The choice of the typeface should thus be made on the intended mood.

Number of typefaces used – just like with other elements of design, you need to limit the number of typefaces used as this can cause clutter and make the design lose its meaning.

Caution with new typefaces – there is a plethora of typefaces currently and whereas you may decide to be a bit creative, be careful with most of the new typefaces whose effectiveness have not been seen or are not very apparent.

Readability – whichever typeface you choose, it must be clearly legible so that people can read the message the logo has to pass without straining at all.

Shapes

Just like with colors, the human perceives shapes differently and will attach or derive various meanings depending on the shape displayed. It simply implies that the shape you use in your logo design will send out a particular message to those who will be seeing and interacting with the logo. This can happen both at the conscious and subconscious levels of the mind. For instance, the following shapes will convey various meanings as indicated below-:

Circles, ovals, and ellipses – shows positive emotional messages such as love, friendship, unity, relationship, etc.

Squares and triangles – suggests stability and balance. Triangles may also suggest law, science, power, religion, etc.

Vertical lines – suggests masculinity, aggression, and strength while horizontal lines signify calm, peace, tranquility, etc.

The Scale

The scale is another essential of logo design which must always be given due consideration. With entrenchment of the mobile generation, logo design must also be adapted to be displayed on the various mobile devices and this can only be done through proper scaling. Again, the scale is very important while considering the final and the specific application of the logo you are working on. Whether it is for print or display on the internet, the scale will always affect the final output, and this makes it one of the essentials of logo design that should never be ignored.

These essentials of logo design must be considered for each and every design if you are interested in having a beautiful logo which will also convey the right message to the target audience.

Learn why white space is good in design here!

The post The Four Main Essentials of a Logo Design appeared first on LogoMaven | Easy Logo Design Software & Logo Maker.

With the plethora of design tools and graphic design materials available, a lot of designers have found themselves lost deep in the mayhem of clutter. It happens when you attempt to create overly complicated designs that end up losing their purposes as branding tools.

Whereas it is important and encouraging to display your design prowess, you lose the initiative when your design fails to achieve its objective. But how can you, as the designer, cut the clutter and bring logo design back to the basics? Here is how:

Be thorough in your research

Before you sit down at your desk to implement a logo design, it is imperative that you do a thorough research to enable you gain useful insights regarding the logo you are just about to design. A lot of designers end up with complex and sophisticated logos simply because they bypassed the research stage hence they did not comprehend what was needed for that particular logo design.

Basic logo design requires that you gather as much information as possible about the industry you are designing a logo for, with great emphasis on the target audience and the competition likely to be faced. Your aim, therefore, as the logo designer is to come up with a simplistic yet effective design that will dwarf the competition and speak to the target audience in a language they understand. If you have a logo design principle in mind, then you will always avoid the clutter and have a ride downhill each time you are designing a logo.

Always be Original

Many designers in the present times have a higher propensity to lax in their creativity by imitating designs that are already in existence. This is driven by the need to make a quick back with total disregard for the industry’s ethical standards and the importance of giving unique designs to clients. It is guaranteed that you will always come up with a clutter design if you are unable to put your creative mind to use and come up with unique designs. Originality is a requirement for basic logo design, and you will never achieve it if you prefer to be a copy cat.

Careful Choice of Typefaces

Most logos that would have been great and appeared professional have been ruined by the wrong choice of fonts. Basic logo design requires that you be very vigilant with the fonts you choose to use in the design. Remember, the font chosen should act as a tone for the brand and reflect on the company’s vision.

With so many fonts to choose from, there may be a temptation to go for the most modern fonts or the breathtaking ones thinking that they will give the best results. However, whichever choice of fonts you go for, you must have two things in mind: the fonts must be simple and most of all, they must be legible. This is imperative in basic logo design because you desire people to see your logo, read it so as to understand the particular message you are trying to pass across.

Test the logo for effectiveness

For you to be successful in basic logo design, you have to test the logo for effectiveness before you can finally wrap up the process. Essentially, this implies that you should check if the logo will give satisfactory results when placed or viewed in different places. For instance, it should render well in printed materials such as the company’s letterheads the way it rendered in your computer screen.

Additionally, a good logo must be easy to print, scalable, distinct and memorable. Due to these attributes, therefore, the use of icons and symbols are highly encouraged for basic logo design as opposed to as opposed to using photographs that might lack in originality besides being blurred or pixilated.

Fads Will Come and Go, Avoid Trendy Looks

Basic logo design is based on solid principles and not graphic design trends that are here today and will be gone tomorrow. It simply implies that you should ground your logo design on the core principles and avoid the temptation to conform to the current trends. This is because trends come and go but principles will always remain.

As much as you want the logo to be fresh and appealing, remember that you wish to create a logo that will be effective and exude timeless elegance several years from today. Rather than trying to play the trend, therefore, stick to basic logo design that will remain appealing when the trends will be long gone.

Always work in Black and White Fast

Starting your design in black and white is another basic logo design concept that many people tend to miss. By starting your design in this manner, all you attention will be on the idea and not the aesthetics. You will have the clarity to bring all the important aspects of the design before you start splashing around colors.

Once you are content with the black and white design, you can then go ahead and add color to finalize the design. Mastering this basic logo design principle will save you from deviating and cluttering your design with things that will only end up hurting the effectiveness of your logo.

Check out where to use your logo after it is completed. 

The post Cut the Clutter: How to Bring a Logo Design Back to Basics appeared first on LogoMaven | Easy Logo Design Software & Logo Maker.