Having a logo that can actually transcends time is somewhat of an impossibility. While there are a number of logos that have a classic look and have been around for decades, it’s important to note that it’s tough to match the trends of tomorrow through prediction. Designing a logo using modern trends in design isn’t going to make it trendy for a new generation and will encourage at least some form of rebranding. Most logos usually remain modern for around a decade but some of the classic elements of the logo will make it through the rebranding effort to showcase your history. While no one logo design should be expected to carry you through 50 years of business, any logo should be able to get you through at least 10 years in the design industry.

Logos are art and some of the best art can transcend time. When we look back at classic painters we marvel at their talent and their skill. Looking back at classic logos there are many designers who would like to emulate the same style as well. Creating a logo that transcends time means creating something iconic and simple enough that it can be changed and rebranded multiple times into recognizable formats.

There is no way to predictably future proof a design but there are some patterns that you can follow to model the success of other logos that have had success over a long haul. It is however important to remember some of these top tips:

Very few design elements remain popular over time:

Design is consistently changing especially in logo design. A logo design that transcends time is increasingly difficult because of this factor. As programs in technology change different forms of design are drawn to the forefront of art. In the past designs had to be almost entirely hand-drawn and measured out on drafting tables, today we can bring in complex textures and computer graphics as well as utilize various scripts for scalability and customizability. As computer software continues to change we might see a trend pushing toward animated graphics custom 3d textures and more. For any promotions that include your logo and branding you should strongly remember that graphics on your packaging on your website and more should be placed in the background where as your logo and branding should always come to the forefront. This creates a consistency over time and ensures that you can include modern design elements alongside your classic logo.

Typography makes major changes as well:

While the base image or symbol that represents your logo may not change much over time, you can make drastic changes in typography to update your design. Popular type sets seem to materialize every 5 to 10 years and many of the top scripts used in logo design today are very different from that used in the 80s and 90s. If you want a modern brand you should consider regularly changing your typeset and small elements of your logo to reflect the design changes of the time. Creating a meaningful brand means creating a logo and brand that resonates with the current generation and typography can be a powerful tool for matching your logo up with the times.

Many logos don’t stand the test of time but are still functional:

Many of the oldest logos really haven’t been updated but it’s there classic look that helps them to instill trust in us. When we look at Coca-Cola and Nike for example we see that both of these companies have only done minimal changes to their logo and branding over time but it’s the background images and small design elements that have changed in order to modernize the brand. Some other classic logo designs having been so successful in this effort however:

Capitol one: Capitol one to get outdated logo and recently added a solution the year 2008. While One follow the rule of adding small design elements to keep their logo resonating with a new generation, it was too little too late and a little bit cliché as well. Capital one never really had an iconic brand that was future proof but a small design element like this one really doesn’t help the logo resonate any better with a new generation.  The capitol one Swoosh branding is a great example of how a brand can fail at creating a logo that transcends time.

Pepsi: Pepsi regularly spends money to redesign their can and their logo. While the ball symbol in red white and blue has represented Pepsi for many years, the most recent element of rebranding has almost destroyed what was a symbol capable of transcending time. The Pepsi logo is redone at least once a decade and the company changes it drastically every time. Rather than sticking with a product that works very well as an iconic logo, the company prefers a rapid and modern redesign to stay on trend and it doesn’t always work. This is not a logo that transcends time.

If you are trying to design a logo that transcends time remember that it’s an extremely difficult process. If you keep some of these top blunders and tips in mind however, you never far better chance at accomplishing this lofty goal.

Check out these classic logos for some inspiration on creating timeless logo designs. 

The post Can You Design a Logo That Transcends Time? appeared first on LogoMaven | Easy Logo Design Software & Logo Maker.

Business cards remain one of the most important tools for any serious business-minded individual in the world today. They are not just ideal for promoting brands and sharing contact details, they also play a crucial as far as image presentation is concerned. Every business owner desires to create a good first impression with their business cards hence it pays to have a stylish and uniquely design business card.

With everything moving so fast in the world of business and technology, various trends in the design as well as functionality of the business cards have now become very evident. People are trying to pass across more information with the cards and not just name and contact details alone. The designs are also no longer generic. Rarely will you find the rectangular shaped cards as businesses are adopting shapes relevant to their products and services. Presented here are a few of the unique trends in business cards today-:

Business Cars with QR Codes

The inclusion of QR codes in business makes them very effective in providing a lot more relevant information to the recipients. Such codes are printed on the cards, and they can be read using various Smart phone applications. This is a unique, and also an unusual trend since it brings together technology and the traditional business cards to offer more information to the holders of such cards. The other beauty of using such QR codes in business cards is that they provide a humongous marketing opportunity to the business owners.

Interactive Business Cards

The other unusual business card trend is the design and production of interactive business cards. These cards came into light in 2012 and their adoption seems to be on a very strong uptrend, three years later. This can be attributed to the awesome design capabilities that these business cards trend to present to business owners.

With the advancements in the printing industry, the looks of these cards are expected to improve owing to the possibility that they can be printed in 3D. Though these business cards don’t offers a lot of marketing opportunities to the businesses, their fascination is strong enough to attract attention and make people take keen note of the brand featured in the business card.

Fun Shaped Business Cards

Gone are the days when the only shapes you could find for a business card had to be the generic rectangular, wallet sized cards. Businesses are eager to explore other areas of creativity by using fun shaped cards to attract the attention of the recipients, besides illustrating using shapes their various kinds of products and services.

But even as businesses adopt the use of fun shaped business cards, it is imperative not to overdo it such that the recipient will get distracted from the important contact details because they are looking at the shape of the card. This beats the spirit and letter of giving out the card, even though it looks trendy and appealing to the eyes.

3D Business Card Designs

If you are in the creative industry and you want something that will wow your potential clients, besides displaying your design prowess, then you have every reason to know about 3D business card design. It is the desire of every business to have their clients look at their cards whenever they are in need of any service or product and call them immediately. 3D business cards are guaranteed to attract the attention of the potential clients from the many cards they have in their drawers and this will increase their likelihood of calling your business if you have these kinds of cards.

Cards made from unique materials

This is not really a unique trend in business card design, but rather an escalation of a trend that has been around for some time. People in various industries have used different materials to make their business cards, but what we are experiencing now is something completely unusual.

Due to the need to get the attention of the potential clients whom the cards are given to, some businesses are using unique materials in creating their business cards. Some of these materials include wood, silver, steel, x-ray etc. The beauty of using such unique materials is that they are also attractive leading to very fine looking business cards.

Simple but elegant business cards

People used to shun simplicity in design a few years ago, but surprisingly, it seem like designers are rushing against time back to simplistic designs. We are currently witnessing different types of business cards designed in simple but elegant manner.

These types of cards are ideal for corporate who still hold on to strong corporate practices or professions that does not have a lot of room for being casual. But it is good to point out that since the cards feature simple designs, they don’t offer a lot of distractions to the readers hence they are still very effective in branding and giving contact details to potential clients.

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Listen! Listen! Listen!

Listening is one of the most important elements of creating successful logo designs for your clients. In order to make sure that you can produce great work for a business it’s very important that you take the time to gather all of the information nd answers for some important questions to ask clients before logo design that you need to produce a successful logo design. Asking the right questions up front can save you countless hours of revision as well as make sure that your client gets a high converting logo that speaks directly to their target market.

Why did you create your business?

Asking a business owner why they are in business and how their organization formed can be a particularly important answer because it can help you to understand their vision and their corporate culture. Getting to the heart of what a business owner wants out of their business and why the company exists will help you to generate some quality logo ideas to help you build an image that will express why the company is in business from a visual perspective.

With your current resources what does your brand focus on?

If a business is just starting to expand it can be really difficult to create a focus for a particular brand. A good way to design a logo is to design it based off of the current specifications of a business. Organizations will often have a number of different goals for expansion but if a brand has an unfocused business direction it can lead to an extremely complicated logo that makes it difficult to showcase what the company does to fill a customer’s needs. Getting to the root of what a company owner wants their Brand to focus on can help you to identify various elements that you can focus on for the creation of the logo. To help a business owner to better communicate their needs for this question you could have them list down their top five goals and then rank each of the goals based off of the chance of achieving it with their current resources in the next year. By finding out the top goals of an utmost importance that are achievable you can focus in on the elements that will make up the current branding of the company.

What makes your company unique to your largest customers?

Large customers in any company have the option to turn to competitors in order to gain new advantages. Most companies will often have a number of large clients that keep them in business and help them to continue expanding. Thinking on the types of important strategic benefits that a company can actually provide for large clieat every designer should be asking their clients before even starting a designnts and their most loyal clients can help a company order to start understanding their target audiences and the various focal points and advantages that their service or company can offer to that target market. Answering how well an organization can meet the needs of its clients and with what resources will help you to define what makes a company unique. Understanding the unique selling point of a company can help you to add it into the branding.

Who is your target market?

Many early companies will often respond that everyone is their target market and that they are trying to target the widest possible net of people with their branding. The truth is that not everyone will love the logo that you come up with and although a company may want their branding to appeal to a wide audience it’s important that you focus in on some of the most loyal customers that the company has had thus far. By allowing the client to focus in on some of their most valuable customers and the demographics that they fall within its possible that you can start to understand the target market that you are preparing branding for. Overall, the logo and branding that you create should appeal to the target market mostly. A common rule in business that you may have heard is that 20% of a clients customers often contribute to 80% of their business. Marketing the branding to this 20% will ensure a steady stream of loyal clients through the branding that you create.

What is the big picture for your logo, branding & design?

Asking the client about some big picture concepts further logo can help you to gauge roughly the type of style that they are looking for. Think about the current business environment, their competitors, cultural trends, technology trends and new design solutions for a logo design. If you can consider all of these influences and bring them into a discussion about the big picture style for a logo or the places your client wants to use their logo you can start to picture your designs and how they will be effective for your client.

Keep these questions in mind and make sure that you avoid common logo design mistakes by reading through our Logo design mistake tips blog.

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