What's in a Name?

Believe it or not, your company name has a lot to do with how you design your logo. Generic names tend to need more graphic elements in the logo design than companies whose names alone set them apart. Simple, short, memorable company names tend to have simple, short, memorable logos as well (and you’ll probably run into less trademark issues since you avoid graphics that might infringe on other company’s logos).

Here’s what to consider when naming your company if you want the logo to look great:

Make it Memorable
FedEx is a perfect case in point. The name is not one you’d easily forget, and the logo—with just text and no icon—is clean, memorable and recognizable from a mile away. This is a good company name that makes for a good company logo (and if you look closely, you can see an arrow between the 'e' and 'x'--a nice touch).

Stay Short & Simple
The IBM logo works because the owners avoided using the full company name: International Business Machines Corporation. How would that logo have looked? Either way too wide to look good on a billboard, or way too tall and jumbled to be easily legible.

And the famous I [heart] NY logo is timeless example of a good logotype. I can’t imagine the logo would have had as much success if it had read: I Love to Visit New York City.

They work because they’re short, simple and easy to remember.

Don’t be afraid of plain logotypes
Having a good business name means you don’t necessarily have to have an icon in your logo. Icons (such as the AT&T globe or the Cingular splat) can be good identifiers, but there’s nothing wrong with using a straight, simple type (known as a logotype) as a logo.

Choices. Give Me Lots of Choices.

Remember the old Wendy's commercial that showed a Soviet fashion show? The "model," a middle aged woman wore the same drab outfit each time she appeared on the cat walk. The only thing that changed was the accessory she carried. When she modeled the swimwear, she carried a beach ball. For evening wear, she carried a flashlight. The clothing never changed. The commercial brilliantly illustrated a point—we value choices.

How interested would you be in a television that showed only one channel (or a channel programmed with only one show, or a program with only one episode)? Would you buy a box of crayons that only came with the color green? Would you shop at a grocery store that offered only one product?

The same principle applies to your design projects. The best designers will offer you a variety of concepts when they present your next post card, brochure, or logo design, not just two or three executions of the same idea. Why is this important to you? Because the best design solution may not be the first design idea you see. The first solution you get back may be good, even good enough. But the next solution may be better. And the concept after that may be better still.

Most of us learn at an early age that there is one right answer. 2 + 3 is always five. Book is always spelled B-O-O-K. Oxygen is always the eighth element on the periodic table. Once we learn to think this way, we tend to only look for the right answer. When we find it, we stop, not realizing that there may be lots of right answers for our problem. The best creative people (and good designers are among them) never forget to keep looking for other "right" answers. So when you are working on your next design project, push your designer for more than one solution. Chances are the next idea will be even better.

Logo Design—7 Important Things to Consider

I've outlined seven of the "Critical Mistakes" that small business owners make when they need to create a logo. But, if you're a positive thinker, you may prefer seven things to keep in mind when you set out to design a new logo for your business:

1. Hire a designer or design firm to help you create your logo. Yes, I'm serious. Here's why.
2. Know your customer and design a logo for him or her, not you. More.
3. Know your competitors, and design something different. More.
4. Use colors to communicate your message. More.
5. Choose a font that helps tell your brand story. More.
6. Keep it simple. This one is tough, but very important if you want your logo to stand out. More.
7. Leave out the legal words (okay, maybe this one isn't quite positive, but it's still important. Learn why, here.

It's been said that design is too important to be left to designers. That doesn't mean you shouldn't use and trust a professional designer (see #1). It does mean that you should be very involved in the decisions you make about your logo (or any other design project you undertake).

Critical Mistake #7—Adding Taglines, LLC, Corp. or Inc.

Occasionally business owners will add legal terms like Inc., Corp. and LLC to their logos because they want to look official, or because they believe it’s required by law. It isn’t. And it doesn’t make a company look bigger or more official. It just makes the logo harder to read and remember.

Have you ever seen the following logos: Nike Inc., Dell Corp., or Target, LLC? That’s just not how customers think about businesses. Chances are, when you see logos that include terms like Inc., they belong to very small businesses.

Same goes for taglines. Your tagline is an important part of your marketing message. Use it in your yellow pages ad. Use it on hand-outs, flyers, and brochures. You can even print it above or below your logo. But don’t make it part of your official logo artwork.

Note: When I mention legal designations above, I am not talking about trademark symbols like TM and ®. These are not only appropriate for your logo, but will help you protect your intellectual property.

Critical Mistake #5—Using Any Old Font

Your logo (and every other design project you undertake) represents you and your business. And just like you, it should have a personality. The right font can do more to communicate your personality than any other element in your logo. So when you choose a font, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Be original (or at least not boring). Times New Roman and Ariel are great fonts for word processing, but they won’t do much to help you stand out. There are literally thousands of fonts to choose from ranging from impactful, block lettering to elegant scripts. Choose a font that conveys the values your business stands for.

2. Make sure the font you choose is readable on business cards as well as billboards. Some fonts are a little too fancy for their own good. If the type you choose is too difficult to read, your logo will disappear into the mass of thousands of un-noticed logos your customers ignore every day.

3. Don’t get too trendy. Avoid the temptation to be hip or you may find yourself with a dated logo a few years from now. (Unless of course your business is built on being hip, like say a night club, then a trendy font may be just what you need.)

4. Do some research. Before you meet with your designer, you may want to identify a few fonts you think will appeal to your customers. A simple Google search will turn up dozens of websites that sell and talk about fonts, like fonts.com and typographi.com. The more you know, the better your font decision will be.

Critical Mistake #4—Thinking Colors Don’t Matter

This is closely related to Mistake #2. Many business owners choose their favorite colors for their logo simply because they like them. Big mistake. Colors are an important way of communicating subtle messages to your customers. Each color has a unique meaning. And using colors wisely in your logo can make a difference. So what does each color mean? A quick Google search will turn up pages of definitions (like this one). Here are a few examples:

Red—Associated with power, assertiveness, vitality, and leadership. Often used by leading brands (Coke, McDonalds, Marriott, Marlboro, etc.)
Blue—The color of the sky and ocean, blues represent relaxation, tranquility and peace. It also represents stability and trustworthiness (see the Duct Tape Marketing logo). More people say blue is their favorite color than any other color (men prefer darker blues, women prefer light shades).
Green—Symbolizes nature, freshness and health.  Is it any wonder that British Petroleum uses green as one of its corporate colors?
Yellow—Represents cheerfulness, happiness, and light. It’s the first color the eye processes, but it can be difficult to make yellow standout among other colors.
White—Generally means purity, peace, and cleanliness. Think of Mr. Clean.
Black—Has many associations from luxury and elegance to evil and death. Black is often used by jewelers, car manufacturers, and other luxury brands to represent exclusivity and wealth.

Of course there are others—Orange, Purple, Violet, Brown, Gray, Tan—in millions of different variations—with other meanings.

Working with your designer (remember Mistake #1), choose colors that will help reinforce the ideas your business stands for and appeal to your customers.

One other note about using colors: Virtually all great brands have logos that work in a single color (or even black and white). Adding too many colors can make your logo messy and unattractive and can be expensive when it’s time to print letterhead, business cards, apparel, and more. Keep it simple.

Critical Mistake #1—Doing Your Logo Yourself

You probably didn’t build your office space (unless you’re a contractor). Chances are you can’t write your articles of incorporation (unless you’re an attorney). And, if you’re like most people, you hire professionals to deliver your packages, build your computer systems, and so on. Why should your logo be any different?

Many bad logos happen because a business owner tries to do it on their own. They need something fast, so they create it themselves or ask a friend to do it. And while they plan on doing it the right way eventually, they seldom get the chance.

An unprofessional logo can destroy trust among potential customers and keep customers from buying your products. And it takes very deep pockets for a business to survive a lack of customers. Do yourself a favor and hire a professional designer who can make recommendations about typography, fonts, colors, iconography, and more. In a future post, I’ll discuss what you should look for when you hire a designer. For now, seriously consider hiring a professional.