Even if you don’t own a fun new startup or a multi-million dollar company, a logo can work wonders for your career. It’s a great way to introduce yourself when people visit your website or to give employers a glimpse of your personality if you’re looking for a job.
The most important thing is to get a logo that’s true to your identity. I love my logo for that very reason. The paintbrush effect shows off my creative side, and the flourish on the letter J definitely adds a little spunk to it! It fits me perfectly.
Since everyone’s personality is different, the same logo that works for me isn’t going to work for you—which is actually a good thing, because it would be boring if everyone’s logos looked the same. It’s up to you to find the unique traits that make your logo truly your own. But that said, I’ve found that there are some qualities every logo needs.
#1: Audience Attraction
As a full-time marketing professional, I know that any marketer worth their salt will research a brand’s target audience to create effective digital and print campaigns—but it’s amazing how often this research gets overlooked during the logo design process.
It’s your job to relay everything you know about the target demographic to the logo designer. Once they know they’re marketing to professional women aged 24-30, for example, they can choose the design elements that will be most appealing to that demographic.
#2: Good Inspiration
If you’ve got a designer, it’s easy to turn them loose on a logo without a second thought. It’s easy—and it’s unfair. You may have given them written instructions, but designers are visual people. It’s helpful for them to have some other logos as inspiration, so they can visualize what you’re after.
I spent a ton of time looking for inspiration for my logo, and I found a few resources that got my creativity going. One was looking at other people in my industry to see what the competition was up to. Another great idea is to look at online logo collections by full-time logo designers, because they tend to know more about logo creation than a designer who creates a wide variety of marketing materials.
#3: Simple Design
Every logo makes a statement. But if the logo is needlessly complicated, that statement is, “I don’t know what I’m doing!” Complicated logos send mixed signals that can make people hesitant to work with you. And as the experts at Marketing Week recently revealed, complexity costs more than simplicity.
When you’re working on a design project, look at each part of the logo and ask, “Is this necessary?” Do you need four colors, or would two be plenty? Does that flourish in the typeface add value or make things harder to read? I’ve found that a lot of the design elements can be removed without damaging the logo—in fact, removing them will make it better.
Wondering what else makes a good logo? Here’s a rundown of the 7 traits that your logo will need to successfully market your brand:
1. Audience Appeal
2. Uniqueness
3. Timelessness
4. Innovation
5. Simplicity
6. Consistency
7. Adaptability
