We’ve all seen people wearing obvious wigs (or in Donald Trump’s case, having real hair that looks like a wig), but did you know that Sean Connery wore a hairpiece in every Bond film?

Surprising isn’t it?

Good logo design can be much the same as a good or bad wig. You are more likely to notice a badly created logo than one that works well. Professionally-created logos quietly get on with their job (a lot like Sean’s toupee), but that doesn’t mean they aren’t important…

Your logo is a key part of your corporate identity, which you use to build your brand. In other words, it helps to project the way you want to be perceived as a company. Therefore it’s important to get it right and that means presenting a professional and appropriate image to the world.

There are numerous websites offering to design your logo for very little outlay, but in each case the cost to you is greater than simply the amount you pay. You may be required to do a lot more of the work; you probably won’t get exactly what you want; there will be limited or no customer service; and you may end up with something substandard. When the market is so heavily price-driven, there is also the added incentive for the supplier to plagiarise other companies’ logos and break copyright rules.

With a professionally designed logo you are paying for far more than the little example on your business cards. You are paying for the process that got you there:

• the designer’s experience and skill
• the discussions to establish what you need
• the time for initial concepts to be created
• the rounds of amendments and discussions throughout the process

All of the above take time and skill and are charged accordingly. An automated site or a global auction which goes to the lowest bidder may appear to cost less, but using professional design services will give you a much better logo.

So what makes a good logo?

1. A Vector EPS file JPEG and PNG file formats are all very well, but when you enlarge them you start to see the dots (pixels) they are made of, as you do when you look at a newspaper with a magnifying glass. Vector EPS files work in a very different way — whatever size you enlarge them to, they stay pin sharp.
2. Simplicity A complicated logo will look messy or indistinct at smaller sizes.
3. Memorability Remember that this is the key part of your corporate identity, so simplicity will help here as well.
4. Durability Don’t let the design be influenced by a current trend, otherwise it will date very quickly.
5. Versatility It must work everywhere — whether it’s embroidered onto workwear, etched into glass, used tiny on-screen or huge on the wall of an office.
6. Relevance It needs to ‘represent’ your company. There is no universal approach — a logo for a children’s party company should look very different to one used by an investment bank. However, it does NOT need to say what you do — it can, but this can cause problems if your business expands in a different direction.

It can be very easy to dismiss a logo as inconsequential, but remember it’s a key part of your company’s identity. Your identity is how you position your company and try to influence your brand so it is worth doing right. This does not mean necessarily being clever or flash, it’s more important to be simple, versatile and appropriate.

After all it’s better to slip by unnoticed than to be noticed for all the wrong reasons, just like Sean Connery’s wig. 

This is a guest blog written by Mark Coster of Pixooma. For more info about Mark and his design services, visit www.pixooma.co.uk.