|
|
| www.1001TopWords.com |
|
|
Types of Logos
There are three basic types of logos: text, symbol, and combination logos. The type of logo that will work best for your company depends on a number of considerations, such as the size of your company, the uniqueness of your name, and a variety of other factors. Text logo A text logo (also sometimes called a logotype or word mark) is a logo largely made up of the text of the company's name. This type of logo can have some graphic elements ? lines, boxes, borders ? that interact with, surround, or even form the letters. However, the graphic elements should be used as an accent to the text, not as a major or equally-weighted part of the logo. A text logo works well when: ? You have a multi-word business name. If your business name is made up of many words, that are not commonly or easily abbreviated, or when an abbreviation may not be appropriate developing a text logo will keep the logo design as simple and clean as possible. ? You're working with an innovative, unique business name, as with Yahoo or Google. In each case, the business name is enough to make the logo memorable. ? You're designing a logo for a large company that offers many types of products, services, or a combination of both, that may be hard to define or "wrap up" in a single picture or symbol. ? You're designing a logo "for the long haul" ? there is less concern about your company "outgrowing" a text logo ? they are timeless and classic. ? Trademark protection is highly important ? as long as your business name is unique, then a text logo will also be unique. A text logo may not be the right choice if: ? Your business name is not unique; this can mean difficulty for building your brand recognition. Then, without a symbol, the logo will be more difficult to remember or to associate with your business. ? Your business name does not describe what you do, it can be hard to tell what products or services you offer when just a text logo is used. Taglines or other graphic elements will need to be employed to tell your audience more about your business. Symbol logo A symbol logo is the opposite extreme in design from a text logo. This type of logo includes neither words nor letters ? only symbols, images and shapes. A symbol logo works well when: ? Your company already has a high level of brand recognition. If who you are and what you do are already widely known, then you can use a symbol logo as an elegant and clean solution. ? You have been using a combination logo for some time and have now built up enough brand recognition for your symbol to stand alone. This is a common transition for a logo design to take when your company grows. ? You have a unique symbol in your industry ? you wouldn't want to be confused with or mistaken for anyone else in your industry! ? You have the time and energy to trademark your logo, and then to police and enforce that trademark. This is how you ensure that your logo continues to be uniquely yours. ? You have a global presence and can develop a universal, graphic symbol that speaks to you and audiences. Additionally, a symbol can have meanings on many levels, and can also have different meanings in different cultures A text logo may not be the right choice if: ? You are a company just starting out, you must have the budget and desire to educate your audience on your new symbol logo. This can be a difficult task. Combination logo A logo that in some manner combines both a symbol and the company name. The symbol and text can be integrated together, side by side, or with one located above the other. Combination logos are the most common type of logo for several reasons: ? A combination logo offers the best of both worlds. This type of logo offers a memorable logo graphic that tells the story of who you are, what you do, and what makes you different, all in conjunction with your business name for easy identification. ? A combination logo is an excellent choice for a small- or medium-sized company or a company just starting out, to begin to build brand recognition, because a combination logo is both visually strong and explanatory. The symbol can speak to the services that the company offers, while the company name increases the company recognition. ? Combination logos are easier to copyright and protect than a symbol-only logo, because the logo symbol will always be used in conjunction with the business name. This automatically makes the logo unique. You can use this guide to determine the best type of logo to design or to have designed for your company, based on the size of your business, how well-known you are, your business name, and your business plans, among other factors. Choosing the right type of logo design is the first step in building your company's visibility, credibility, and memorability. About the Author Erin Ferree, Founder and Lead Designer of elf design, is a brand identity and graphic design expert. She has been helping small businesses grow with bold, clean and effective logo and marketing material designs for over a decade. elf design offers the comprehensive graphic and web design services of a large agency, with the one-on-one, personalized attention of an independent design specialist. Erin works closely in partnership with her clients to create designs that are visible, credible and memorable ? and that tell their unique business stories in a clear and consistent way. For more information about elf design, please visit: Logo design at http://www.elf-design.com
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Measuring Return On Investment ...or Is My Brand Working? Branding Advertising Agency Branding used to be a fancy business word, but it is becoming more and more used in everyday business meetings. Finally! For decades, big corporations have used in-house, very well paid brand managers - someone in charge of managing everything that relates to the brand, including design, package and partnerships. You've heard enthusiastic talks about branding, but you are still not sure if you should get a brand management plan going for your business. Branding Yourself To Increased Profitability Successful Realtors know the importance of branding their identities into the consciousness of the communities in which they live, like the big boys; Pepsi, McDonald's, Burger King, and other companies we know and have come to trust. Blonds Have More Fun! In the book, The Blond Knight of Germany, American authors Toliver and Constable detail the life of the greatest fighter pilot to ever fly, Germany's Erich Hartmann. During WWII, Hartmann recorded 352 confirmed in-flight victories. To put it into perspective, very few American fighter pilots reached 100 in-flight victories. Simply put, Erich Hartmann reached levels of greatness most fighter pilots can only dream about. New Uniforms Could be the Gold Charm for the Golden Arches New designer uniforms could be the gold charm McDonald's needs to connect their new hip marketing campaign to their fast-food restaurants. This possible gold charm for the fast-food chain has the ability to let the actual fast-food restaurants reflect the image they are portraying in their advertisement campaign. The new "I'm lovin' it" marketing campaign has attracted a youthful audience to the fast-food chain. However, when this trendy younger crowd comes to McDonald's, they do not see the same fashionable place that they saw in the commercial. Instead, they see the same thing that they would see at just about any fast-food restaurant. McDonald's hopes to further entice this target market into their restaurants by updating their restaurants with new employee uniforms. Brand Value Plan - Brand Identity Guru Developing brand value is critical to every organization and when professionally executed, delivers a clear and measurable competitive advantage to your firm. It does so by helping you establish a positive connection and value-relationship with your customer, which, over time, will build brand equity and increase brand value. Your Identity Speaks Loudly...What Are You Saying? Your corporate identity is a graphic expression of who you are as an organization. It plays a major role in what sells your company and its products. Everything that identifies your business, including your logo, color scheme, and tagline, work together to create an image that your customers remember. Building a corporate identity that bolsters your business objectives is a subtle, yet important part of achieving business success. Effective Public Relations Essential for Personal Branding Move over pop star "Posh Spice" Adams and English soccer hero David Beckham, the personal branding power of newly engaged Australian celebrity sports couple Lleyton Hewitt and Rebecca Cartwright could be worth up to $100 million dollars. Revealing the Roots: The Process of Building Brand How is branding different than marketing? The Brand Called You The best brands always try to do the right thing, so that their reputations will remain unsullied. But beyond that they grow, evolve and get better with time, while maintaining their special qualities from the past.We all have a personal brand with social, cultural, intellectual, and personal needs that may not necessarily be addressed in our daily work. Address these needs and you begin to improve your brand. Here is my agenda for building your brand.Join and participate in community and professional organizations Generate media coverage about your brand Stay in touch, or renew old ties with friends, family and business associates Let's examine how each one improves your brand.Join and participate in professional and community organizationsThe best brands grow, evolve and get better with time, while maintaining their special qualities from the past.Professional and community organizations provide ample opportunity to learn and grow.They provide professional development opportunities. They allow you to network with peers as well as with people you would not necessarily ever meet in the normal course of your workday.For instance, I am a member and served on the board of our local International Association of Business Communicators chapter. This allowed me to broaden my contacts in the corporate communications world, as well as form a number of friendships I probably never would have developed. I'm also a member of the North Carolina Citizens For Business and Industry. Here I meet people from all walks of life and all work disciplines. Finally, I am involved with Charlotte Reads, a local non-profit that focuses on literacy issues. This allows me to use my communication experience in support of an issue I feel very strongly about.But it's not enough to just join groups: you must participate to benefit fully. As a participant you have the opportunity to stretch, to gain confidence in yourself. Learn to lead by involvement on the board or in a special project.If you are a communicator by trade, try being treasurer for the group to exercise the other side of your brain, or take on a special project about which you feel strongly.Generate media coverage about your brandAll that professional and community involvement will certainly lead to opportunities to leverage that involvement into news about the brand called you. And, of course, there will be promotions, new assignments, and awards at work, too. More opportunities to make headlines.Your achievements are of interest to local print, broadcast, and online media, particularly the business pages. In Charlotte, the Observer has a weekly feature called On The Move spotlighting someone in a new position. The Charlotte Business Journal has a similar feature called Moving Up. If it is a big enough move and your company won't do it, pay the estimated $150 to place it on BusinessWire or PR Newswire. Consider it an investment in your future. Don't forget trade publications serving your industry and alumni publications.Seek out speaking engagements and write guest articles, too. This is yet another way to publicize your brand. And don't forget to do news releases when you make a speech or write an article. It's all about merchandising.To stay top of mind, you might even want to develop your own monthly e-newsletter like Think, the Hoover ink publication. Keep it mostly informational and limit the commercial material.Stay in touch, or renew old ties with friends, family and business associatesEveryone you know can be a brand ambassador for you, so stay in touch or reach out to those you haven't talked with for a while.Yet another reason for having a monthly newsletter that shares your expertise.The network of contacts you have built over your lifetime will be instrumental if you decide to start your own business, or change jobs.So, heed this word of advice: always deal fairly with people. One bad experience with your brand can negate 10 positive ones.Now, get out there and start branding. Fast Forwarding Your Business If you think only big corporate names need to think about things like brand names, think again. Your brand says a lot about you and your business, and that's as true for a one person home-based operation as it is for a multinational conglomerate. In this article we look at how creating a strong brand for your business can help you set yourself apart from the pack and lay the right foundation for the future growth of your business. Logo-ize For Instant Identification & Increased Awareness The task of creating an indelible impact on the memory of your target market is arduous but can be made much easier with a well thought out logo. The word comes from the ancient Greek where it was used in philosophy and theology to mean "the divine reason implicit in the cosmos, ordering it and giving it form and meaning." The function of a logo in today's business world is much the same ? to make the visual identification of your company implicit by giving it form and meaning. Corporate Branding ? Dont Forget Your CDs! Companies have been branding their collateral materials such as letterhead, envelopes, business cards, etc. for years. In fact, we often identify a company by its familiar logo or special color scheme. Branding works!! At the same time, many companies send customers and vendors large files, proposals and presentations on CD-Rs. Since CD-Rs have become the "new and more efficient" way of exchanging important information, it would seem that more companies would find it valuable to brand their CD-Rs also. Getting Started in the Mail Order Business. How Much Does It Cost? INTRODUCTION Brand Positioning - Brand Image That cross-trainer you're wearing -- one look at the distinctive swoosh on the side tells everyone who's got you branded. That coffee travel mug you're carrying -- ah, you're a Starbucks woman! Your T-shirt with the distinctive Champion "C" on the sleeve, the blue jeans with the prominent Levi's rivets, the watch with the hey-this-certifies-I-made-it icon on the face, your fountain pen with the maker's symbol crafted into the end ... A Lesson in Branding from Paris Hilton I have never been a fan of Paris Hilton. Strategic Moves In The Branding Gamble! The so called 'globalisation' has cluttered the world markets with so many products and services that nearly 90% of the marketing managers in competing companies do pretty much the same to sustain in the market. There is not much difference in the way P&G operates as compared to how Unilever gets its products to the market. Coke and Pepsi's operations nearly reflect each other and all that these two compete is on 'who spends more on advertising this year'! If one disagrees with this argument by saying "we provide better quality products/services", then don't forget that this is precisely where your competitors put their efforts as well. Southwest Airlines, the revolutionary domestic American low-cost no-frill airline, most of the time does exactly what its competitors do. Well, the only difference is that Southwest Airlines serves meals in the airport during waits and not on the plane. This in no way means that Southwest Airlines is performing better than its competitors. If you are doing well what you are supposed to be doing, then that is not differentiation but a prerequisite for competing. Also, doing the same things in a better way is a deserving effort but not a strategy, especially in the long run. If all the competitors in the industry tend to converge into an equable level, of prices/costs, quality, technological sophistication, service quality etc, how, then are you supposed to compete? In this scenario, what most management consultants will advise you is either to offer you clients with more than what your competition offers, for a higher price, for the same price, for a lower price or offer them less value for a lower price. But remember that all these options can give you a short-term edge, but will usually not sustain as you competitors will soon follow the bandwagon! Quick Tactics To Brand Your Business And Make More Sales This may come as a surprise... to you, but Branding is more than just Logo and Business or Product Name recognition. How Important it is to have a Professional Logo Design for your Business? There are a lot of things that contribute towards the success of a business. Having a good quality product doesn't necessarily assure the success of a business. To build a long term impression on your customers, it is vital that you have a proper marketing strategy and something unique about your company. Here comes in the importance for having a custom logo design. The Trust Issue In Marketing One of the prime motivating factors in the purchase decision making process is "trust". A consumer will at some point for however long or short of a time, ask the question, "Can I trust this company/person/product?"
|
| © Athifea Distribution LLC - 2013 |