When it comes to being recognized as a leader in your industry, increasing your visibility and communicating your brand position, visual identity is at the core of your brand strategy. The visual identity includes the company’s logo, color, typography and visual attributes that define who and what the company does.
Logo design is at the core of the visual identity
The goal for any logo design is that it identifies your business in a way that is easily recognizable and that leaves a lasting impression. Having your goals and ideas organized ahead of time will facilitate the smooth execution of this process, and clear communication about your needs will guarantee a logo that will accurately communicate your brand.
The first step in the process of creating a logo is understanding its purpose and what it is that your logo will accomplish.
- What adjectives should describe the logo? What aesthetic style do you want for your logo? Think about adjectives that describe your business, culture and industry (ex. clean, corporate, technical, playful, organic, classic, elegant, colorful, etc.)
- What specific concepts, ideas, or strategies do you have in mind for the logo? You likely already have something in mind for your logo, whether it is a specific idea or a general concept, which should be considered in the process of the design.
- What do you want your new logo to accomplish? What benefits would you like to see from this logo? It can be helpful to think about the emotional response that you hope to invoke. Who is your audience and what do they respond to? If this is a redesign, what do you want to do differently to achieve what your current logo cannot?
- Do I have an existing logo that needs refreshing? Sometimes all a logo needs is a fresh look. Could you benefit from a logo refresh or do you need a completely new design?
- Colors for your target audience? Do you have current or legacy brand color requirements? What colors would you like to see in your logo? Color can have a significant emotional impact, so choose colors that resonate well with your audience.
- Colors to avoid? Which colors would not be received well by your audience? Avoid colors that have a negative effect on your target audience.
- Timeline Requirements? Share your timeline, your launch date, or your marketing plans that will affect the timeline of your logo creation. Are you going through a rebrand? What date are you targeting for the change?
To learn more about Visual Identity look for part 3 of our ebook series on branding coming soon. In case you missed part 2 on Brand Personality, you can download it here.
