As a business, your logo is everywhere. From your website to your social media and all your printed promotions, it’s the first thing your audience will see.

Today, your logo is the most important quarter-inch of your business. With this in mind, you need to be sure that you’re hitting the right chord from the get-go.

Read this guide on how to create stunning personal logos that will stick with your customers.

Align your Logo With Your Brand Identity

Your logo must represent the personality of your service or product. It needs to give your customers or clients a glimpse into what they can expect from you.

You wouldn’t want customers to confuse your bakery for an accounting firm, would you?

So, make sure that your logo tells your customers the niche in which you operate. Create a logo that tells a story about your brand.

The Best Personal Logos Start With a Creative Brief

A creative brief will help you stay on track with your brand identity. You wouldn’t start a company without a business plan, right? Well, the same goes for design projects and a logo is no exception.

When designing a personal logo, it’s easy to lose track of the fact that its part of your business identity.

Your creative brief will inspire you with new ideas. It will also help you come up with a design that aligns with your business plan.

Your creative brief should include:

• A summary of your brand
• The image and tone you want to follow
• Information about your target audience
• An overview of your competitors
• The date by which you need your personal logo design ready
• Your budget

As you can see, your brief is about more than the creative parameters of your logo. It will also keep track of operational aspects like your budget and due dates.

Get Some Inspiration

To get inspiration, start by creating a mood board with all your ideas. Then, look at what other designers are doing at the moment.

You can do this by looking at your competitors’ logos. You can also look in search galleries. Make sure you jot down any logos that grab your attention during this process.

Also, get inspiration from the name of your business. You may be able to create a pun from the name that you can transform into design work.

Choose a Unique Design

The key to making your personal logo design unique is injecting your creative personality into it.

To achieve this, you have to think outside the box. List the aspects of your brand that are most memorable- the aspects you want your audience to remember you for.

Now find a way to portray these memorable aspects into your logo design.

Specify the Name You Want to Use

By including your company name in your personal logo, your audience is more likely to connect with you immediately.

You can use variations of this name, especially if it’s long. For example, you could use your:

• Full name
• Nickname
• Surname
• Initials

For a striking effect, you could design your logo from your name. Some examples of this include Facebook, LG, and Twitter.

Use a Trial and Error Technique

Designing a logo isn’t quick. You’re going to have to be patient. The key is to draw up various logos to get close to your final design.

You should create a small team of people that offer suggestions and ideas. From there, you can mix and match them.

Make sure you doodle all your ideas so you get a visual feel for them.

But, remember. Don’t over complicate things. Your logo should stay simple and eye-catching.

Try Different Colors and Backgrounds

Every company should have specific color branding. For example, Facebook is blue and white and Amazon is black, white, and yellow.

Whichever colors you choose for your color branding, you should use them in your personal logo design.

Color inspiration can come from anywhere. You could start with your favorite color. Your name could also have a color in it. For example, John Green. In this case, why not go with green as your primary color?

Also, consider the emotion you want to evoke with your audience. Big business use color to affect their audience’s reaction to their brand. You should use this technique to make the best first impression.

Create a Logo You Want to Showcase to the World

You need to create a logo that you want the world to see. After all, your logo is how your audience identifies you. If you don’t create an eye-grabbing logo from the get-go, you’ll eventually change it.

If you change it, your audience won’t recognize it, thus making your entire brand less memorable.

Create a logo that you are proud to showcase on all your business assets. These include your:

• Marketing materials
• Letters
• Resume
• Portfolio
• Business cards

Your audience should also find it easy to identify you via your logo on social media platforms.

Refine Your Concept

Once your concept is ready, you need to polish it to come up with a final product. This is where your personal logo design comes to life.

Create rough drafts of your final designs and share them with friends and family. Get as much feedback as you can.

Also, make sure that the answer to all the following questions is “Yes”:

• Does your logo speak to your target audience?
• Is it simple?
• Is it balanced?
• Is it evergreen?
• Does it use negative space to your advantage?
• Does it match your color branding?

When choosing your final logo design, don’t be afraid to go for the more bizarre and extravert choice. If that’s what your company stands for and that’s the image you want to portray to your audience, that’s okay.

Get Help From Online Logo Maker

Creating a logo is a complex process. You have to ensure that it aligns with your branding and company beliefs. You also need it to be eye-catching so that it’s memorable to your audience.

If you need a quick logo that aligns with your branding, why not contact Online Logo Maker today?

Our free logo maker takes the stress out of designing personal logos. In fact, with it, you’ll have a logo with unlimited downloads in less than 10 minutes!

As the average small business puts aside $75,000 a year for digital marketing, every small business owner knows the importance of counting each penny. That number might sound like a lot but if you consider how much does a logo cost, you’ll find that it can take a significant chunk of that budget.

If you’re wondering whether or not you should pay for a designer, you should consider some alternative methods.

Here are four tips for calculating a logo cost and avoiding big payments to a designer.

1. Doing It Yourself

When you make your own logo, you can save a lot of money. You can also end up making a serious mistake and end up with your logo going viral.

When you build your own logo, you can calculate the cost by how many hours it takes you. If you’re not dedicating a set amount of time to your logo, you can design it over the course of a few days or weeks.

When you do it yourself, you’re not going to have to pay anyone for anything but maybe the printing costs.

If you’re tracking your hours, try using a pay stub maker so you can write it off later.

However, if you want your company to be considered professionally, you need a professional logo. If you’re not a professional designer, don’t give your customers an amateur product.

2. Buying a Template or Using Fiverr

A good way to get started and to end up with a logo that will look good when printed on everything from business cards to billboards is to use a template. A template can ensure that you build a logo that looks professional and can fit the needs of printers.

When you buy a template or use Fiverr, you can get the basic elements for a meat and potatoes logo that will do the job you need it to. A Fiverr logo will be inexpensive but it might turn out to be derivative or emphasize the wrong aspects of your business.

3. Using an Online Tool

You can get a cheap subscription to a professional grade online tool to design your new logo. For around $10, you can start designing your logo on your own.

You’ll get access to some simple FAQ for first time designers and will be able to use limitations that check for alignment, sizing, and prepare you for printing. However, you’ll still need the design chops to get it done.

4. Crowdsource It

One of the best ways to get some exposure for your business is to hold a contest for designers. If you pay a small award to the best logo design, you can get professional unemployed or freelance designers to put their best foot forward. You’ll end up with some great choices and have access to great talent.

This might cost you a little more than the other methods but will be cheaper than hiring a professional designer outright.

Don’t Skim When Calculating How Much Does a Logo Cost

When you’re looking to figure out how much does a logo cost, you don’t have to be faced with a bill that eats up half of your marketing budget. By considering alternatives to hiring a designer, you might save big bucks and make it easier to promote your business.

If your number one motivation is to avoid Photoshop, check out our guide to get around it.

It takes only 10 seconds for people to make a first impression of a business logo, and it only takes 5-7 impressions for people to recognize a logo.

A logo is an important part of your company brand. A good, quality-designed logo reflects your company and allows others to recognize your products and services.

Are you a new business who is planning on using promotional products to promote your brand? Or maybe you’re a company looking to revamp your old logo?

Either way, you have to make sure your logo design is eye-catching and looks great on a promotional product. Want to learn more? Keep reading for 7 tips and ideas for creating cool company logos.

Why is a Business Logo Important?

Nearly 77% of buyers purchase products based on a brand name. These days, we interact with brands much differently than we did a couple of decades ago.

Before the rise of the internet and smartphones, we would interact with brands and see their company names and logos on billboards, on our clothes, and on television or magazine advertisements.

Today, we interact with brands on a much more personal level. We interact with brands every time we open up our smartphones and use their apps. We also connect with brands on Facebook and Twitter. We see their ads not only when we watch shows, but when we are surfing the internet or browsing on our phones.

We now have a closer, more intimate relationship with brands, and a brand’s logo is what represents each of those brands.

We see logos in our countless interactions with companies. If we have a positive experience with a company, the logo will represent those positive experiences.

The Benefits of Promotional Products

Giving out promotional products can help improve your brand reputation and garner positive interactions between consumers and your business. According to a 2016 ASI Ad Impressions research, 85 percent of consumers surveyed remembered the name of the business that provided them with a promotional product.

What’s more, buyers were 2.5 times more likely to have a positive impression toward a company that gave them a promotional item compared to a company that showed a digital advertisement.

What are some popular promotional products? The popularity of promotional items depend on their usefulness, how long they will last, and the number of impressions they garner.

Some popular useful products include tote bags, pens, USBs, and umbrellas. These are products that consumers will repeatedly use.

7 Cool Company Logo Ideas

By combining the power of a strong logo with promotional products, you can set your company up for positive brand recognition. Keep reading for 7 cool company logo ideas.

1. Create a Text Logo

Consider designing a text logo. When thinking of popular text logos, think of FedEx, which simply uses its company name with the famous purple and orange color scheme.

When designing a text logo, spend some time on the font decision. The font is the main show of a text logo. Research different fonts and see which will give your logo the most powerful presence.

Think about your company brand and what you want to represent with the font you choose. If your business takes itself seriously, you might want a font with bold, strong lines. On the other hand, if you want to convey a fun tone for your business you might want a font that reflects that.

Choose a few different fonts and ask for feedback to see which option resonates the most with others.

2. Play Around with Colors

Think about the connotations behind each color. Color is one of the first aspects of a brand that our brain notices.

Blue is the most popular color that companies choose for their logo. It represents dependability and trust. Another popular color is green which reflects sustainability and growth.

Grey represents professionalism and authority. Brown reflects warmth.

If you want to go for brighter hues, yellow shows a company as happy and full of energy. Orange is friendly and cheerful. Pink is feminine and fun.

Purple represents elegance. How about black or white? White represents purity or simplicity while black adds a bold, mysterious tone.

Think carefully about your choice, and we recommend you stick to 2 or 3 colors max. You want your logo to be easy on the eyes.

3. Add a Hidden Meaning

Think about adding a hidden image or meaning in your logo. For example, the new DC Comics logo has the “D” peeled back to show the “C” which reflects its superhero comic roots.

Another example of a hidden logo meaning is the colorful peacock in the NBC logo.

4. Try an Abstract Design

Want to stand out with your logo? Consider an abstract design. This would work great for an art studio or any other business with an artistic flair.

5. Add an Animal Image in Your Logo

You can use an image of an animal to reflect certain aspects of your company. For example, if you own a salon you can use a swan to represent elegance and grace.

6. Design a Logo That Will Look Good in Different Sizes

Remember that your logo may be shrunken down, such as on small promotional items like pens. You may also enlarge your logo for use on a poster for trade show events.

Choose a logo that will look good no matter the size. Opt for simple lines and designs and complimentary color choices.

7. Keep It Simple

Above all, when designing a logo, we recommend you keep your design simple. You want a design that consumers can instantly recognize and that will stand out in a good way.

Final Tips for Designing a Company Logo

When designing a cool company logo, you might want to try sketching an image of what you want your logo to look like. You can also try an online logo maker.

You can brainstorm ideas by surveying individuals who know your company and ask them what words or images come to mind when they think of your brand.

If you want to learn more about logo designs and tips, read our blog.

Most of us probably won’t have an epiphany in the middle of the night which inspires us to create the perfect logo. But that doesn’t mean all hope is lost.

While it’s a bit of a challenge to find great logo ideas, it’s not impossible. You just have to know where to look.

Of course, knowing where to look is half the battle. Most business owners have no idea where to even start looking for creative logo design ideas.

We want to help you get started. Keep reading to learn where to look for great logo design ideas.

Look at Other Logo Design Ideas

One way to find logo design inspiration is to look at other logos that have already been created. Take a look at the logos that your competition have on their websites.

Note what you like best about their logos and what you like least about them. But don’t just look at your competition.

Do some research on the most successful and creative logo design ideas of all time. But you should also take a look at the logo ideas that failed as well.

You can learn from failure just as much as you can from success. Looking at both types of designs will help you learn what to do and what to avoid.

Be Creative Rather Than Obvious

Just because you own a brewery doesn’t mean your logo must include beer in it. That’s obvious.

Get your logo inspiration from something that still has something in common with beer but is more creative than obvious. Look for ideas that grab your eye and peak your interest.

If you are that captivated by a symbol or color, chances are others will be, too.

Choose the Right Colors

Choosing which colors you use are an important part of logo inspiration. Each color has a different meaning which you can use as part of your company’s brand. However, don’t go crazy and choose too many colors.

Get logo ideas from company’s who have used bold colors. Then take a look at the company’s who chose black and white for their logos.

Make sure you don’t just look at colors that are trending now. While they might be popular in 2018, it may look silly five years from now. Choose colors with staying power.

Brainstorm on Your Own

Think back to your high school art and creative writing classes. The teacher would have you brainstorm for ideas first.

They did that because it’s effective. If you’re looking for logo design inspiration, get out some markers, a pencil, and some paper and just start doodling.

We’re not saying you’ll end up with a masterpiece that makes logo design history, but it is a good start to figuring out what you want.

Use a Logo Generator Tool

Don’t forget to ask for help. A logo generator tool is a great way to get logo ideas where you can see what they look like.

Click here for a tutorial on how to use the logo generator tool. Use this tool more than once so you’ll have a few options to choose from.

Get Input From Others

Getting input from others can help you with logo designs inspiration. You don’t have to do this on your own.

Gather your employees and have them brainstorm ideas. Ask them to design a logo for you and then have everyone vote on the best one.

You can even take different ideas from the various logos your employees created. Ask your social media followers for their input on great logo ideas.

The more people giving their opinions, the more likely you’ll end up with a design that is universally appealing. Especially when you ask your niche market to help you design one.

Ask Professional Logo Designers for Creative Logo Design Ideas

Look at different professional logo design sites. If you can find a few design sites that cater to your specific type of business, even better.

Take a look at their work for logo inspiration. If you find one you like, you can work with them.

These people use logo design inspiration to create a successful business. Chances are, they can help you design a great logo that aligns with your brand.

Focus on Your Brand

The whole point of creating a logo is to further push your brand into the public’s eye. Go back to the roots of your brand because that’s where you’ll find the best logo ideas.

Write down the five words that best describe your business. Create logos that reflect those words.

Look at your businesses values for inspiration. You want to convey those values to your niche audience so it’s a great place to get logo ideas.

Learn About What Different Shapes Mean

Colors aren’t the only thing that conveys meaning. Geometric shapes also have meaning.

Do research on what each shape means before you create your logo. Find shapes that inspire you and best represent your business.

If you choose to use the shape of an animate or inanimate object, do research on the symbolic meaning behind the shape.

Keep it Simple

Think about how you feel when you walk into a cluttered space. Most people tend to feel immediately disoriented and overwhelmed. They usually don’t notice much of anything except the clutter.

The same effect happens when you overcomplicate a logo design. Instead, keep your design simple.

You want your design to pop because it speaks to people, not because they’re immediately confused.

Choose the Right Font

Like colors and shapes, the font you choose should also be carefully considered. When you’re looking at fonts for creative logo design ideas, make sure it’s easy to read the font.

Using cursive may look fancy but it’s not always easy to read. Block letters are bold but may not work for a company going for a softer feel.

Register Here

Once you’ve collected a few of your favorite logo design ideas, it’s time to see how they look. Our online logo maker will help create the perfect logo for your business.

To get started, click here to register.