10 Seriously Clever Logos You’ll Love for Creative Design Inspiration
Posted on July 11, 2019 by Logo Design Tips and Tricks
Sometimes it’s hard to tell which logo will hit because it’s not always the most expensive, most well-planned, or time-consuming that ends up among clever logos that define brands perfectly.
Take the Nike swoosh. It cost $35 paid to design student Carolyn Davidson. She needed money to take a class and got the freelance gig from Phil Knight, an accounting professor. He had a company launching a football shoe brand called Nike.
It took 17.5-plus hours to make. No huge ad team. No fortune paid. Although Nike later compensated Davidson with stocks and a diamond ring.
But how do you get the most creative logos without an ad team and marketing planning?
Well, many great logos use these tools. They cost money but are often the recipe for success. So, if you’re looking for a great logo for your business, you can put the right steps into action rather than holding your breath.
To start, look at what’s working for other brands. We’ve put together 10 favorites of ours to help
Keep reading to see interesting logos, then let these ideas inspire you to design your own logo or put together a team that can.
10 of Our Favorite Logos
Many of these we like because they’re logos with hidden meanings. Some are just creative logos that work well. Let them put your brain in creative mode and have fun!
And if you’re stressed about the finances of hiring your team to get your logo and business launched, do your due diligence in planning and budgeting just like when you create your logo.
There are always options in financing if you think it through, brainstorm (like the creative part), and stick to your plans. Even guaranteed payday loans work if you plan it right and stick to that plan.
Now, go check these out.
1. Le Tour de France
They use such fun lettering and the bright orange sun gives it that extra pop. Mostly, we love how there’s a cyclist in the letters and sun. The O, U, and R form the cyclist and the back of the bike, and the sun is the front wheel.
2. The 2024 Olympics in Paris
We seem to love some of the French ones. Check out how those Olympic medal ribbons form the Eiffel Tower.
3. Coffee Night
It’s so simple! Look close and you’ll see the moon in that cup of Joe.
4. Iron Duck Clothing
If you have fashion and ducks, it’s not obvious how to put them together. But this clothing hangar that looks like a duck does the trick.
5. CodeFish
Again, this one is clever and simple. Check out that fish made of code.
6. Sushi
The name of this company may be a bit vague, but the logo isn’t. The H turned into chopsticks in a fun and clever way gives you that quick visual that might just make your mouth water.
7. Beats
You know you gamers look for hidden eggs in the game? This is the logo version.
In case you didn’t see it, the “b” in the white circle is actually half a headphone.
8. Chick-Fil-A
With bright curvy cursive lettering to get your customers’ attention, what more could you want? We’d say it wouldn’t be as good without that chicken in the C!
9. Cisco
Tech giant Cisco has way more panache for a tech giant than you’d think, even just looking at the logo. Why? Because they have a San Fran skyline in the lines above the letters to honor their hometown.
10. Nike
Yes, we love the swoosh. It shows movement. It is called the swoosh, giving it a built-in sound effect to signify speed. You know you want to be fast and those shoes will help. Instant clever branding.
Clever Logos for You
Now that you know some of our favorites when it comes to clever logos, you can start working on yours. Be sure to identify your brand and market clearly so you can convey what you want to the designer and/or ad team.
You can also play around with our free logo maker and get in touch with our team if you want help with further branding. We’re here to help you get the best logo for your needs.
We’re in This Together: Co-working Space Logos to Take Inspiration From
Posted on January 02, 2019 by Logo Design Tips and Tricks
A logo is a customer’s first contact with a business’s brand. It is also their first opportunity to form an impression.
Co-working spaces across the globe have been cropping up to help the ambitious entrepreneurs. They have defined their own brand while offering others the space to do so.
Keep reading to discover how co-working space logos communicate their brand.
Elements of a Great Logo
Before you start drafting up your logo think about your brand’s mission. What are you trying to accomplish? Write down 7 words come to mind when you think about your mission and brand. These will inform the choices you make in color and style of your logo.
Clarity
A logo is a symbol of your company. Take the information you wrote down before and incorporate it into your design.
If your business feels more serious, using lots of dynamic colors and fonts may not be for you. These elements may fit more with a business that wants to convey a fun vibe.
The elements of the logo provide insight into the company. Be sure that all aspects of the logo blend together. For instance, if you are going for something serious, don’t blend a serious symbol with comic sans.
Simplicity
The best way to visually promote a concept is with simplicity. You can have complete clarity of vision by keeping your logo simple. You want your target audience to immediately recognize your brand.
A logo that is too cluttered is more confusing than inspiring. Use a few elements that are fundamental to what you want to convey.
Make It Memorable
A logo that is clear and simple is memorable. A logo will often on get a glances worth of attention. You want someone to be able to recognize it based off a glance. A cluttered, confusing logo will be quickly dismissed.
Understanding the psychological effects of colors can help you create a lasting impression.
Unique and Timeless
Search your industry to see what your competitors are doing for logos. You don’t want to make a logo that looks like theirs. While it may seem great to do something similar, you will ruin your chances of standing out among the crowd.
Companies update their logos from time to time to modernize it. When creating a logo, choose elements outside of something trendy. Trendy designs will look great for today, but you’re in for a re-design when the trend dies.
Versatile
Think about the placement of your logo. If you’ll be printing it on t-shirts, fanny packs and pens, you’ll need something versatile. A cluttered design will be harder to read on different mediums.
Whether you are designing for packaging or business cards, keep clarity of vision in mind.
Co-Working Space Logos for Inspiration
Here are a few logos from around the world:
Campus
A campus is a number of spaces owned by Google for entrepreneurs all over the globe. Their logo is a combination of text and illustration. The illustration is a 3D cube in the shape of the letter ‘C’. The text is the business name and location.
The 3D cube frame acts as a symbol of open space and the unique uses for the Campus spaces.
The Hoxton Mix
The Hoxton Mix is a co-working space located in London. Their space is a modern high-end office building for those in need of a remote office location. They convey this with a dynamic typographical logo. It displays bright, eye-catching colors and sleek letters that form into each other.
This logo is simple but immediately recognizable.
Innov8 New Dehli
Innov8 has several coworking spaces throughout the major cities of India. These spaces cater to young creatives and professionals alike. To convey this idea their logo uses a combination of elements.
First, it is a combination of italicized and straight fonts. Second, it uses bright colors. These combine to show a modern, playful yet professional taste.
Final Thoughts
When building a great logo, brand communication should be the foremost in your mind. A well thought out logo will be simple, clear, and memorable.
Successful co-working space logos display these elements.
To create your own unique logo, click here.
5 Airline Logos to Inspire Your Brand to Take Flight
Posted on October 23, 2018 by Logo Design Tips and Tricks
A 2014 study showed that 85% of consumers selected a brand over their competition based on the colors of the logo. A business logo is the visual brand identity of any business. Airline logos set themselves apart from the competition by color, design, and brand statement.
Is your airline in need of a visual facelift? Check out our top 5 airline logos below to inspire your fleet!
1. Women in Aviation (Washington State Chapter)
The first thing that should stand out about this logo is the Seattle Space Needle. One of the most iconic structures in America, it is the focal point of the logo. You also see a beautiful backdrop of mountains, and a prop engine plane flying over a lake.
The bold white lettering will quickly grab your attention and it makes everything else stand out. This logo easily captures the essence of the state and should give you the inspiration to provide quality services to your clients.
2. Australian Airlines
This airline logo is inspiring for a number of reasons. The first is the picture of the kangaroo, which is generally the first animal you think of when Australia comes to mind. Second is the colors in the logo. Brown is unique and unconventional in airline business logos. This is another excellent idea when making changes to your logo.
Finally, the actual tagline is critical. Many international airline brands simply have the name of the brand listed but saying “catch the holiday spirit” will subtly make the customer think of vacationing in Australia on their next break. Smart moves all around!
3. Jerusalem Airlines
The winged lion is a mythical creature used throughout storytelling, with iconic tales showing its strength and beauty. The Jerusalem Airline logo is simple and has black and white lettering around a yellow circle trim, with the winged lion leaping in the air.
Direct and to the point, having the wing lion poised to attack should be all the inspiration needed when you look at it daily.
4. VIP Air
The three large letters, and the blue, white, and black combined lettering of “VIP”, are the first noticeable things about this airline logo. This is similar to the West Palm Jet Charter logo that has a blue wave in the background. Next is the uniqueness of the plane flying through the logo.
How can this be inspirational? It shows any airline business that you need to keep climbing in order to be successful. Many logos incorporate a plane, but cutting straight through the company name is a clever strategy.
5. BX Air
The final of our top 5 airline logos was created by BX Air. The red design is shaped like a runway, with red being a color commonly used in marketing. The airplane ascends after takeoff, and the logo as a whole can provide creativity that should be used to get the business ideas flowing.
Having a look at this logo shows the design was well thought out, and original when compared to other competitors.
Wrapping things up
Which of these airline logos are best suited for inspiration for your business?
Feel free to check out our free logo maker and the tutorial video to get your own logo started.
How to Create a Killer Logo For Your Outdoor Adventure Travel Company
Posted on February 26, 2018 by Logo Design Tips and Tricks
One thing you probably know as an entrepreneur is that having a great logo is extremely important.
Seeing your logo is often people’s first impression of your business.
But, having someone design a logo for you can get really expensive. Luckily, there are other options.
You can do it yourself!
That might sound scary – you own an outdoor adventure travel company, you’re not a graphic designer. However, there are some basic rules of logo design that anyone can learn and use themselves.
For outdoor adventurists, you need to create a logo that is bold and exciting. Here’s how to create a killer logo for your outdoor adventure travel company.
Identify Your Audience
Sure, your consumers and clients love adventure and the outdoors. What else?
Are they millennials running to the US passport renewal office to get their documents rushed? They may make it just in time for their spontaneous Mexican surf vacation!
Are they middle-aged men who like white water rafting in Montana?
Maybe they’re couples visiting Costa Rica to go zip-lining through the jungle on their honeymoon.
Designing with those specifics in mind will change how your logo looks. For example, you might not use the same color scheme for one group as you would for another.
Put Thought into the Color Scheme
Color choice is an important part of any logo design.
You want a bold and exciting logo to match your company. That means skip boring black and white!
Research shows that marketing materials using color are read 42% more often than those in black and white.
Why is that? Many experts believe that there’s a psychology to colors and how they affect people.
You can pick certain colors based on how you want your intended consumer to feel.
Orange conveys high energy. It also gives the feeling of warmth. Consider using that color if your company operates in a hot climate.
Does your company cater to people who enjoy water adventures? Using blue in your logo is an obvious choice.
Yellow is often used by retail stores to grab the attention of window shoppers. If your logo will be used on a storefront, that might be a good color to go with.
The right use of color gives your logo a more active, energetic feel. An outdoor adventure travel company needs an active logo!
Active is Always Better Than Passive
As an adventurer yourself, no one should know this better than you!
You know how to be active in life. But, how do you make a static, two-dimensional design move on the screen?
Designs that don’t move can still give the feeling of movement. Any icons or graphics should be in motion.
Originally, the Twitter logo depicted a perched bird. That’s a passive illustration.
Later on, Twitter redesigned their logo to be a bird in flight. That’s much more engaging to look at.
But, what about logos that only use words?
Using spirals, flicks, and forward movement in font choice looks more active. The Coca-Cola logo is a great example of an active font.
Not so fast! Don’t try using the Coke font as your own. It’s crucial that your logo is different from everyone else’s.
Your Logo Should Be One-of-a-Kind
The whole point of having a logo is to create brand recognition. To earn that recognition, your branding can’t look like another business’s.
It’s fine to take a little inspiration from other logos you like. In fact, you can compile a list of a few logos that have the look you’re going for.
Study what it is that you like about these logos. Think about what you would do differently. But, be honest with yourself that you’re not just copying their design.
Steer clear of iconic color schemes. You might love the color pairing of purple and orange. Just make sure you’re not using the same exact shades as the FedEx logo.
One misconception in logo design is the more elements you add, the more unique it becomes. Don’t fall into that trap!
Don’t Overdo Your Design
Adding too much to your design is a common pitfall when designing a logo. You might think that more complicated additions will make it look more professional.
In fact, it’s quite the opposite!
Think of some of the most famous logos. Most, if not all, are very simplistic.
There shouldn’t be too many colors or too many pictures. If you’re worried that you’ve done too much with your design, you have!
Fix your mistake by removing an element and then reassessing. You might find that eliminating a flashy border or graphic makes all the difference.
Another problem with overdoing your design is it makes it less timeless. Simple designs rarely go out of style.
Design trends that you might try to incorporate could look dated in a few years. Keeping your design more simple will make it more versatile.
Versatility is Key
You’ll probably be using your outdoor adventure travel logo across different marketing materials. That’s something you have to take into consideration during the design process.
For example, a logo with smaller details might look great on a trade show booth. But, what about when it’s shrunken down on a business card?
All those little details could be unrecognizable.
When you’re designing your logo, think about all the ways you will use it. Make the logo versatile enough that it will look good at any size.
You can also consider designing multiple free logos. That way you have a logo for every marketing need you have.
Outdoor Adventure Travel Logo: The Takeaway
There are lots of other travel companies out there. One way to stand out is to have a logo that pops. With these tips, you’ll be well on your way to designing just that.
Still not confident that you can design a logo on your own? Check out this tutorial for more tips! Plus, with a free logo maker, there’s no pressure to get it perfect on the first try.