They say a picture tells a thousand words, but is your logo saying all the right ones? This is the question you should be asking yourself before you embark on commissioning your next project. From fonts, to colours and everything in between we’ve come up with the definitive list of design do’s and don’ts to help you along your journey to success.
Do: Keep it simple, stupid
When it comes to approaching clever design, logo design master and Oscar winner Saul Bass has the perfect motto, ‘symbolise and summarise’. While it can be tempting to get swept away with a creative concept, it’s also vital to ensure that your message translates easily to audience. No matter how badly you think a cross dressing police officer fighting a communist* really captures the spirit of your venue, it’s best to leave that kind of complex work where it belongs – in the bin.
*Taken from a genuine design brief – no really, we can’t make this stuff up.
Don’t: Use illegible fonts
Comic Sans and Wingdings walk into a bar, and the bartender says ‘we don’t serve your type around here…’ Ha, we crack ourselves up! But seriously, it’s time to cut out this filthy habit once and for all, because if there’s one thing guaranteed to ruin your design process it is an illegible font that leaves your customers scratching their heads. Aim to find a balance between creativity and comprehension. If you need to turn your head on the side to read it, you’re doing it wrong.
Do: Leave it to the professional.
In this day and age people eat with their eyes first, which means that more than ever it’s important that your brand stands out against the noise. You might be kind of a whiz with Photoshop but when it comes to creating a lasting impression on your clients we always recommend consulting with a professional graphic designer, that way you can guarantee you’re getting the optimal mileage from your design – we don’t know how many times we have to repeat this message, Word Art is not the same thing,
Don’t: Get caught up in trends
So everyone seems to really getting into pineapples this season, and how about that new dabbing sensation right? While trends can be a useful way to get onto your client’s radar, it’s better to do so on a more relevant platform like social media. Remember, the design process can be a deceptively long and complicated business, so it’s better to ch
oose a logo that will go the distance and still have timeless appeal many years from now, rather than having to start the process all over again because you thought ‘Gangnam style’ was a sure thing.
Do: Decide on a colour palette and stick to it
While something as simple as deciding on a colour palette may seem trivial in the grand scheme of things, creating your business’ identity all starts with the fixing your sights on the right tone. For some of our clients finding the right colour scheme has helped them not only establish their logo, but has been used as an effective motif carried across their venue’s interiors, uniforms and menus. It automatically gives the customer a sense of brand recognition, that is communicable and memorable without words. If you’ve got a solid business plan and great logo to start with, then there is nothing stopping you from achieving the success you deserve.
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