Your logo is the symbol of your brand and has a major impact on how people perceive it. It reflects its identity and makes it recognizable. That’s why it should be unique and easy to identify. Any questions? Here is how to design a great logo in ten simple steps. Keep reading.

Define your brand identity

The logo is probably the element that communicates your brand’s personality best. It is a condensed version of the values, ideas and feelings you want people to associate to your brand. So, the first question is: What makes your brand unique? Values, mission, purpose… they are all questions that will help you define your brand’s core.

Analyze your competitors

Research is always important. No matter whether you are working on design or strategy, you need to know what other brands do and learn from them.

Here is an important tip though: Always be original. Analyzing is a MUST, but copying is a big mistake and will make your brand lose its originality.

Look for inspiration for your logo

Maybe researching has already helped you. But if it hasn’t, a brainstorm is always a great way to start. You can also make a list of the ideas that describe your brand or the way you want it to be perceived.

Pro tip: try to see it from different angles (at least yours and your target’s).

Choose your style

You have an idea of what you want to do and the outcome, right? Then it’s time to translate your thoughts into a real design. But first, you need to choose your style. Meaning, you need to choose: color, typography or font, shapes and potentially graphics too.

The key question here is what to transmit. Do you want your brand to be classic, vintage, modern…?

Select the right type of logo

As you know, there isn’t just one type of logo. From abstract logo marks, to emblems, there are seven main types of logos:

• Emblem: text integrated in a symbol or icon.
• Combination mark: similar to an emblem, it combines text and symbols.
• Abstract logo mark: geometric form that creates a connection with something entirely new.
• Pictorial mark: iconographic image that represents your brand.
• Mascot: cartoonish characters that represent a brand in an approachable, colorful way.
• Wordmark: your company name as a logo.
• Lettermark: initials or monogram.

Which one matches your brand identity best? Remember that your brand and your logo are both unique, so don’t rush into spontaneous decisions. Take your time and choose wisely.

Typography or font is important too

While serif fonts are great for classic businesses because they make them look more serious, sans-serif fonts are the perfect choice for modern brands. Like with the type of logo, you should take your time here too. Although there are only four main types of fonts, the amount of typographies one can find is huge.

• Serif: letters have little “feet” at the end.
• Sans- serif: sleek and simple.
• Script: reminiscent of handwriting.
• Display: highly stylized, decorative fonts.

Time to define the color

Colors are often controversial, especially when the brands are global. It’s hard to find colors that mean the same or can be perceived the same in many different cultures.

Keep in mind that when using color, you are exploring ideas and feelings, so color helps you tell a story too. Put an extra effort into combining color in a way that they are all coherent with your brand’s personality, don’t just focus on aesthetics.

Put everything together

Now that you have everything, try to bring all your elements together. See how they combine, try all the possible ways to use them and choose the best option.

In other words: make all your logo elements work together.

Integrate your logo everywhere

From your website to your newsletters, business cards and office materials, your logo is going to be everywhere. Check how it works when you integrate it in different environments. Would you change or adjust anything? Does it maintain its original meaning? Does it still look unique?

If it works perfectly well, congrats! If it doesn’t, see what you need to adjust and try again. Also, always remember: the most important thing is that your logo is unique.

What is a logo?

A logo is the symbol that represents your brand and reflects its identity in a way that people can easily recognize. It should be both unique and easy to identify.

How can I create my own logo?

There are several steps you should follow. First is looking for inspiration in order to choose the style you want. Second is selecting the best type of logo for your brand, the typography and colors. Finally, you should integrate it everywhere so everything is in line with the rest of your brand identity.