Did you know that a logo’s colour can reveal the feelings a company wants you to get when they see their logo?
In many ways, the world of business is like the world of dating. You would never go out with someone that looks shabby or dirty. However, if you see someone impeccably dressed, you might just consider going out with that person. In the same way, if someone is dressed in very cheerful colours, you might think this person to be a very joyful and happy person.
Like an outfit for a person, a logo is often one of the first impressions we get from a company. This makes choosing a logo one of the most important business decisions you will make. But what are the things you need to consider when selecting a logo?
How To Create A Logo
When designing a logo, there are various things you need to keep in mind. From colour to the underlying meaning of shapes, symbols, or even words in different languages. They all play a role.
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Colour Matters
Colour plays a massive role in the design, and for a good reason. The psychology behind colour is well-established and researched. Just look at a place like Piccadilly Square in London and the full-on attack of colour you get from the many advertisement billboards. You will notice that some of these logos are calming yet catch your eye, while others scream at you. Colours speak in different ways to us, so how have famous brands used them to their advantage?
Yellow/ Gold
Companies: Subway, Denny’s, McDonald’s, Shell
Meaning: A yellow logo means the company is trying to make you feel optimistic and positive about the brand. Note that these companies are not known for their positive range of products.
Blue
Companies: Facebook, NASA, Pfizer, JP Morgan
Meaning: When using the colour blue in their logo, a company will be telling you to trust them. Blue is the colour of trust, dependability, and strength. Note that companies that use blue all depend on us to put confidence in them, whether it’s our personal details (Facebook), putting someone on the moon (NASA), developing a COVID vaccine (Pfizer), or keeping our money safe (JP Morgan)
The meaning of other colours include Cheerful for Orange, Excitement for Red, Creative for Purple, Health for Green, and Balance, or Calm for Grey.
Which colour you pick for your logo says a lot about your company! If you’re interested in more in-depth information, read this blog.
2. Think of The Deeper Meaning- Positive and Negative
Always consider the deeper meaning of symbols, words, and images. What might be entirely appropriate in one language might be incredibly insulting in another. Similarly, anything that resembles, even slightly, negative symbols needs to be avoided at all costs.
Regardless of what industry you are in, anything potentially insulting isn’t going to work. The more appropriate your rationale behind a particular design, the better this will look, which in turn will give your customers the first impression you want.
3. Be Different, By Keeping It Simple
Your logo doesn’t have to be complicated. Think of these four words when you design your logo: Focus – concept – recall – uncomplicated
4. Don’t Be Literal
Your logo does not have to have anything to do with your company. It can be entirely different from the product that you sell. Just think about brands like Penguin and Shell. Both have their name as their logo, yet they sell books and gasoline.
5. Go For The Underlying Meaning
If you look at Amazon’s brand logo, did you ever realize what the arrow is there for? It’s a smile. The use of underlying meanings in logos doesn’t only create a great talking point; they put some humour into a brand. Mind you, don’t take this too far. Making a funny logo for a bank is probably not where you want to go.
How to Put Your Logo To Good Use
Designing a great logo is one thing; putting your logo to work for you is something else entirely. Printing your logo on promotional gifts like cheap pens, tote bags, and more, and handing them out at every opportunity is a guaranteed way to familiarise both the user and their surrounding friends, family members and colleagues with your logo.
One of the best examples we’ve seen in recent years is a company which incorporated their logo into a QR code. This logo was then printed on all kinds of promotional materials, with the simple message “scan me”. This creates huge traffic to the website, and it’s a great way to show people you are a modern company that knows about modern technology.
Now that you are familiar with the basics, time to get to work!
