really nice post, fits right in with my current reasearch project on brand semiotics.

Nice article ! I'm not a logo designer but I loved the part when you said :

"For small business it's important to create a logo that really relates to the product or philosophy of the company, while for big corporations the simplest the best, because of that we see most of the huge companies using just lettering or a piece of their past logos, such as Nike and Pepsi."

Small business are always trying to do as good as the big one. Like the little kid who wants to be just like his older brother... but there's some steps you need to reach before that.

Great !

Logo design is something Ive neglected as a designer a bit in the past. Looking around on the net lately Ive noticed a resurgence in the popularity and importance of logo and CID in the ever growing and competitive business world. I think every designer can benifit from even taking company logos in there spare time and following the simple steps you laid out here to boost their portfolio. Great article :D

Interesting article, but I think the first thing that this article got wrong was equating branding as just designing a logo. Brand design is so much more than just a logo.

Let's take for example your example the Apple Logo vs The Xerox Logo. Many people grip about the Xerox logo. Yes the bug is a little dated and the type leaves a lot to offer. But they are forgetting that this logo is apart of their brand. The brand in itself is very strong and one of the best thought out brands I've seen for a company (Xerox is one of my company's clients so I know their brand pretty well).

The biggest problem with a lot of brands is that they stop at the logo. A logo is not a brand, it's part of the identity. You have to take many things into consideration when designing a brand. Such as how will this logo look at various sizes? Can the brand be spread to multiple mediums. Can you recognize this brand if it was let's say used as a wall graphic without the use of the logo?

Colors, Shape, Words. Those the 3 main factors to any brand. First thing people notice is color, then shape, then words. If you can capture the whole message of the company in the first or second then you've done a successful job. Sadly because many people equate the logo as the brand it takes all 3 factors before the audience even knows what the company is about.

If you want to talk about Branding is not a science, then step out of the box and see the whole picture of what branding truly is. Branding is about creating the image of the company not just the logo. You have to think of every aspect the company will be seen from printed to digital. If any one area is skipped then the brand falls apart.

love it! I hate when I have to explain to new companies that their logo can't be just a shape until they have built up xp in their market. That sort of "walk before you can run" mentality.

Normally my steps involve typing out their entire name, then working with just that before getting into shapes or adjusting letterforms. Once I have their name clean and legible then I go into "decorating" it.

Good post. I notice that the current trend in logo design is simplicity. Some clients have a preconceived notion of what they want their logo to look like, many times what they want is way too busy. So it becomes a designers job to educate, inform and persuade. Logos are fun, but very subjective - everyone has an opinion. I wholeheartedly agree with the sketch thumbnail phase - very important pivotal step.

A challenge sometimes is deciding on which logo design to present.

I Really like this article. Please post more infromative articles like this, it makes you think.

To comment on KillerCreative, I also think it's a good thing for any designer to get into logo designing in your spare time. Even when you're not really into logo design. Designing logo's forces you to think in inside certain boundaries and that stimulates the creative process.

It's not only good for your portfolio but also to overcome a creative designers-writers-block, when you're stuck you have to go trough and work with what you have. Like the article said about the 100 sketches before you get something new.

I'm not in to logo designing myself, but it really makes me think to make some steps towards this.

Loved this post, it's nice to see a serious discussion about logo design taking place here. I follow pretty much the same steps you outlined in my design process, though I have to admit I probably don't do 100 thumbnails.

I love checking out logopond for inspiration and a quick glimpse of trends, and google image searches on the company's keywords are definitely useful. I'll look up synonyms for words in the client's name sometimes, too, it's a good way to find ideas from another direction.

As a designer who has and will continue to do logos I believe that there is a certain amount of "science" that goes into creating a truly successful logo. Heck, it took 3 or 5 (can't remember exactly) years of focus groups and redesigning to create the shell logo. All too often today you see logos produced that won't even last that long. Logo design unfortunately is becoming what I believe to be a lost art. People call themselves graphic designers yet they can't even create a strong logo. They may have strong technical skills with the programs they use but the foundations of design are not there. I believe that logo design is one of those foundations, along with typography, color theory and others. If you can't do it well, work to improve or don't call yourself a designer.

Something else that is unfortunate is redesigning of logos that really don't need it. Case in point, this Pepsi logo. I HATE the new version. Sorry, but it sucks. And I get that the "designer" of this should not take 100% of the blame and that they didn't make the final decision, but someone produced it. I understand also that, on occasion, logos need to be updated and modernized, but updating and modernizing just for the sake of "keeping with the times" is wrong.

And that I think is a sign of the times. We are so concerned with what is new and fresh that we create something that we know will not last. There is less emphasis on quality work than quantity. I applaud you commentors who realize that you have neglected a very important aspect of design. I hope you, and those reading and realizing the same, will make good on your words and really focus on becoming better. Because the last thing we need in the design community are more "desktop designers" spewing out junk like this.

I would to add to what Ed Said. The logo for a company is just one way that the brand is displayed to the outside world. Its a symbol that represents the essence of the company. The brand encompasses the customers entire experience with the company. If you go into a high end men's clothing store do you hear heavy metal blasting on the speakers? No because that music does not support the image of the store. If you walk into a skates hop do you hear mozart playing in the background? Probably not. How do these companies then treat the area that they serve their customers in? The men's store perhaps has nice wood and leather finishing, nice lighting etc, while the skate shop has video monitors all over the place and bold bright colors. But it doesnt stop there. I talked to an owner of a Quizno's Sub's Restaurant one time, who told me they installed the air ducts to not take the air away from the restaurant but to blow it out into the street so that people could smell the food cooking, the smell is part of their brand. The method of interaction with the customers is part of the brand as well, are they professional? Laid back? both work depending on the client. I suspect also that Apples working offices follow the modern slick simple designs of their products as well etc etc etc.

Now as a designer, if we work with a client that needs a brand, we are in charge of identifying what the problem the client is having and propose a solution. Maybe its not even a branding problem but a more creative way of getting the existing one out there. But if it is a brand they need, then maybe its only a logo for the time being, maybe its shirts and uniforms for the employees etc. Its our job to analyze and propose what they need. If they don't have the budget, tell them why it makes sense or scale it back until it fits within their budget needs.

I had a teacher once who owned his own design studio while I was still in college and he did a brand audit of a store chain where I live, they looked at all the cross sections of the clientele, and what they liked, and they redesigned everything from the logo, to the store exteriors and interiors, the packaging for the store brand products and the uniforms of the workers. They also re arranged the stores to make them easier to navigate. All this contributes to the experience with the brand.

For those that are interested in this, there is a very good book by Joe Duffy called "Brand Apart" which analyzes some of the biggest brands in the world and why they are effective. (http://www.amazon.com/Brand-Apart-Joe-Duffy/dp/0929837258/ref=pd_bbs_sr_...)

I therefore think that branding is a very scientific project. There should be a lot of research done, especially in the area of demographic and market, and also at researching the competition. The brand contributes to setting one company apart from another one

what if you can't hand draw at all? do you just draw using the pen tool, etc?

I'll only say that Pepsi has been lost for a long time now.
Their latest logo looks like something an airline would use.
Damn they're struggling.

I agree with the comments and the idea of this article was exactly that, to make us discuss and think about more than just the logo design when designing a logo, but as the way people will identify themselves with the business. Like the new Pepsi logo, I don't know what's the purpose and who's the audience for that, visually it's not that good in my opinion, however I don't buy nor drink pepsi, so my opinion probably don't even count for them. But as I said there's more than just graphics.

Inspiring discussions go around. It seems that logos are surrounding us. But, I think the memory and the experiences that people get from the brand is also important. While nice memory and experience of using a service or buying a stuff will add marks to the brand's impression and the evaluation of the logo will also be enhanced.

That's funny that your professor required 100 sketches. At my college we would complain about being asigned to do 20, lol! I think the hardest thing is doing so much work that the client will never see, such as drawing hundreds of thumbnail sketches and making hours of refinements on computer. This makes it difficult to justify charging a ton of money for a logo when I present my three best to the client. They just don't get it! It takes forever to distill concepts into the purest forms. I believe that simplicity is not a trend, but a necessity.

am i the only one who likes the new pepsi logo? its a little too mod for a soda but its leaps and bounds better than the over worked PEPSI OMFG designs from the past few years, taking out all those splashes and thousands of water droplets and gradient on top of gradient and lines all over the place. the new logo says "dude calm down and have a pepsi"

Yoshikun, you nailed it. When I first saw the new version in a store, initially I thought I was on the "international" food isle and that it was Pepsi from Japan, or something like that. Then after realizing what it really was, and after my dry heaves stopped, I thought this would make for a cool airline logo.

Great post. There are definitely do's and don'ts of logo design, however, each situation is different. Logos all depend on the nature of the business and what the business is trying to accomplish. Expert designers know what to look for and how to promote the goal of the company best. Logo companies strive to know these important details about logo creation, which is why it is best to consult a professional when creating your company's brand identity.

First, to clarify the comments earlier about brand designing...

Your brand is not anything visual. Everything visual is your identity. Your brand is the overall experience your customer/client has experienced. From customer service and interaction to the way they feel about you...everything! Identity is not brand. Branding is a process that you use to create a feeling for you and your company.

Second, the post is great. Everybody has a different process and it's always good to hear about somebody else's steps.

Thanks

Like mentioned in the article, I find that sketching, even if you don't like the sketch, works best.

As you sketch out all the crap your brain begins to wake up and spark creativity. It's like pushing a car to get it started (lol I know, bad analogy).

But it's true! I will sketch out a load of crap and then... suddenly I carve a diamond from a lump of coal!

Usually with all of my projects I take the same approach but with logos I take a slightly different approach.

After meeting with the client and drawing up a design brief, I put pencil to paper and begin brainstorming all of the words, thoughts, and emotions that the company, it's values, it's industry elicit.

From there I select the words, phrases or imagery, that have the strongest impact.

Colors, type, and structure come into play. I usually do about 50 mock ups, whittling away until i get my 5 strongest ones visually. From there, it's all about the client and my communication and feedback to dial in the logo.

One of the biggest things I would suggest doing to avoid problems would be the design brief. The entire project, samples, colors, thoughts from the client should be laid out in a clear and concise manner which will not only help you become more efficient in your design but will also help the client stay focused and keeps from swaying.

This is a great post. I know it will help a lot of people. I keep falling into the same mistake of thinking that a logo always must have a symbol. This post helped me to go on the right direction. Thanks!

This is a great post. The scientific approach in design always distracts me a bit. In the end it's all about emotion and feeling, especially when redisigning.

Great post. I've translated it to spanish. I hope you don't mind but It's really good to keep it just in english!

Some designers like to complicate the design by putting too much objects on it... and that is a mistake. The K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Stupid) rule should be kept in mind in designing.

Nice post, I'm a web designer at QVC UK and we are still yet to adapt this new logo

Nice post on logo design but what does this have to do with branding? A logo is just a crumb from the brand pie. Case and point - Apple. Nobody can say if it is a good or bad logo. Apple's brand experience and promise make it what it is today.