Logo Design: It’s a Process

One of the most important traits of a logo is that it truly stands out—it’s often the customer’s first impression of a company and one of the most significant elements of your brand identity. Creating a logo is more than just a great design; a logo should be a direct reflection of your company’s mission, values and promises to your customers.

So how do does the process work?

Client Discovery

The discovery process involves several good, quality conversations with the company. Your company brand is centered on company culture, values, promise and mission—all of which must be incorporated into the logo itself. The discovery phase helps to develop an identity that is aligned with your company goals. It’s essential to demonstrate brand authenticity and accurately communicate what your company provides to the customer. It’s also important to research competitors and fully understand the industry so the logo design truly differentiates from the rest.

The discovery process also includes developing, or re-aligning the brand promise, brand messaging and brand pillars—all of which comprise the brand identity. A great logo can only go so far if the brand isn’t authentic or doesn’t represent the ideas promised to customers.

Brainstorming for Draft Designs

Brainstorming is an essential part of the visual identity development process. Throughout the brainstorming phase, color, concept and an overall design is created. Here’s where sketching—a lot of sketching—takes place. After all, the only way to separate the good from the bad is to have a lot of things to pick from. Dozens of ideas may be designed during this process, but often only a handful are presented to the client.

After the final sketches are chosen, it’s time to create black and white formats for review. Creating the perfect, eye-catching logo requires the company to take careful consideration when choosing which colors and elements to use.

Refinement

The refinement stage often takes time, but don’t lose heart! This is where the client and designer work together to perfect the logo. Elements are chosen, moved around, revised—this process ends when both the designer and client have reached a logo that adequately communicates the company’s brand identity.

Overall, the process of developing a logo is one of the most exciting experiences for both the agency, and the client. After the perfect logo is designed, it’s incorporated into all aspects of the company—from business cards to new signage, and beyond.