Black Logo

Black Logo

3 Quick Logo Design Tips

You named your company. Now it is time to create a logo. Rather than approach the creation of your logo as a graphic arts project, take a pure business approach. We would all like our logo to tell everyone what we do and why we do it as well as why we are the best at what we do, but the reality is, our logo will only do one thing—quickly and visually connect the name of our company with someone's feelings about our company.

I get excited when I see the Apple logo. What does an apple have to do with computers? I feel my adrenaline increase when I see the Nike logo. What does the famous swish have to do with athletics? Does anyone care? What matters is I make a quick, emotional connection to a company or products when I see the logo. On the other hand, I get a pit in my gut when I see a certain insurance company's logo. It's all about connecting emotion with the company or product. And, doing it quickly.

Here are my rules for logo design. As in all of my "rules", learn them, understand them, and then break them with your eyes wide open.

1. Keep your logo to one or two colors including black.
2. Keep your logo simple in design.
3. Don't try to tell your company story with your logo, instead focus on one simple thing.

Here are a few examples of logos from my life and my critique of them:

Simple and very descriptive. QMS was originally known as Quality Micro Systems. As the company moved to laser and color printer products they shortened their name. The downside of the name (not the logo) is when they were listed on the stock market they had to change their initials. Companies that were flagged for any reason have a "Q" inserted at the beginning of their initials. Other positive aspects of this logo include the ability to print or display on any medium without any loss of visual appeal and the ability to add color. It also tells a bit about the company with the piece of paper folding up.

Adobe (PostScript, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat, etc.) originally used this logo. I heard a rumor this was designed by John Warnock's mother. John was one of the two founders of Adobe Systems.

Although its use of color and design was simple, it tried to do too much by conveying the entire name of the company. You could argue that it is quickly recognized but the complexity of each letter causes your eye to spend too much time sorting through the logo, delaying the emotional attachments to the brand.

Adobe spent a significant amount of money to have their new logo designed. The logo is one of the best in my experience. The bold red color grabs your eyes and can easily be changed to black for applications when color can't be used. The letter "A" in the logo allows the use of the logo without the word "Adobe" attached and the reader still has immediate recognition. The red also draws out a powerful emotional reaction with a power statement. The logo can easily be adapted to newer styles and various applications. It can even be rendered in 3-D.

Here are a few examples of other applications of this logo. I might mention that once you choose a color for your logo, be uncompromising in change. I apologize that two of the three logos displayed below are using different shades of the Adobe red. This detracts from the power of a consistent logo and caused the viewer to question if this is the same Adobe. Coca Cola went so far as to trademark their color of red in logo usage!

Also, one of my favorites, the Efficient Networks logo can be used with or without the company name. It is quickly recognized. We had some fun with this logo displaying it in 3-D and spinning it. We also put a globe behind it and spun the globe. It works on black and white applications such as embossing into plastics products.

Other applications of this logo included putting a clear bubble on top of it to give it a 3-D look when applied as a sticker onto products. The color creates a warm feeling while the angle and opening pointing slightly up generates energy. The logo also implies a smile, again playing on the emotions of the viewer.

When asking for a logo design, resist the temptation to over design your logo. Keep it simple. Remember your fancy, multi-color, detailed logo telling the life story of your company full of blends and design details might look awesome on your computer screen, but when you try creating a version that would look great on your building or on a black and white fax it just won't work. A great logo design can be applied to just about any surface and still look great. Above I gave a "good" example with QMS and two "great" examples with Adobe and Efficient Networks.

If you need more great examples of great logo design look no further than the social media logos from LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Skype is another great example. When designing logos, remember KISS — keep it simple stupid!

About the Author

To read, view or listen to this article go to www.danoybarra.com. You can subscribe to any of the available formats of the article at this site. Dano Ybarra is a global executive, serial entrepreneur, father, husband an Internet pioneer; To learn more about Dano Ybarra please visit www.danoybarra.com. This original post can be found at http://www.mymark.com/blog/danoybarra/2010/10/18/3-quick-logo-design-tips/

How to get fruit punch stain out of a white tee shirt with a black logo?

Pre-treat with tide in a spray bottle, then scrub with a toothbrush

then use Tide with Bleach Alternative with hot or warm water

I suggest you leave it overnight in a bucket after pre-treating

Don't put it in the dryer until the stain is completely gone, otherwise the stain will settle.

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