Today on #MakersTV I talk about the essential elements you need to ensure your logo has to make it professional and well-designed.

I’ll get straight to it then! The 5 keys of a good logo are the following:

Strong Brand

You have to know your brand and it has to be strong. You should know who your customers are, what your purpose is, what your brand messaging is, and what the personality of your brand is in order to create the perfect logo.

Simple

Keep your logo simple. It helps to tell a brand’s story and one mistake is trying to tell the story with imagery or an illustration. It is unnecessary to put these in your logo because your logo needs to be memorable and not too busy. The main thing you want people to remember is the name of your business. It needs to be functional and scalable. It needs to work on paper, clothing, on the computer, or across a lot of different things if you plan to be a really strong business. 

Appropriate

It must be appropriate for its intended use and target audience. You need to keep in mind that every color,shape, and typeface has a meaning and a feeling behind it. That’s what graphic design is all about.  You need to make sure that you use the correct elements to tell the right story.

I would like to share a quote from Just Creative which resonates so much to this key element:

“It is also important to state that a logo does not need to show what it sells. A logo is purely for identification.”

So if you sell dresses you don’t need to have a dress logo or if you sell candles, you don’t need to have a candle logo. 

Colour palette

You need to be able to use your logo across different platforms. You need to work on a limited colour palette specifically black and white or just black or just white. Especially when it comes to collaborations, it will make everything easier. 

Typeface

It should have a maximum of two (2) typefaces. The main mistake is not putting enough thought or consideration into the typeface being used. The design can be let down with a bad type choice. You need to consider the typeface or your design across everything in your business to make sure that the typeface you use is sending the right message to your customers. 

Another main mistake is using too many typefaces. It will only confuse your customers what specific message you are trying to send across. 

To learn more about the essential elements of a good logo, you can read about it in my blog post at the Makers Collective. You can also download the Know your Brand workbook, a guide to help you get really clear about your overall brand before delving into creating a visual brand identity.