Inside Small Business | Small Business & Home Business Marketing

Designer’s Corner: Don’t Get Too Personal

Dave Dresen, Director of Design, Logoworks

So, you’ve just received your registration confirmation from the state for your new business name, and you’re excited about the potential success of your company. Congratulations, you’ve put your heart and soul into this, and can think of little else.

As you approach a designer to have your company logo designed, my advice to you would be, don’t get too personal.

You have put your time and money into this project, and you are emotionally invested in it. But now is the time to step back, distance yourself emotionally, and let your designer take some control. If you come to me to design your logo, here is what I will tell you.

I want to help your business succeed and make your hopes and dreams for it become a reality. You are relying on me to help your company succeed. That may sound a little presumptuous, but in reality a logo can either help you build a strong brand identity and have a strong position in the marketplace, or it can be a detriment to your business. Your logo represents your company, and that first impression will influence people to either find out more about your company or ignore it. That may not be entirely fair, but it’s reality.

In the business of branding, the image you show to the world will either help you become the next Nike TM, or just another store around the corner. You need me to turn your idea into an image you can cultivate into a viable, professional brand. This is what I do this for a living. It’s my bread and butter. So let me take the creative reigns for a while.

You probably wouldn’t tell your surgeon the correct way to perform a mitral valve replacement just as you’re about to go under the knife, right? You trust him to know his stuff, and you’re paying him for his expertise. Well, as your graphic designer, you are paying me for mine too. When I create a logo, I am relying on you to tell me about your company, the image you want to represent, and your target audience. After that, it’s up to me to give you an image that will make your company stand out in the crowd and send the right message. If you get too personally involved, it limits my ability to succeed.

Let’s say you like purple, you have a bulldog named Fluffy, and your favorite hobby is sailing. You really want those items worked into your logo. Here’s the hitch; your company specializes in online investment banking, and your target audience is upper income 30 somethings. Do you see the problem? Upper income 30 somethings will not be drawn in to an online investment firm by a logo with a bulldog in a purple sailboat. Understanding your audience and how to market to it is part of the process of designing the logo. This is part of the responsibility of the designer. If you have the right designer, he or she will understand that and will design your logo accordingly.

If you look at some of the more successful companies logos, you will see that simplicity is a major factor in the success of those logos.

A logo that is too busy, and has too many elements is more likely to be ignored by potential customers. It is also more difficult and costly to be reproduced in different medias such as print or web. You want an image that will be immediately noticed, recognized, and related to your product. Now I’m not saying a logo with multiple elements, or an Illustrative logo, isn’t a good idea. It may be just the right thing for your company. It all depends on the company, the products being offered, and the target audience. Even with an Illustrative logo, it is important to keep it clean, simple, and organized.

Just because you have a personal attachment to something doesn’t mean it should be in your logo. Let the designer design. Give your designer pertinent information upfront, and let them use their creative freedom. This is vital. If you “Art Direct” the designer, you limit their ability to be creative, which will adversely affect the outcome of your logo.

Please keep in mind that you have come to me for a reason. Even though it may be difficult, I would highly recommend that you relax, step back, don’t get too personal, and allow me to help you the best way I can…as your designer.

About the Author
David Dresen is the Director of Design at Logoworks. He has 20 years of graphic design experience and his experience ranges from graphic arts to pre-press and production. In addition to a successful freelance design career, David has worked for several agencies and print houses including Wilderness Graphics Agency, Choice Printing, AlphaGraphics, and E-zel Visual Communications. Contact him at DavidDresen@logoworks.com.

           

Posted on Friday, February 9th, 2007 at 6:04 pm and is filed under Small Business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.