A logo represents your company’s identity and place in the world. It is the ambassador of your brand and the focal point of your advertising strategy. You want your logo to be instantly recognizable and hopefully provoke thought about your brand and what it means to the individual when they see it. When well designed, effectively created logos cause people to respond positively to your brand. Your logo also invites new customers to get to know your brand. The symbol intrigues people and they will want to know more about what it means. A logo can also distinguish you from your competition. Consumers know when they see that symbol they will get the quality product or service that they’re looking for.
Brand Saturation
Your brand logo can be everywhere. It can be on your product packaging, website, mobile app and in all the articles that are written in relation to your product or service. This will be the first connection point between your company and its customers. If you include your logo in all your advertising avenues, it will begin to resonate with the public and they will begin to associate all of the ads and promotional information with that one symbol. It will become a visual representation of your company’s reputation. Including small logos on your websites and mobile applications will also let viewers know that they can trust the information provided by the site and feel safe while they interact with it.
Evoke Emotions
Most people rely on emotion rather than information to make brand decisions. Logos are symbols that are easy for people to remember and attach their emotions too. Seeing a logo can instantly recall memories of how they felt when using that brand or what others have told them that they felt while using the brand. For example, a friend shows them the package for a brand of coffee with the logo right on the front and then says, “This coffee tastes great and I think you would really like it.” They might even associate the smell of the coffee with that logo. The next time they see it in the grocery store, they will recall those memories and emotions and it will remind them that they wanted to try that brand of coffee. Some adjectives you want to be associated with your brand are trustworthy, valuable, sturdy, strong, long lasting and a great value. These adjectives all convey positive emotions for the people that will be using your products. Your logo should always represent a positive force in potential consumers’ lives.
Brand Loyalty
A logo should be well thought out and original to have a lasting effect on its viewers. A logo should also be consistent and placed on all your advertising materials so that it can be associated with the positive reputation of your company. After it becomes well known, it should be consistent and remain constant for the people who value the brand. However, there are some instances where the logo can be changed. One example is if the logo has become outdated. Maybe some of the design elements such as font texts or colors have fallen out of style. Then the logo can be redesigned to make it more modern and stylish. Another logo redesign situation might be after a negative influence on the company’s reputation has occurred. The new logo can be a symbol that the situation has been resolved and that a new company has emerged. Both situations should be accompanied by extensive new ad campaigns to inform the public that there has been a logo change and to begin rebuilding the brand loyalty to the new logo.
Enduring Logo Examples
Some of the most memorable logos are ones that almost everyone easily recognizes and have been with most of us all our lives. Probably one of the most recognizable logos of all time is The Red Cross. Almost everyone in the world instantly knows that this is a symbol of protection and neutrality and has simply become associated with help. You can see this symbol anywhere and know that you can go there and obtain help for almost any situation. Another example of an established logo is that of the McDonald’s Golden Arches. Due to expansion and market penetration, you know that you can obtain food anywhere in the world when you see the McDonald’s logo. The Target symbol is another very successful logo. It’s very simple and literal like The Red Cross logo, so people instantly recognize it. Apple’s easily recognizable logo is another example of a wildly successful branding campaign. It has all the elements that a great logo should incorporate. It is a picture that is very simple and easy to remember, and it accurately represents the name of the company. It is also probably the best example of a company changing its logo over the years. Its logo has always been a picture of an apple, but it has changed substantially and often over the years to keep pace with contemporary styles. 
Logo Fails
Logo fails are ones that look great at first glance but, upon further review, can sometimes present alternative images. Some you don’t notice a complication until someone points one out to you. Therefore, it is necessary to test run the logo with as many people as possible before releasing it to the world. One example is the current Pepsi logo. At first glance, it looks fine and even similar to the old logo. However, if you add a head and hands to the big divided circle, it looks like an obese person’s tummy where their shirt won’t meet their pants. Sure, this is a stretch, but once you’ve seen it this way, you likely won’t ever look at it the same again. As a greater number of people see it this way and it travels by word of mouth, it could result in destroying your brand reputation. It’s not a good idea to let people think that consuming your product will make them look obese. Negative connotations are the exact opposite effect of a good logo.
A great amount of thought should go into your logo design. You should pay special attention to fonts if your logo will contain text. The font should be modern and have the potential to be stylish and modern for as long as possible. Color should be another important consideration. The colors in your logo should represent your business, but color theory research should be conducted to ensure that the colors don’t have a negative effect on the emotions of its viewers. The design of your logo should also be easy to associate with the type of products you produce. For example, if you’re in the construction business, your logo could include a house, building, road or some type of equipment that instantly gives the viewer some idea of the construction industry. This is not always the case. Sometimes your logo is symbolic vs. representative of your business. You also want to make sure that your logo isn’t similar to other competitors to avoid confusion or even the possibility of trademark infringement.
Tips When Creating Logos
- Use it to tell a story about what makes you unique or how it all started?
- Don't be too literal or it may end up looking like Microsoft clip art.
- Iterate - you won't get it right the first time, take a break, and come back to it.
- Symbols aren't essential. A wordmark or typeface could be all you need.
- Remember that a logo is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.
- A visual double entendre can be clever.
- Consider negative or white space as part of your logo.
- Avoid intricate designs as they don't look good on small objects or apparel.
- Prioritize simplicity. Don't overcomplicate the process or the logo.
Just remember that when first starting to brainstorm it is common to get stuck. Don't stop everything else because you can't decide on a logo. Make sure you look at it objectively, don't always force your personal taste. Sometimes it makes sense but at other times it's not actually helping your cause. Finally, remember that after a while you'll start getting bored with it because you've been looking at it for so long.
These are just some basic ideas when beginning the design process of your logo. The best way to create a quality logo is through the employment of a professional design or advertising company. They’ll be able to research your demographic and competitors’ logos to make sure that you create the best logo possible that accurately represents your brand to the world.