Often start-ups will ask us to design only their logo. And it’s understandable – as budding entrepreneurs, funds are limited to cover the basics. A logo is one of the key items to tick off on the arduous and equally exciting entrepreneurial journey.
We love designing logos – there’s real skill and satisfaction in deciding on the graphic representation of what your business is and what it delivers. While your logo is important and should evoke an emotive response from your target audience, there’s a common misconception that your logo is your brand.
A logo is only one element of your brand. It’s the starting point, more often than not, of a process that should be fulfilled to develop your brand into one that is recognisable and successful. A brand provides the structure to allow your shiny new logo to be applied with maximum effect from the basics such as a consistent colour palette, fonts, photography style, layouts and tone of voice, to your brand essence which captures why your business exists, what you deliver and how.
In an ideal world, the branding process starts with research and brainstorming, not the logo. This includes understanding your business by asking critical questions: What is it that differentiates you from your competition? Why would consumers purchase your product? What value does your service add? We identify and review competitors which is important to establish your positioning – you want to stand out and be unique.
Then comes what many find the hardest part of the process: establishing what we call a Belief Statement. This describes what your company stands for, the core values, mission and goals in an emotive way that draws customers in. You want them to believe what you believe. And believe that your offering is useful to them and the environment. Now you may be thinking “I sell man hole covers so how can my business have a sexy belief statement?”. Well, take Apple’s for example: “We believe that people with passion can change the world for the better.” Sound like a company that sells tech gadgets? No, and that’s exactly the point. It’s all about the difference you make and how you believe it will create impact and that’s what makes this part of the process challenging. It requires creative thought and great copywriting, but most of all meaning.
Once these elements are in place the identity, including the logo design process, flows naturally from there. It means we design your logo, and the accompanying brand elements, to align to your strategy and belief statement making it far more powerful and effective. Its well worth the investment and will pay for itself long term.
