There are so many logo ideas but do you know which logo design type works for your business or which one to choose?
According to Google research, users spend most of their time focusing on your logo before moving on within your website – it’s 6.48 seconds – yup that’s more time than anywhere else on your site! Yikes! You literally have seconds to win your potential customers over.
Whilst your Brand is NOT a logo, you can see how IMPORTANT it is.
Your brand is made up of so many moving parts. From everything you say and do throughout your marketing. It’s all encompassing, from the tangibles to the intangibles.
A logo is one small part of your visual styling.
You know for a fact that in your business you want to look and feel fantastic, and part of that is your logo. So, whilst your brand is not a logo, it’s a major part of how it will make you feel about your business.
Your brand is also about being consistent – looking visually beautiful – everywhere.
I ask you, “how can you make an impact with no logo or identity?”
It’s all about layering – start with fonts, colour palette, logo, then imagery, personal photos, branded photos, content, blog, website, icons… each one will add the layers to your visual brand.
A logo is an essential and highly valuable element of your brand. Make a lasting impression on your audience.
But what type of logo do you want for your business?
And what type of logo can you have?
It’s important you know what kind of look you want for your business.
There are lots of options you may wish to consider when you are thinking about a logo for your brand and in this blog we’re going to cover three main logo ideas… so let’s dig in.
TEXT BASED LOGO DESIGN IDEAS
First of all, we have a text based logo design ideas, which is pretty self-explanatory, this is a logo which is purely text-based.
This may be your name or your business name or your business name with a tagline.
Fonts are really clever and can literally make or break your logo design.
They can add flair, personality and character to your designs so choose wisely and don’t go too crazy!
Each and every font has its own personality – and at this point you’re probably thinking, “eh what, explain please, Vicki.”
Let’s take a beautifully looped font for example, this type of font can add a touch of elegance and personalisation, as they add that genuine look and feel of your actual signature.
TOP TIP: On this point actually, you can also scan in your signature and use that as your logo. It’s totally unique to you, personal and no one will have anything like it.
Brushy fonts suit artists and creative businesses as they tend to have uneven edges around each letter, making it look like it’s been hand painted or drawn. Like this one…
Fonts that are very popular at present, and what I like to call fashion fonts, are script fonts, or cursive as they are also know.
These fonts have a unique way of injecting a feeling of movement in them as well as grace too.
This is due to the bounciness of the font.
When I say bounciness, I mean that the letters bounce from one letter to the other and don’t often run on a straight line.
Script fonts are a combination of fluid and random strokes which look like they are almost dancing.
They can be highly irregular in form and can also be super decorative too featuring lots of strokes that join together creating more fluid and seamless lines.
They flow up and down with ease, flowing from one letter to the other in elegant up and down strokes and not one stroke is in the same place as the previous or next letter.
These types of fonts work incredible well within the female entrepreneur market as they ooze femininity and also work fabulously within the wedding industry too.
Considering your type of business has a massive influence on your font choices and logo ideas. You must choose the appropriate fonts for your brand and your market – make it relevant.
For example a really bold, thick font is brilliant for fitness businesses and reinforces the feeling of strong and sturdy.
You can see from the images below how impactful a good font choice makes.
Then see what happens when a style of font that doesn’t suit a specific business type is used.
They just doesn’t have the same impact do they?
It’s so simple, but so effective when you DO get it right.
Think of it like this, when you buy an outfit, finding just the RIGHT pair of shoes to match your outfit is crucial. It finishes off the outfit, it adds style, it feels complete and it feels RIGHT.
The same applies to your font choices. It will add style, personality and make a great impression.
Think of the first impression you want to make.
Think of the appropriateness of your font choices.
Does that font ooze the quality of your services or your products?
Your customers will judge you on your suitability – do you look suitable to buy from?
Consider how Google, Visa, Coca-Cola all use text based logos. The difference here is that the font has been created bespoke for them. So it’s a flip of a standard font.
Things to consider for text based logo ideas:
- Does it look classic?
- Is it appropriate for my industry?
- Is it easy to read?
- Are there fonts you gravitate towards all the time?
- Will I still like this in 1-3 years time?
- Does it look like a faddy or fashion font?
- Will it stand the test of time?
- Is this just to do me for the next 1-3 years until I hire a graphic designer?
- Does it excite me?
- Do I feel good about this?
- Would I like a contemporary or traditional feeling font?
- What style do I like?
In summary: text based logo ideas:
- Choose a font that communicates well.
- Choose a font that is relevant to your business type.
- Choose a font that supports your messages and qualities.
- Choose a font that your customers will interact with.
- Choose a font that fits with your overall brand goals and the goals for your business – meaning – if you have BIG plans for the future of your business – then choose a font that will evolve with you as you grow (quite often fashion fonts or what’s in trend right now won’t stand the test of time).
ICON BASED LOGO IDEAS
Up next are our icon based logo ideas. Also known as a brand mark or logo symbol.
These types of logos are made up of a shape or symbol to distinguish what they do.
Apple, use an apple.
Nike, use a swoosh or tick.
Twitter, use a bird.
Dropbox, an open box.
iTunes, a musical note.
The icon you use for your business can also be abstract. It does not have to be as obvious as the examples above.
Abstract icon based logos can be anything at all flowers, starbursts, circles – I mean you could use any shape or symbol, but designed in a unique and different way.
You can also use the initials from your name to create a unique symbol.
This type of logo idea is called a monogram logo. Brilliant examples of this are IBM, HP, CNN, M (for McDonalds)… I could go on!
This is one I designed for Katie Macdonald.
To Sum Up Icon Based Logo Ideas
- They can be an obvious shape or symbol or an unobvious shape.
- If you are drawn towards this type of logo find an icon that really sums up what your business does or what your business achieves for people.
COMBINATION LOGO IDEAS
The third kind of logo idea is a combination and mix of both text and icon. Like this one you can purchase from my logo shop.
Combining both your words or text or letters with a shape or icon.
These types of logos are by far the most popular that I design when working one to one with my clients.
There are so many options for layout.
The words can be stacked on top of each other or placed the side or below the icon.
The text parts of the logo can also be shaped around the icon – for example a circle where the text mimics the shape of the outer edge of the circle.
The brilliant thing about this type of logo is that you can pull out the icon from the text and use this a stamp or watermark throughout your marketing.
This type of logo allows you that flexibility.
If you check out Revel & Raise Logo I designed. I used the R from the quirky font we chose for the word Revel and then we’ve mirrored it to signify a bow on top of the box. Genius!
To Sum Up Combination Logo Ideas
- Combination logos require balance. The balance of text and icon and possibly even a tagline is pivotal.
- Perfectly balanced logos require the proportionality of each element to be spot on.
- Balance is more important in any other logo idea because there’s probably more text to read.
- Ensuring that each element within the logo is super clear and stands in its own power is key for these types of logo.
To Sum Up… Different Types of Logo Ideas…
You can choose any type of logo for your business. There are no rights or wrongs here.
It’s all about what you feel attracted to and what would work best for your business.
Consider the ways you will use your logo on and offline.
No matter what type of logo you choose for your business, the ultimate goal should always be uniqueness and impressiveness – does it leave an impression on your customers? Does it make you captivating and fascinating?
Lots to consider in choosing your logo type! I do hope I have made those creative juices flow.
I’d love to know which logo idea you love the most and actually, what type of logo do you have for your business currently?
Pop your comments below.
Vicki x
