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The logo is perhaps one of the most important, if not the most important, aspects of business branding. It is the way that customers will recognize your business from anywhere. Many business owners think that designing a logo is simple, but it can actually be quite challenging.
What is it that makes logo design so hard?
Logo design is challenging because:
- Logos need to be simple, yet eyecatching
- Logos have to be recognized from anywhere
- Logos have to be applicable on any medium
- Logos have to fit their niche and audience
- Logos are technical
Consider using a graphic design tool that includes a logo maker. We recommend Placeit.net for this because their logo maker has thousands of pre-made templates you can customize, and they give you full commercial usage rights so you can copyright, trademark, and sell the logo you create.
Making the right logo for a business can be a very nuanced and time-consuming process. Read on to find out more about the parts of logo design that are difficult and challenge graphic designers everywhere.
Why Are Logos So Hard To Create?
Although logos seem simple to create at first glance, they require a lot of ingenuity and time. Let’s go into detail and explore some of the specific reasons why creating a good logo presents a challenge to even the most experienced graphic designers.
1. Logos Need a Simple Intricacy
The best logos are those that are simple and easy to recognize, yet tell the whole story of a brand in one graphic. Achieving this balance is one of the biggest struggles that graphic designers face. More often than not, a logo comes out being too detailed for customers to remember it or not detailed enough.
When companies are designing their logo, they have a hard time conveying their needs and wants to the designer because there is so much they want their logo to say. As a result, the graphic designer may create hundreds of sketches before coming up with a logo that is everything the company is looking for, A logo should always be self-explanatory.
When logos are simple, they become a lot easier for people to remember and spot from amongst thousands of other designs. Simplicity is the key to the other aspects of a great logo. A simple logo is versatile, eye-catching, memorable, and so much more.
2. Logos Have To Be Easily Recognizable
Anyone should be able to look at a logo and remember the company that it belongs to. After all, it is a non-verbal representation of everything a company stands for. If you think about it, the logo for the shoe brand Nike, a check mark with no other embelllishments, is one of the logos that people remember the most. They look at it and think, oh yeah, that’s Nike’s logo.
Making a recognizable logo is just as difficult as making it simple. In order to make a symbol like the Nike check mark that people remember in seconds, the graphic designer has to do a lot of research including checking out the direct competition and scoping out color and pattern options.
Your logo should also be timeless and recognized for years.
The graphic designer will work with you to make a logo that is unique and shares what you wish, but still stands the test of time.
3. Logos Have to Be Versatile and Fit Anywhere
One of the biggest challenges when making a logo is ensuring that it can still fit and be seen on any medium. After all, a company places its logo everywhere: signs, flyers, billboards, tv ads, websites, you name it.
The fonts and colors on your logo will change with the seasons and the feelings you want to convey, but it should still be easy to spot. The logo should be able to be sized to fit anywhere from a company letterhead to a roadside billboard. While working with a graphic designer to make your logo, ask yourself if your logo will still look good if:
- It is put in reverse
- The colors are changed or reversed
- It is transformed into a digital logo
- The size changes
Making sure that your logo can be adapted to any space you want to display it in is key to proper branding. This is a unique challenge that may take some time to solve, but when a solution is found, it will be so beneficial. The more places you can display your logo, the more people will get to know your business.
4. Logos Have To Fit The Niche of the Business and Audience
The logo of any business should be a reflection of the customer base they want to market to. The target audience should connect with the logo and feel excited to show off the logo to their family, friends, and loved ones after making a purchase.
Graphic designers and the business owner should discuss the target audience and ways to make the logo match them. For example, a kid-friendly logo should have bright colors and a playful design that is appealing to children. However, a logo does not need an explicit connection to the business industry (pots and pans for culinary, planes for aviation, etc).
Designing a logo for a specific audience and niche can be difficult for designers if the business is unique. The more niche and specific a business is, the more challenging it will be to design a logo that meets the business needs.
If the logo does not match the business, customers will not want to buy their products and choose a competitor instead. The logo should appeal to both the business owner and the customer base.
5. Logos are Technical and Require Graphic Design Expertise
Sure, anyone can design a logo, but a trained graphic designer can take it from good to great because they have the technical knowledge to make a pleasing design. Even logos that look simple on the outside, like the Olympic Rings, have a tremendous amount of thought put into them. The best logos are not made overnight, or even in one day.
The more pleasing a logo is, the more that people will engage with it and want to know about the company it belongs to.
Conclusion
Logo design is a challenge because logos have to be simple, recognizable, versatile, complimentary to the business, and a technical feat. Graphic designers spend so much time making a logo that both the business and customer base will love. After all, logos are one of the first things that draw customers to a business.
