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When Should You Pursue a Logo Redesign?

8/26/2019

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Robin Brown, Graphic Design Associate

When Should You Pursue a Logo Redesign?
Your company’s visual identity should evolve overtime to ensure that your brand is up-to-date, looks modern, and is relevant. But, how exactly do you know when it’s time to change your company logo?

First, you have to determine if your logo is timeless or if it’s starting to look a bit out of date. Think of a few companies whose logos have remained stagnant throughout time, Nike, Google, Apple, and Starbucks may come to mind, but if you pay close attention you’ll notice that even these logos have changed and morphed slightly over time. Google’s first logo featured a bit of beveling along the edges to give it depth, while their present-day logo now features flat letters and a slightly different color scheme since a lot of modern online UX design encourages flat design elements. This is just one example of how you may subtly update your logo every few years to keep up with ever-changing design trends. 
A look at the Google logo over the years.
(Google makes sure to update their logo to match design trends and best practices as the years go on)
Not sure how to tell if your logo is timeless? When in doubt, turn to the five principles of logo design. It should always strive to be:
  1. Simple. Does your logo incorporate any complex graphics or images? If so, it may be time to try and simplify your logo elements by removing any distracting textures, gradients, or complex imagery. Your logo should look just as good on a billboard as it does scaled down to business card size. 
  2. Memorable. Do your customers, clients, or prospects remember your logo? Does it accurately portray what your business does and align with your value propositions? Is it too close to your direct or indirect competitors' branding? If so, consider changing your logo completely or updating the font/logomark to be more unique to your company.
  3. Timeless. Make sure that your logo doesn’t incorporate any fading trends from the 90’s or early 2000’s. Some logo styles are timeless while others are passing trends. A good way to determine which is which could be by looking into design trends from the past decade and seeing if your logo fits into any of the outdated categories (see this great resource for details). Just looking at Google's original logo through a modern lens is almost comical; the wavy bubble letters, the grainy resolution, and overall clipart style are simply long gone from reputable mainstream branding.
  4. Versatile. How does your logo look on a computer, phone, business card, notebook, pen, vinyl banner, etc? Ensure that your logo is scalable and that the colors and logomark look crisp and recognizable on any application. If you do not have a brand style guide complete with all your logo file formats, ask your designer to provide a document that lists your colors and typefaces and ensure that you have all versions and file formats of your logo on-hand for printing purposes. 
  5. Appropriate. A consulting firm will want to convey a different message with its logo than a daycare center and vice versa. Do your color scheme, graphics, and typeface accurately represent the tone of your business? If you are a lawyer, is your font clean and professional? If you run a restaurant does your color scheme invoke feelings of hunger and are your graphics fun and food-related? Take a moment to consider all the elements of your logo and if they are appropriate for your specific business. ​

Your logo should be an accurate depiction of what your company does in the simplest, most easy-to-digest form possible. If you’re unsure if your logo will withstand the test of time or if you need a brand refresh, reach out to speak with a designer about improvements that could be made.  ​
Start Designing
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Crowdsourced Logo Design Services vs. Working with an Agency

4/26/2019

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Author

Robin Brown, Graphic Design Associate

Picture
Because the designers on a crowdsourcing website only get paid if their logo is chosen as the final design, they don’t have a lot of time to commit to each logo design. Instead, they submit similar designs to multiple companies while using common or free images and graphics instead of taking the time to create custom ones. A reputable digital marketing agency takes the time to research your industry and come up with appropriate solutions, whereas a designer who only has a 1/30 or 1/100 chance at getting paid for their work does not have the time to take these steps.

Your Branding Is An Investment

Similarly to how you would hire an agency to create a custom website for you and are willing to pay more for this experience, a logo is an in-depth investment. You want to ensure that you are working closely with the designer every step of the way and that each element of your brand is unique to your business needs and goals. Your logo design is a process and it’s one that you should be a part of.

Too Many Choices with No Professional Guidance

While it may be true that crowdsourcing a logo will provide you with more initial logo options, you won't get the personalized guidance that comes with working with an agency. Yes, it can be helpful to ask friends, family, and co-workers for their opinions about initial concepts, but it’s even more valuable to have the input of a professional designer. A professional designer can help you answer questions about color schemes, font choices, industry trends, and can help you choose a unique logo concept that will withstand the test of time. Designers should be invested in your brand personality, goals, and vision.

After Logo Completion

After your logo is completed, it’s helpful to have a designer you feel comfortable working with, who has experience with your brand and understands your goals. A huge component of brand identity is consistency across channels. Working with a professional agency to design your logo allows for more collaboration between other staff members or designers to better capture the look and feel of your brand identity.

4 BENEFITS OF WORKING WITH AN AGENCY FOR DESIGN

1. Unique Logo
You can feel confident that your logo is 100% unique to your brand and has been created after extensive industry research, knowledge of design trends, and is an appropriate solution to representing your company visually.
2. Professional Guidance
A digital marketing agency can provide you with well-rounded insight to help you make choices about color schemes, fonts, and layout while taking your feedback and ideas into consideration. 
3. Consistency Across Channels
Consistency is indeed key. A digital marketing agency will ensure that your brand identity is translated correctly and efficiently across all your marketing channels. From social media graphics to print marketing pieces, your brand icons, colors, and message will come across in the best way possible. ​
4. On-going Design Support
Once you’ve worked with a digital marketing agency to create a logo, the digital marketing agency becomes an invaluable, trustworthy resource in case you need design services in the future. You can have peace of mind knowing the designers understand your brand identity and are invested in communicating your story in the most effective way. Completing additional projects is  only a phone call away. 
Interested in learning more about digital marketing insights and best practices? Subscribe to our enewsletter and stay in the know!
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Author

Robin Brown, Graphic Design Associate

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