Effective Logo and Graphic Design

Marketing your business is like going on a first date...you want the prospect to see you at your best. Professional logo design, business card design, and marketing materials give prospective customers the impression you care. It's all about the ‘attraction factor’.

There is little correlation between the price and capability of graphic design professionals. When you shop around, you will quickly find out that prices and services tend to be all over the map. The clearer you are on what you want to achieve in hiring a graphic designer and what you expect of them, the greater the chance that you will hire someone who can deliver what you want on time and on budget.

If you have specific design or time line requirements, you need to make that clear up front.

Logo Design

Why is a logo so important?

Branding irons are logos in the most basic form. Cows are branded so it’s a simple process to identify which cow belongs to which rancher.

Identification is one of the most important features of a logo. It visibly provides a way to tell you apart from the competition. It can also show where and when a product was made and gives credibility and substance to your business. It’s often the first awareness a prospective customer will have of your business.

If you have an unappealing logo design, you are wasting a great opportunity to attract attention.

Your logo doesn't have to cost the moon to grab a potential customer’s attention. The more specific you are in your directions, the more you’ll save. Graphic designers work by the hour.

You can create a logo design yourself with just a few tips. Then take it to a designer to build the file in a format that a printer can work with. If your aim is to communicate that you are a professional a business card you printed yourself won’t cut it..

The logo needs to be created in a vector format so it can be used for other design applications. Vector files are built on mathematical equations making them very exact and scalable. Make sure your designer delivers you a copy of your logo in vector format.

Tips to create a Logo that Screams YOU!

Ask your self these questions:

• Who am I? What values and attitudes do I want to express?
• What are current colours that appeal to my target market?
• What do I want to be known for?
• What kind of products/services do I want to sell?
• Who do I want to reach? Age, gender, psychographics
• What’s the best way to communicate with my target audience?
• What do they want from me?
• Where do I fit in the marketplace?
• What’s my goal with this business?
• What do people think of when they think of my business now?
• What do I want them to think in the future?
• What’s my competition doing?
• What do I want to happen when people see my logo?
• What do I want to communicate about my businesses personality?
• What is my business’ culture?

You should have a fairly good idea now about what you want to say. Clip ads from magazines and newspapers and look at what other businesses are using for their logos.

If you need your finished logo next week and know what you want, make sure the designer you are hiring understands working to a deadline and has time to give your work the attention it deserves.

Talk to the printer they use and find out if the files they deliver will be ready to go immediately.

Once you have done your due diligence hiring one professional, it generally becomes easier to hire others.

Your graphic designer and marketing consultant, if they are not the same company, should be working together to build you a strong cohesive brand.