How to Design A Good Logo?

Oh man, what a question. It's probably been asked more than ever in the last few decades.

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As a creative-minded entrepreneur, you will have a clear idea of what a good logo looks like after this article.

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First of all, we need to recognize the logos around us.

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How many logos can you see at the moment, from wherever you are?

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5? 10? 50?

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Now look at them again, but this time identify them by their shape, color, font, and take note of their symbol, geometry, and symmetry.

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They are all pretty different from each other, aren't they?

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And most probably, they are predominantly the logos of brands that are successful in their industries. You are seeing them in front of you, because they serve you somehow.

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Alright, how many of them do you think are "great"? And how many are "bad logos"?

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There should be some criteria behind the good logos, right? Some common ground that elevates brands to higher levels.

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Think of the Apple logo. McDonalds. Mercedes. National Geographic. Amazon. What do they have in common?

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What are the fundamentals of a "great" logo?

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According to Sagi Haviv, a living legend of logo design (and C & G & H partner), three things make a logo good.

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A good logo is:

Simple

Memorable

Appropriate

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Let's look at these criteria one by one.

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First, a logo needs to be simple.

Most "bad" logos suffer a lot from having too much detail. Or too many design tricks at the same time. Or they look more like an artform, than a logo.

By keeping your logo design as simple as possible, you will help your brand to reflect itself in different sizes and circumstances.

The simpler a logo is, the more likely it is to be timeless.

Detailed logos are not the best option, if you want your brand to be responsive and occupy a place in your audience's mind.

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Second, a logo needs to be memorable.

All the efforts involved in branding are done to differentiate businesses from their competitors, so that they can be seen and heard as easily as possible. That's only possible if your brand's logo is distinctive and memorable.

IA logo is alive as long as people can remember, recall or visualize it in their minds. Otherwise, you can't have a durable, robust brand.

They say, "even a 5-year old kid should be able to draw it without looking at it." It needs to be THAT memorable.

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Last but not least, a logo needs to be appropriate.

This is inevitable. You just can't make a good logo for Harley-Davidson with the typeface of the Disney logo.

Each logo needs to be evaluated on its own using criteria specific to its needs.

But in every case, the target audience and the market are the anchors that you cannot afford to ignore.

Your logo needs to be aligned with your brand's goals.

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As Sagi Haviv says, a logo is not communication, it's identification.

It's not the whole sentence, it's the period at the end.

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Don't try to condense all your messages into one tiny symbol. It doesn't work like that.

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Rate the following logo based on its "goodness." Why does it suck?

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Imagery credits:

Kartikey Das, pexel.com

‍Victoria Ouarets, pexel.com