It goes without saying that a good logo serves your business. Some of the obvious reasons include:
- It helps make a great impression (including the ‘first impression’)
- It’s the foundation of your branding
- It gets people’s attention
Your logo is a business ‘conversions-element’. As in, if it is a great logo, it will help you convert more people into paying customers.
But how do you know if you have a good logo or not? Read on…
Logo tip: Paint it black
One of the ‘logo design rules’ (that only some good graphic designers know about) involves ‘painting your logo black’.
It is one of the tests (methods) that is used to:
- Determine if a logo design concept (mock-up) is any good
- If an existing logo needs to be redesigned
It helps figure out if a logo design concept is ‘on the right track’ towards being a good logo.
Here’s what to do:
- Paint the logo black (as in, turn it into a silhouette)
- Resize the logo silhouette at various sizes
If the logo silhouette text/words can be easily understood at various sizes (including quite small) and if the silhouette of the logo graphic can easily be understood (as in, you can see ‘at a glance’ what the logo graphic is meant to represent), it passes this test because you now know the following:
- The logo will be understood at a glance
- People will be able to instantly make sense of your logo
- Your logo will work at various sizes and various usages – eg: as a small bug on your social media posts, billboards, vehicle signage, shop-front signage, business card, flyer, website, etc
[It’s also worth sharing that the colours for a professionally designed logo are only determined (or finalised) once a logo design passes the ‘paint it black’ test.]
As an example, I’ve included below the silhouette of a logo we recently designed for a small business in regional Queensland. [Side note: A case study about the work we did for this business is here.]
Another logo tip: Bold design
In most cases, you will want your logo to get attention. We all know that in business, the more you can make your business stand-out (in positive ways), the more ‘competitive advantage’ your business will have.
A good logo gets noticed!
For example, it will help your business cards get noticed if you display them at local cafes (on their counters, coffee tables, etc), service stations, community notice boards, peg-boards at your local gym, co-working business spaces, on your own office foyer counter, your own desk, etc.
Additionally, when you give someone your business card, the quality of your logo (on the business card) can be the difference between the person:
- Remembering your business
- Complementing you about your business card
- Your business card triggering further conversation
- Your business card helping plant a seed in their mind
- Them thinking, “Gee this looks like a good business card”
Vs what happens if your business card and your logo are average (or no good):
- The person forgets where they put your business card
- They choose to lose your business card (or it goes in the bin)
- They potentially never think about your business ever again
In most instances, a very bold, clean, simple (but thoughtful) logo design is very important!
Your logo is meant to aid your business for years to come. Getting it right the first time is FAR more financially beneficial, and far less costly, than having to get it re-designed in 2 or 3 years time when you realise your existing logo is no good.
Less obvious reasons why a bad logo is not effective
There are many reasons why you would not want to own a bad logo. Some are obvious, including:
- They turn people off
- They are a bad representative of your business
But also consider these less-obvious reasons:
- As our population ages, more and more businesses need to attract greater numbers of younger aged people. Younger-aged people have been exposed to quality design their whole lives. They know what looks good. Your logo needs to be attractive to them
- People who have moved from larger cities to regional Queensland expect a business to have a quality logo, and quality branding. These people are typically NOT going to work with businesses that don’t have a great logo and/or great branding
If you have inherited a business or purchased a business, making sure the logo is high quality is going to be very important for future success. If you want us to review the existing logo, and provide feedback if it should be re-designed or not, contact us. Same too if there is any other reason why you want a new logo.
Conclusion
If you have never ‘painted your logo black’ to test your logo, now is a good time to get this done. If you don’t have the time or software to do this, reach out to us and we’ll do this for you.
A qualilty logo is an investment. It always pays to commission an experienced professional logo designer who understands that your logo is a very important ‘conversions-tool’ within your business. Your future self will thank you.
