“Although there is controversy about whether or not you should judge a book by its cover, most people probably still do. Your logo is like the “cover” for your business, so you want to make a good first impression. Since your logo is the first thing your clients will see, you want it to give off the right message of what your business represents. Without proper market research and design skills, your logo might not say what it needs to, and it may not portray your brand message correctly, or at all. These are just some of the reasons you should hire a professional logo designer.”
-Eldie’s Logo Designer
Your logo is the heart of your brand, so you want to make sure you give it all the attention it needs. Your logo will be the first impression and can ultimately decide how customers view your brand.
There is actual evidence that shows that the color and shape of a logo can affect the way that people interact with a business. Let’s talk about why it is important to hire a professional when it comes to your logo.
Hiring a Logo Designer Will Save You Time
As a business owner, you know how valuable your time is. This is the first reason you should hire a professional logo designer. Instead of spending hours learning about what’s popular right now, design elements, branding, and so much more, you should spend your time focusing on other aspects of your company while a logo designer handles your logo.
Furthermore, designing a logo isn’t as simple as it seems. You have to consider the colors, shape, and fonts you want to use, but there are a lot of other considerations as well. You want to be able to have variations of your logo so that it will look good no matter where it’s placed.
Another thing to consider when thinking about hiring someone to do your logo design for you is that they know what’s popular now and what’s already been done. A professional is going to design you a logo that is timeless so that it will continue to be attractive even after the status quo has changed.
Take a look at our portfolio to see some of the logos we have made for our clients. Our logos are unique to each brand and are made by following the proposed client sketch/draft of the concept that is discussed during the first meeting.
It’s Worth the Money
Everyone’s probably seen the free logo design websites where logos are already generated and you can add your business name. While they are free, they are not going to be good quality across different platforms.
Furthermore, they will not be unique since anyone can use those websites. If you are serious about your brand, then you want customers to be able to identify you and not to get confused by an identical logo. A distinctive logo is going to set your brand apart from the rest.
Another reason that hiring a professional is worth the money, is that it is saving you time. This was mentioned before, but time is money and it’s important to think about how much time you would actually be saving.
Learning about logo design is only half the battle; the designing process itself can take a lot of time. So, if you’re having trouble deciding whether or not you should spend money on a professional logo, consider all the money you could be losing by taking the time to do it yourself.
Consistency is Key
Hiring a logo designer means you will probably go back and forth with a few ideas and changes, and then you will have a final logo. One logo that will represent your entire brand. This is really important because customers will begin to identify that image with your business. This is called brand recognition. If you use a free site, or keep changing up your logo, then there will be no consistency with the image associated with your brand.
For example, we’ve all seen the Nike symbol or the Apple logo. When you see the Nike check mark, you know it’s from the brand Nike. We associate all kinds of brands through their logos this way. This is why your brand needs a consistent, unique logo. As your business grows, more and more people will be able to identify you by the logo you choose; so, it’s important to pick a good one and stick with it!
A Professional Logo Will Give You a Professional Image
Professional logo designers are dedicated to making your vision come to life with your logo. As our Logo Designer mentioned before, your logo is like the cover for your business, so you want people to know that you’re serious about your business by your logo. Whether your business gives off a more professional feeling or a more whimsical one, your logo should still reflect that you want to do business with your customers.
Moreover, building trust with your customers is very important, and a professional image is going to send out the right message to them. If your customers identify your logo with trust and integrity, then you know your logo is doing exactly what it should be. A professional is going to make sure that is what your logo does; that’s precisely what they’re trained to do!
Now you know all of the reasons WHY you should hire a professional logo designer, but you may still be wondering HOW to hire a logo designer. Here are some tips to help you decide which logo designer is right for you.
1. Define what your needs are.
Before you find a graphic designer, you need to evaluate your logo design needs. Are you needing a brand new logo from scratch? Or do you just need to update the one you already have? It’s a good idea to make a list of your business needs and summarize what your company is.
You’ll want to tell what your company is, who your target audience is, what services or products you provide, and what your logo design project goal is. You can even tell the logic behind your brand. All of this will give the logo designer some background information so they can help customize your logo to your business.
Another important piece of information is where/how your logo will be used. Are you printing t-shirts or mugs, putting up a new sign, or just putting it on a business card? Do you want color or just black-and-white? What type of logo do you want? This will factor into how your logo is built, as well as how long it will take. You need to include your timeline so that the designer can decide if they can make it happen by the time you need it.
This may seem like a lot, but it is beneficial in the logo design process. This will help you as you talk to different candidates to be your designer so that you can end up with the perfect logo for your brand.
2. Set a sensible budget.
With hiring a professional, comes paying for a professional, so you want to be realistic when thinking of your budget. If you already have a set budget, see what a designer offers within that budget. It’s okay to not have a budget and to check around to compare pricing as well.
If a designer comes back and is over your budget, don’t get discouraged yet. See if there is any way to lower the cost by reducing the amount of revisions or concepts they provide. The answer may be no, but there is no harm in asking.
Be mindful when discussing the price with a designer. There is a lot of work and time that goes into designing a custom logo; many hours that you won’t even see. Their prices are what they are for a reason, so you may just have to increase your budget or find a different designer that does work within your budget if one designer is too high.
3. Does their portfolio appeal to you?
You’ll want to take a look at some of their past work. However, be careful not to get hung up on the colors/fonts. Every logo is going to be customized to the person or business, so one company may want neon colors, while another looks for more earthy tones.
Look for a designer who has a variety of logos on their portfolio. This means they are able to fit the logo to your needs and provide the best custom service for you.
Here is a series of questions to ask yourself:
- Could this logo work in only one color?
- Is this logo adaptable?
- Will this logo still look good in 20 years?
- Is this logo distinctive?
A good logo is versatile, memorable, and timeless. A professional logo designer will be able to create a logo that answers ‘yes’ to all of those questions.
4. Take a look at feedback from clients.
Reviews are everything. Oftentimes, people won’t leave a review unless they feel passionately about it, whether good or bad. Be sure to check out different logo designers’ reviews from clients to see how pleased they were with their work. This will give you a good idea whether you want to reach out to them.
5. See how well they communicate.
Communication is so important. You want to work with someone who has a fast response time and keeps you up-to-date with the status of your project. If you’re working with someone who doesn’t communicate well, it could result in a design you don’t love or a delayed timeline.
A good logo designer is going to implement your ideas as well as incorporate some of their own, communicating with you the entire time. Before beginning the work, be sure to ask them what their design process is so you can keep up with the progress along the way.
However, you are hiring a professional, so you want to step back and let them go through the process. There are some steps you won’t see, and that’s because it wouldn’t make sense to someone who doesn’t design logos. You want to make an informed decision on who you’re hiring so you can sit back and relax while they take over this task for you.
Things To Know Before Doing It Yourself
After reading this far, you may still be wondering if it’s really necessary to hire a logo designer. I’m sure you’ve seen DIY options out there, but let’s talk about why you shouldn’t try to do it yourself.
It’s not as “free” as advertised
Initially, DIY may seem like a better option if you don’t have the funds to hire a logo designer. However, it could cost you more in the long run.
Let’s say you make your own logo from a free site or you make it completely from scratch. Overtime, your business could grow or you could just decide you want to change your logo to get a more professional looking one. However, if you have put your logo on t-shirts, business cards, mugs, signs, etc., you will spend so much money reprinting all of your merchandise. Moreover, if your business has grown to where people are identifying your brand by your logo, you’ll have a hard time changing your logo while still maintaining brand association.
Rebranding could hurt your business, and you’d be spending beaucoups of money to get your logo back out there. So even though DIY is “free”, it’s really not.
It’s not actually unique
If you use a free logo design website, you may think you’re getting a custom logo, but there could be hundreds or thousands of others that have the same style with different wording, colors, or fonts. Those websites just offer variations of those elements, but that doesn’t prevent two people from ending up with the same exact logo for two different business names.
Here’s an example of two logos that I made on a free logo website:
These two logos are essentially the same. They both include the name of the business, with the slogan underneath, and a little shop. Although the colors are inverted, the fonts are slightly different, and the shops aren’t exactly the same, these two logos look like the same thing. The design of the circle is exactly the same, it wasn’t even changed at all.
You can continue and edit them more to try to make them as unique as possible, but there’s no guarantee. These logos are very generic and not very brand specific, so they’re just not going to be great options.
You’re just not the professional
If you’re reading this article, you’re obviously looking for a logo designer because that’s just not your forte. Professionals know the different types of logos and which type is best depending on what your business provides.
Professionals also know the best fonts and styles, and when to use them. You might create a logo with a pretty cursive font that you really like. However, the font may not be all that easy to read and could potentially turn clients away. Professionals know to make fonts appealing and readable for your target audience.
Logos have a larger impact than you think
At the beginning of this article, our logo designer told us a little about how important a logo is for a company. Even hearing that over and over again, it’s still underestimated just how important it really is.
We’ve talked about the main elements of a good logo design throughout the entire article. There’s fonts, colors, style, adaptability, timelessness, etc. All of these elements go into designing the best logo for your business. Don’t underestimate the impact a logo can have on your brand.
Are You Ready to Set Your Brand Apart?
A professionally designed logo will present your brand in its best fashion. Are you ready to set your small business apart with a unique logo? Contact us to speak with our Logo Designer and learn about our logo design services so we can help you bring your brand vision to life.