Secrets in a logo design process

Effective design takes time - faster is not necessarily better...

Logo design houses that crank out a logo in a day or two as a standard service are doing just that - cranking 'em out. Quality design takes time. It is as simple as that. Designers need to research your company, your market, and your needs. And they need to create original work (that can be trademarked and/or copyrighted) otherwise you may print your logo on everything only to find out that the icon that took two days to create came off an obscure clip art CD, and is, in fact being used by dozens of other companies. And keep in mind - the less distinctive your logo is, the more difficult it is to trademark or copyright. Three multicolored brush strokes may be wonderful and all, but the trademark office will be less than enthused. Watch out for quickies. Reputable logo design firms usually charge very large premiums for rush design work - a team of designers has to drop all other projects and concentrate all their energy, time and equipment to your project and requires overtime salaries, etc., to be paid. This translates into a larger bill for you.

Communication is paramount...

Can you reach your designer by e-mail and/or phone, or with local designers visit their studio? The more professional houses are like any other business; they have studios, offices and customer service staff. Graphic design is their business, not a part-time sideline. Communication is the name of the game. More importantly, can you communicate DIRECTLY with your designer. If you can't (i.e.: "we'll pass the message on", or "we only communicate via e-mail") usually indicates you're working with a house that employs freelancers. Not that this is a major issue in itself, unless you want more work created at a later date. The designer may no longer be available, and your 'look and feel' may be at the mercy of someone who's not familiar with your work, or worse, someone who's style you detest.

Look at the firm's own identity. It'll never be better than that...

Would you hire an accountant who was always under audit? A mechanic whose car never worked? A dentist with lousy teeth? The same should apply to your graphic designer. Look at their identity. Their look-and-feel. They NEVER get any better than this - this is, after all, their advertising, to the world, of what they are capable of. If you don't like the way their company is presented, what is the likelihood of them creating an effective design for you?

Beware of the cookie-cutter, shake-and-bake logo design 'package'...

By default, a logo is a search for originality. So why then, would anybody resort to using "Pre-Made' or logo design templates (simply clip art by another name). In order to save a few dollars at the onset, you're going to end up with a logo that is weak, unoriginal, and potentially infringing upon somebody else. Sure, you'll save a few hundred dollars now, but you're going to spend thousands (perhaps tens of thousands) in REPRODUCING your logo. Don't risk it all by dealing with an untested or anonymous vendor. (See our Copycats section for more).

Watch out for multiple domain disorder as well. It's a common practice for design companies to have multiple web addresses (domains) - all with different names, and oddly, different prices - in order to eventually snag your business. The search engines are peppered with such sites, some of them vaguely identified offshore design houses. But you have to ask yourself - if a corporate identity company can't create, and believe in their own logo, corporate identity and name, or they resort to displaying (without authorization) other designer's work (or business material) how can they possibly create an original logo that will work for you?