Because there are a lot of expenses when starting a new business, many owners consider hiring friends or family members to design their logo in order to save money. Or, they may think it’s a good idea to tackle it themselves. All you need is some Adobe software,right?

Of course this can be great if you have some talented friends or you’re a logo designer yourself, but skimping on your company branding and logo design will cost you money in the long run.

What makes a successful brand?

Well, it depends on your audience. Before you begin designing your logo, you must consider how your new business fits into the marketplace, and how you want to distinguish yourself from the competition. Your brand identity isn’t just a clean typeface that looks good when on a trucker cap, it’s one small part of an interrelated set of graphic elements that form a comprehensive visual language, making your company memorable to consumers.

Form answers to these questions, then you can start the logo design process.

-Who are you?
-What do you do?
-What makes you stand out from your competition?
-Who is your audience, how do you reach them, and why should they care?

Simplicity is key

In a world full of commercial and visual over-saturation, you want your logo to be simple and instantly recognizable. Your customers have a very short attention span, so your first impression needs to be impactful and memorable. Use your finished logo as a basis for developing further communication standards, such as taglines, patterns, color schemes and similar graphic languages used across all your social channels. Don’t skimp on the details such as icons or thumbnails for your social channels, make them as clean and finessed as your final logo! If you have a memorable name and all these elements have a similar look and feel that is impressive and considered, over time your customers will instinctively recognize and recall your initial brand impressions, leading to more business.

Work with experts!

At Forge, we execute creative projects for existing brands but we’re also experts at creating and launching new ones. (Check out some our previous logo designs here.) Forge Graphic Works recently worked with Oregon Landscape Company to create their brand standards when they recently launched their new landscaping company in Southern Oregon. They wanted a comprehensive identity package to elevate their presence and show customers that although they may not be the cheapest option around, they are the best option and not a commodity provider with commodity services.

Using advanced technology to complement their years of experience in the industry, they offer full design and CAD services in addition to their landscape offerings, often using drones or other technology advances to measure, plan and fully render their proposed projects for customers.

We were stoked to work with them on finessing their name, designing their logo, and creating a comprehensive set of graphic deliverables to make a big splash into the marketplace. This included worker apparel designs, taglines, vehicle wraps and bumper stickers + signage.

(They are now booking into 2023, and while we’re sure it’s a sole result of their impressive brand identity, we might be biased.)

If you’d like help launching or re-imagining your brand identity, reach out to us and strike up a conversation, we’re experts at it!

Call 503.894.9164 or fill out the form below, and let’s make something great together.

CALL 503.894.9164 OR FILL OUT THE FORM BELOW,
AND LET’S MAKE SOMETHING GREAT TOGETHER!