I want to make my own logo (Part IV)
Should your logo have meaning? The answer is obvious, yes! The problem is what your logo should mean. A logo is more than a sign or pictogram.
A very common mistake is to be completely explicit. That is, if your business is dedicated to producing shoes, you try to make your logo a shoe. Similarly, if your business makes sweets, you try to convince the designer to put a cake as a logo. My advice? Don't be so literal.
If you notice, Nike doesn't have a pair of shoes on its logo, Camel cigarette company doesn't breed Camels, Apple doesn't sell apples, Shell fuels doesn't market seafood, Puma sportswear isn't exclusively an animal shelter, etc.
Experience indicates that the meaning of the name or the drawing that accompanies the logo does not have to express exactly what it does, much less be in the public domain for your brand to succeed. The client only needs a sound in the form of words, numbers or letters to be able to name you and a certain shape and color identifier to recognize you and associate an experience with that visual stimulus.
No one would think of a blue Coca-Cola, much less written with another typeface. Because people already recognize these two patterns (colors and shapes). Look at these examples and you will see how confusing they can be for yourself. BTW, all these logos are a real mess. Don't trust what you see.
Therefore, we must analyze how our brain recognizes a logo.
If a second of time seems too small to you, I tell you that, in only 40% of a second, your brain performs the following operations:
Detect the color
The colors that are displayed are defined and their possible meaning is analyzed.
Detect the shape
Attempts to recognize basic patterns in order to group objects
Group the objects
Groups objects by position, rotation, size, and color, looking for focal point, contrast, movement, harmony, balance, alignment, repetition, texture, etc.
Compare that visual information
Checks if there is any memory that is similar to what is being seen to identify its meaning.
Add the qualities
The brain assigns certain qualities to each object, based on its experience, to make psychomotor decisions.
React based on experiences
Based on what your experiences (lived or learned) suggest, the most reasonable decision is made and immediate action is taken. You might be paying attention to your favorite song, it doesn't matter... your brain is doing the dirty job for you.
Knowing this, you already have a logical procedure to devise your logo.
First, you define the color that will represent you
Then, you select the shapes that will be used in your logo
Lastly, you work very hard and for many years to build a positive experience for your brand
With these three aspects, your logo is on its way to success. But, if you think that everything will be so simple... you are wrong once again. Luckily, you are very interested in learning and I would love to explain it to you.
It turns out that you shouldn't select a color or shape just because you like it. You must select them for what they mean, from a psychological point of view, because this is the message that will reach the client. Remember that you will not be present to explain the reasons that led you to choose that color and shape.
As if that were not enough, these two factors depend on the social and cultural experiences of each client. That's how it is! What for some will mean one thing, for others it can mean the opposite.
Therefore, I suggest this question for the fifth part of this series:
What color should I use in my new logo?
Thank you very much for your interest in having a very nice logo. I am sure that this information can be applied not only to this topic.
Take good care of yourself, please! See you in the next part.
►Part I, II, III, IV, V, VI...
PS: Logos are properties of their respective brands/owners. They are used and modified under fair use doctrine for educational purposes only.
...and you will also help the author collect more tips.