5 Golden Rules of Logo Design to Remember at All Times

Regardless of their size and where you put them, your logo plays a crucial role in the success of your business.

Your company logo appears on your website, business cards, letterhead, apparel, and both traditional and online marketing and advertising materials. It is an element that facilitates and boosts brand recall among your potential customers.

More importantly, your logo also works as the constant symbol of your brand that communicates your key message.

All these reasons highlight the importance of having a well-thought-out and designed logo from the start.

A Handy Guide for Designing Your First Brand Logo

Whether you are getting into logo designing in Dubai as part of your job or creating one for your business, there are five important rules that you have to keep in mind to come up with the perfect design.

These five golden rules are:

1. Ensure the logo reflects your brand in an exceptional yet authentic way.

Many first-time entrepreneurs make the mistake of wanting a logo that looks like that of their competitors.

Whether you are a budding designer or thinking of a logo for your venture, avoiding this mistake is a cardinal rule you should follow.

Your logo is one of the crucial elements that can make your company stand out. As such, having one that looks like that of your competitor’s won’t help you achieve this purpose.

When designing your logo, you have to think outside the box. You need to come up with unique ideas and bring them to life.

Adding a symbol or “bug” to your logo can help make it unique. However, you have to ensure it relates to your product or service, company characteristic, competitive advantage, or at the very least, your industry.

If you are aiming for a progressive, modern image, you won’t go wrong with incorporating an abstract symbol, especially if the logo is for a tech company.  

However, be careful about going for something that’s too distinctive or different since you also have to ensure your logo represents your brand clearly.

2. Keep it simple.

Having a logo that represents your brand clearly starts by having a simple design. This means avoiding the need to squeeze in too many elements.

The best logos are unique without being complicated and, at the same time, deliver something unexpected and attention-grabbing.

Your potential customers should be able to recognize your logo immediately at a glance. They won’t be able to do this if it looks muddled and disorderly.

Keep in mind that the simpler the logo, the easier it will be to identify.

You will know if your logo is simple or not is by enlarging it and checking if it remains clear. If the whole thing or certain elements lose clarity when enlarged, you have to rethink and redesign it.

3. Make it timeless.

The most memorable logos are those that stick around for a long time.

It should be timeless and last the test of time.

To check this element, think about how your logo will look in 10 years. Will it still look fresh, eye-catching, and relevant? Or outdated and dowdy?

Timeless logos are also those that have simple shapes and layouts. They do not contain overly complex graphical elements and gradients.

Additionally, they have limited colors and are still easily recognizable even when scaled down.

When you have all these elements, you are on the right track to designing a timeless logo.

4. Create the logo in black and white first.

When making your first logo, use two colors first: black and white. Doing so will help you stay focused on its key message and choose the right elements to incorporate.

Once you are satisfied with this version, you can fill the logo with colors.

However, make sure the logo looks great in black and white first. If not, it won’t be appealing and eye-catching in any other color you try.

If you already have your official brand imagery guidelines, you will do well to use colors from the established palette.  

And when choosing a background, make sure it provides a sufficient contrast with all the other elements of the logo.

For instance, if your logo is white or in any neutral hue, opt for a dark background, such as black or blue.

5. Prioritize readability.

Regardless of where you use or display your logo, you have to ensure it is readable.

Start by choosing a font that is easy to read. However, stay away from overused font types and those that look unprofessional and won’t be taken seriously by people.

Once you have selected your font, check its readability. Do this by looking at it on various platforms, including your website, email footer, and social media accounts.

View it from different devices as well, including from your desktop, tablet, and smartphone. Also, print it using different sizes and types of paper and assess its readability.

Tweak the size if you are having a hard time reading the text. And be prepared to choose another font in case your logo scores low in terms of readability no matter how many times you experiment with its size.

Designing logos requires lots of trial and error. But when you follow these golden rules, you will have an easier time going through the entire process and churning out great results at the end.

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