The Business of Branding: 9 Things To Know Before Designing Your Logo

Design magnate Steven Gilliatt said “[A logo] should look just as good in 15-foot letters on top of company headquarters as it does one sixteenth of an inch tall on company stationery.”

A logo or logotype as it is often called is defined as a graphic representation or symbol of a company name, trademark, abbreviation, etc., uniquely designed for ready recognition. In other words it is the color, font, the gives an instant impact and an overall feeling of who you are as a photography business. But before you put pencil to paper, or hire a designer to do the same, there are a few requirements you should have to your logo.

1)    Do your research: Know who you are and what you like before you get started. The more your designer knows about you, the better chance they have of nailing your design. The better you know your company and the image you would like it to have, the easier it will be for you to recognize it when it is presented.

2)    Design in black and white first. A logo should be simple enough to work in black and white first. Color is a very strong influence. It is much better to pick a logo when the playing field is even, you can see the fonts and shapes clearly in black and white.

3)    Make it memorable.

4)    Make it scalable (see opening quote).

5)    Make sure it has “legs.” In other words, will this logo work on every application you need it to? On your business cards as well as your website? Can you see it as part of your entire brand?

6)    Know the difference between a logo mark and a logo type. Not every identity needs both.

7)    Make sure it conveys your studio’s personality, style, and attitude.

8)    Know your audience’s demographics then make sure your identity speaks to your target audience.

9)    Ignore trends and make it timeless. A good logo or identity should last you and your studio 10 years. That is why it is worth the investment. Even after 10 years you may just need a facelift, especially if you have established yourself.

Does your own logo stand up to these rules? What are some of your favorite photography studio logos?

Keep checking back to see how we create an identity, it may even give you some ideas of your own.

After very, very careful tallying this weekend, we have the winner of our first ever Identity Kitchen Scholarship. CONGRATULATIONS, Lydia Shannon. She had 324 comments/votes…wow! Her enthusiasm was enough to win unprompted votes from members of my own family and dear friends. Lydia, we can’t wait to get started!

The five finalist were chosen because of their fine, fine work. You should be so proud of yourselves. As a big thank you for entering we would like to offer the remaining 4 finalists, Sherry Lu, Garret Davis, J’Lynn Mak and Cindee Bae any of our marketing or holiday card templates from Identity Cafe. Email me directly and let me know which one you are interested in.

If you would like to see Lydia’s video again, we have it here. Congratulations!

* A note about the scholarship, we will be leaving the voting up all week, until midnight EST on March 27th. That way everyone will have a chance to get their votes in. The winner will be announced on March 29th, 2010.

So without further ado, please meet our first finalist, Cindee Bae. We LOVE Cindee’s vintage modern style. She’s turning 29 next month, and we especially love the fact that Cindee entered our contest after writing up her business plan. Leave comments below to vote for Cindee.