Never underestimate the power of a good logo! When I volunteered to handle PR for a local 5k charity race, a graphic artist volunteered to develop a logo for T-shirts, signage, and other advertising and promotional pieces. The race course meanders through a lakeside park, and the event is called "Take the Lake." The artist developed a very bold, block-style graphic of a fish with little "feet" (like he is running) with thick wavy lines above and underneath and the words "Take the Lake." The logo was a winner on several points: 1) it "played" well in any single color - all white, all black, all dark blue on a light blue background (symbolizing the water!), and more; 2) it was bold and definitive, and easily recognizable... it created "branding," and 3) the graphic was simple and uncomplicated - and it fit the theme.
Now here's the kicker... some people on the race committee suggested we create a new logo each year "because runners like to have a t-shirt with something new on it." I could not make these people understand that you do not change the logo. You can make the t-shirt a different color, but you KEEP a logo... even a not-so-great one. This one happened to be superb! Thankfully, new people were in charge this year, and I volunteered for PR again and campaigned to keep the "old" logo.
So what are the key ingredients to creating a unique and professional logo?
* Keep it simple and clean. Make sure that whatever you design prints equally as well in black and white as in full "four-color." Bold strong graphics and lettering work best and reproduce well in any size and a variety of media.
* Make a memorable impression. The "running" fish with the wavy lines for water told the story - the race was, after all, alongside a lake! When my husband and I created Workamper News, a magazine to help RVers find work while traveling across North America, we created a logo that incorporated a U.S. map and an RV. We carefully considered what RV would be most universal and settled on a "Class C" motorhome. We worked for hours to develop a design that was clean and classic - imparting the most information with as few lines and details as possible.
* Consider your branding - where will you use this logo? Will it "play" just as well on a ball cap as on a billboard? Can the logo be easily incorporated into such items as clothing?
* Develop a color scheme. For the Take the Lake Race, we chose to do the logo and lettering in white on colored t-shirts. For our blog and all press releases, we chose to create the logo and lettering in dark blue on a pale turquoise blue background (are you thinking water?), and our letterhead bore the "fish" logo and "Take the Lake" lettering in black on white paper. My husband and I chose to create the Workamper News logo in black and red on a white background. When necessary, the logo is printed all in black on a white background, and the "red" portions appear as grayscale.
* The font of your lettering should fit your purpose. For Workamper News, we chose a block-style Helvetica font. For the Take the Lake Race, we chose a chunky block font. A local decorative room fragrance company chose a flourished "A" - the first letter of the company's name - as its logo. Since this company focuses on beauty and home decor, the "flowery" embellishments on the letter depict the beauty and "flourish" of the company's products.
* Avoid being cute. There is nothing worse than a logo that looks like it was created by a fifth grader. Humorous characters and cartoon-like graphics need to be impeccably and carefully created by experts in order to read "pro!" Hand-drawn artwork is best left to graphic artists, and with hundreds of computer generated fonts to choose from, hand lettering is inexcusable - unless you WANT your logo to imply that a child created it!
There is one final caveat for designing a unique and professional logo... don't try this at home! Most of us are not qualified to design our own logo. You may have a great concept, but seek professional help in pulling all of the elements together and creating a winning design. Your logo will hopefully become a universal symbol of your business or event. "Branding" is an incredibly significant key to developing a successful business or event. Don't scrimp on the logo - and don't do it yourself. This will be obvious to others and could suggest to them that you cut corners in your work - or that you're just not that good at what you do!