Lately I’ve been enjoying some great logo design projects.
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What do you expect to recieve when you commission a logo? Here’s what you need to consider.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
I offer an initial consultation where I ask a LOT of questions. You can get hold of my brief sheet here as part one of the Design Success Toolkit. As you can see there’s a lot of questions to go through. If you’re having a logo designed then I think it’s important that your designer asks you lots of questions to help them get a handle on your business – what it is you actually do, what you’re all about, what you stand for, what’s important to you, what you are expecting and how your business might change over time. If the designer doesn’t have a good understanding of your business then how can you expect them to create something which encapsulates it and reaches out to the people you want to attract?
VARIATIONS
Some designers offer just one idea, some offer L-O-A-D-S. I offer three. Not just three random ideas plucked out of thin air, but three ideas which have a concept behind them. This means that they mean something, they’ve been crafted intentionally with the purpose of communicating the values and purpose of that business. I’m not saying that designers who offer just one idea or give you thirty are doing it wrong, I’m stating what works for me. Three ideas is enough to provide different ideas and styles and find the idea that works for the designer and the client – and most importantly for the target audience. Then an idea can be honed, improved, developed and completed.
TIMESCALE
This can vary depending on the designer, their workload, how they work and when they work. The important thing is to make sure that their timescale works for you.
DELIVERABLES
It’s important to know what you’re going to get and to have that set out from the outset. Do you want your logo provided for social media? Make sure to mention it. Different designers and packages will no doubt determine what you receive from your designer – you may have to pay more to obtain the raw files or different formats, it’s worth checking exactly what you’ll get back from your designer before they begin. Here are some ideas of what you could get:
– pdf files – high resolution for printing and low resolution for the internet
– png files with a transparent background (so good for overlaying on photographs or coloured backgrounds) in various dimensions for the internet and in a high resolution printable version
– jpeg files in various dimensions for the internet and in a high resolution printable version
– the raw files as ai and/or eps. This is a vector file which – as Vector states in “Despicable Me” is “a mathematical term, represented by an arrow with both direction and magnitude” – no matter how big you use the file, the image won’t be pixellated.
– your logo in colour – and if applicable in black and white, grayscale, colour variants
– your logo in a square shape – especially handy for social media profile pictures – this might not even be your whole logo, it could be a symbol or part of your logo
– your logo in various sizes for social media use depending on which platforms you have
At the very least you should receive a high resolution pdf, a high resolution jpeg and a high resolution png.
It’s also handy to be provided with brand guidelines so you know how to use your logo consistently and what other brand features to be aware of – the colours used for example, the font used or the fonts that you should use with it.
In addition to the above, I’d suggest that you see some previous work from your chosen designer to give you a feel for what they can do for you. This will help you determine who is best for the challenge!
For a more detailed overview of the branding process, start here.
If you would like to commission a logo for your business, then please contact me and we’ll get started!