5 creative logo design basics for aspiring graphic designers 🎨

Sarah is passionate about the environment and climate change. To raise awareness, she created a website dedicated to this cause. Sarah soon learned that a logo would help her website look professional.

Sarah also loves graphic design and wants to create a logo for her website, but she is still figuring out how to start when it comes to logo design basics.

These 5 tips will help Sarah create an engaging logo that helps promote her cause!

• Brand identity: helps show a company's mission and personality

• Brand recognition: can help you stand out from competitors

• Message: can help send a message to your target audience

• Versatility: can be used across different mediums and platforms

When creating a logo, keep it simple. This is important because the simpler a logo is, the easier it will be for people to recognize it and create brand recognition.

A simple logo uses less color and is more adaptable, allowing you to use it across various mediums, such as print or digital media.

Here are some examples of simple logos that people easily recognize and are consistent with logo design basics:

McDonald's

Apple

Target

Instagram

Word Mark

• Uses only typeface and color to create the logo

Emblem

• Consists of a symbol or icon that is surrounded by a seal or border

Image Logo

• Made of a symbol or graphic that is easily recognizable

• Doesn't use any text

Combination Mark

• Combines typeface and logo

• Has two elements that need to work together and can also be recognized apart

Letter Mark

• Very minimal text

• Usually consists of a letter or symbol

Photo by Timothy L Brock on Unsplash

The first step in designing your logo will be to sketch different ideas or concepts. Sketching also allows you to explore different shapes, typography, or imagery before committing to a final design. When sketching, remember to:

• Research:  Who is your target audience? Look at competitors to help you understand what your brand personality will be and give you inspiration.

• Brainstorm: Consider the logo you want to represent the brand. For example, what kind of typography do you think you will be using?

• Set your imagination free:  Use whatever you need to sketch your idea. Explore as many different ideas or concepts as you want!

• Refine: Once you like an idea, you can concentrate on refining those ideas and selecting the best elements from your sketches.

• Get feedback: Once you determine your final design, get input from others to identify any areas of improvement or to make sure you are communicating the correct message. 

It's important to choose the right colors for your logo. Colors can convey emotions and make your logo more memorable.

Emotions that are typically associated with colors:

• Orange: confidence, friendliness, energy

• Red: excitement, passion, movement

• Green: health, freshness, nature

• Blue: trust, security, serenity

• Purple: wealth, spirituality, sophistication

• Pink: femininity, caring, imaginative

• Black: sophistication, elegance, authority

• White: cleanliness, innocence, simplistic

The font you select for your logo has to be chosen carefully, as this will reflect your brand's personality. There are so many fonts to choose from, so finding the perfect one can be difficult.

When choosing a font, consider readability. Fonts that are difficult to read can make a logo look unprofessional. Also, consider the size and spacing of the font so that it looks good in different mediums.

Types of typography include the following:

• Has an anchor at the end of each letter

• Times New Roman is an example of this type of font

• Doesn' t have any anchors and has a more modern look to it

• A popular sans serif font is Arial

• A curvy font style that is elegant and resembles cursive handwriting

• Lobster and Allura are examples of popular script fonts

• A fun font that is unique and comes in variations

• A great example of this type of font is Quad Line

Practice what you've learned about logo design basics with these free tools!

Canva

• Online graphic design tool

Looka

• Create logos with no credit card required

Adobe Express

• Create easy and quick logos

Wix

• Create custom and professional logos

A well-designed logo is not only an image, it's also a way to build a successful brand, attract customers, and stand out from competitors.

To gain more insight into logo design basics, branding, and graphic design, check out these Bytes!