What comes first, the logo or the brand?

The brand, the brand the brand.

Every time the brand!

This is a common mistake that many business owners make – they jump straight into designing a pretty logo without giving much thought to what it says about them and their business and who it might attract.

Your logo has to reflect you, your personality, your values and your clients.

So, before you even start designing a logo, there are few things you need to think about…

Functionality

Designing a logo is not just about designing something pretty, it's about creating something that's functional. Something that really represents you and means something both to you and the clients you're hoping to attract to your business.

Your logo is more than just something that you stick on the top of your invoices. It's more than something that goes on your business cards. It's the face of your business!

Your logo should come from your brand and not vice versa because, going forward, your logo will be the visual representation of your company.

This will become the cornerstone of your brand and appear on all your marketing materials and signage.

Dig deep and define

As I’ve said, your logo should come from your brand. It should be the very foundation of what you're building on visually to represent your company. So, you can't just dive in and think "Oh, I like butterflies. I think I'll have a butterfly” or "I like purple so I'm going to use purple”.

You need to really take the time to consider what you want other people to think about your business.

Ask:

• What do people need to feel in order to want to work with you
• Dig deep into your personality, your values and your mission. Why are you doing what you are doing?
• What does it mean to you to help people? And how can you help people?

Law of attraction

Once you are clear on what you believe and what is important to you, you can start to think about what is important to your customers - the ones that you really want to attract.

This is not about being the cheapest or the fastest, it is a lot deeper than that.

It’s thinking about the little things that combine to create the reason why people are going to choose you over someone else. Whether you believe it or not, people make those choices on a very emotional level. Buying decisions are 80% emotion, backed up by 20% logic.

So, your brand – and therefore your logo - really needs to tap into that emotional connection.

Go it alone or ask for help

When I work with clients, I ask searching questions. I challenge you and make you look deeper than the superficial. Then I design a logo based on our conversations about what is important to you and who you are trying to attract.

But I also understand that hiring a graphic designer or branding specialist is not always an option, particularly for start up businesses who have little budget and find they are doing everything themselves.

This is why I have created my online logo design course. This way, you get to create your own logo, at your own pace, but you also have my support and guidance along the way – the best of both worlds!

I’ve poured my heart and soul and years of knowledge and experience into this course, which is available to you for just ￡49.99!

It consists of six modules that will cover everything from colours and fonts to thinking deeply about your brand values and target market.

Once you have completed the course, you will have the knowledge to either design your logo yourself or to go to a logo designer and say all the right things to enable them to produce a logo that is right for you and your business.

Remember, your logo is part of your identity and a visual representation of your brand. It influences how people are going to look at you. Give it the time, care and attention it deserves!

To find out more about my logo design course, visit www.logolady.com or email [email protected].