Logo Design Articles

By www.digital-web.com - 18th February, 2010

Typography Explained

Typography is the art of arranging typefaces, selecting style, line spacing, layout and design as a means of communicating language. There are many aspects of typography, here are some of the key terminology used in the Typography world.

Baseline: The line on which all letters rest.

Beardline: The line reached by the descenders of lowercase letters such as the letter ‘p’.

Bowl: The round or elliptical parts of a letterform for example the outer round edge of the letter ‘b’.

Cap line: The line reached by the top of uppercase letters.

Counter: The white space enclosed by a letterform, whether completely or partially such as the internal area of the letter ‘O’.

Extenders: Parts of letters that extend either below the baseline (descenders) or above the midline (ascenders).

Midline: The top of lowercase letters such as a, c, e and the top of the torso of lowercase letters such as b, d.

Serif: A stroke added to either the beginning or end of one of the main strokes of a letter.

Stem: The main stroke of a letter that is generally straight and not part of a bowl.

Topline: The line reached by the ascenders of lowercase letters.

X-height: The distance between the baseline and midline of an alphabet. The x-height is usually the height of the unextended lowercase letters.

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By David Macgill - 17th February, 2010

Creating an effective design brief

As a designer for over ten years the variation from clients when it comes to getting an effective design brief can vary greatly. Some clients know exactly what it is they want, others have a vague idea, some may have seen a logo design they like and others are open books when it comes to initial design concepts. All of these circumstances are totally acceptable to a designer on one condition; the client knows which category they fall under!

As a designer it is my responsibility to give the client exactly what they are after, there are jobs which are resolved with the first draught, there are some which take three or four rounds of amends and unfortunately every now and then there are the jobs which go on and on. A successful design process requires a good designer with great communication skills and technical ability but it also requires the client to be concise and coherent when it comes to the brief and the feedback on initial design concepts. If a client can’t give constructive criticism the process will be much harder to complete. Designers aren’t know to be overly emotional when criticised, it’s part and parcel of the job, without it we would never develop our ideas and skills, being driven to improve is healthy.

So my advice for giving an effective brief is to be honest and coherent, asses the designs you see based on your own criteria for success but always bear in mind these important factors, does the design represent you and your business correctly, does the design communicate your company values and will it age well. Keep these in mind next time you need to give feedback and fingers crossed it will get you to sign-off much quicker.

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By David Macgill - 9th February, 2010

The new iPad

Is it the future? Will this new gadget change all our lives? Apple changed the mobile phone a few years back, now if you don’t have some form of smart phone in your pocket your positively Edwardian. I have yet to hold an iPad so this article is based on conjecture with a healthy dose of over-enthusiasm. At first glance the iPad is a large iPhone and so it follows anyone who has played with an iPhone will intuitively know how to handle it’s big brother. As a Mac user for the last ten years the thought of having to use a PC brings me out in hives, I have no love for them and no use for them. This loathing originates from over-complication, I despise like many others any task which involves double the amount of steps it should normally take, that is how I perceive PC’s, over-complicated machines which do little more for you than increase your blood pressure. Apple have always looked to simplify their products and operating systems, disk formatting, virus protection, de-fragging, why enslave yourself to these alien activities when you don’t really need to, let the Mac do it all for you. Don’t get me wrong I have had a few Mac’s quit on me in the past but generally my blood pressure remains lower than the alternative.

So to the point, this simplicity that Apple are so driven towards has been taken to the extreme with the iPad. There is no keyboard, when you need to type one will appear as is by magic providing an intuitive way of interacting with your gadget that all us iPhone users have grown so fond of. It isn’t intimidating or overtly technical, it just feels like it works effortlessly, like things should always have been this way, keys and buttons start to look dated very quickly. Everything the iPhone does so well has been taken to a larger scale, watching videos and the keynote speeches made by Steve Jobs is one thing but I have been reliably informed that once you have this thing in your hands the experience progresses to a whole new level. With a screen close to ten inches and viewing quality touching perfection (1024x768 at 132ppi) I can’t wait to see what the thousands of App developers come up with to utilise this beast. Apple have put their custom designed 1GHz A4 high-performance, low-power system inside the iPad which gives lightning response times between functions. With 10 hours of battery life and up to a mammoth one month standby time, it’s no slouch when it comes to endurance, combine that with a not so vast 64GB maximum flash drive and it makes for a very handy travel companion.

Apple have take the programmes one step further, rather than just having access to read and play games, they have brought their version of Microsoft Office to the iPad, iWork includes Pages (Word), Numbers (Excel) and Key Note (Power Point) giving the functionality of the iPad that of a lap top. These fully functioning versions of iWork can be purchased for less than $10 each, making it a very attractive option for those of you requiring a new lap top this summer! Throw in to this beautiful piece of kit Wi-Fi and an optional 3G connectivity and you get a whole new genre of gadget, something tells me the lap top has seen its last days and within ten years if something doesn’t have a touch screen we will struggle to interact with it.

The price is right where Apple were aiming for, between the iPhone and the Mac book, around £4-500 will get you a pretty decent version and data packages will be pretty low to start with. Once I have got my eager hands on one of these new toys I will come back and give you a full rundown on it’s capabilities.

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By David Macgill - 8th February, 2010

Do I need a new logo?

This article discusses the tell tail signs that might suggest your logo isn’t working hard enough for you. Have your sales gone a little flat, is the company changing its focus, or has your brand failed to inspire your customers. Whatever the reason, once these doubts are raised it can be very difficult to ignore and often becomes a sore spot when branding needs to be addressed. Here are some of the questions to ask when deciding whether your company needs to get a fresh look.

Is your company logo expressing your corporate identity?
If your logo fails to express the core values of your company then how are your potential customers supposed to invest in you. Don’t feel an obligation towards your logo simply because “It’s been like that since we started”, If you applied that to any other aspect of operating a business you won’t last long. Even the iconic logos such as Nike and Coke have undergone subtle tweaks to guide them through the decades.

Is your logo functional?
The technicalities of your logo are often overlooked in the design process; a logo needs to meet certain requirements in order to function across all forms of media. Your logo should be able to integrate within any context. It must be legible both large and small on materials ranging from paper to vinyl. "Spot colors" should be used to avoid mixing inks at the print shop. There should be little or no gradients, complex images or photographs can be difficult to reproduce and are often limited to the original source image size.

Is your logo unique?
Your logo should differ from that of your competitors. It is easy to confuse your customers with a copycat logo. Pepsi had trouble defining their brand until it abandoned the initial logo that imitated the Coke design.

Does your logo follow good design principles?
Professional designers talk about elements of design such as space, form, color, consistency, and clarity. You should look for a unifying structure. The lines, shapes, and spacing should create unity. Balance, weight, and positioning should direct your eye across the logo and affect how you understand it. In the often brief encounter most people will have in coming across your logo, it needs to tell them a raft of things about your company and also have the ability to lodge in their visual library so the next time they are thinking about your sector you will pop up.

How can you improve your logo?
At a glance, your logo should feel right. If not, you need www.logosupermarket.co.uk. Expect three preliminary versions and several final versions: for stationary, the Web, use on dark backgrounds, and so forth. Your custom logo should be cohesive, unique, and functional while expressing your company's unique identity. Use it well, and it will become the cornerstone of your branding.

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By Noelle Bates - 25th January, 2010

What Does Your Logo Say About You?

The marketing world pays a lot of attention to the concept of “image”, for a corporation as a whole and on an individual product level. A researcher will tell you the difference between actuality and the perception of a product or service, can be vast. A business needs to address communicating to their consumers exactly what benefits they get from using their product or service versus that of their competitors.

A logo is a perfect way to tackle this issue. A large part of a logo’s impact comes from repetition, simply seeing a familiar symbol over and over again becomes very useful. This is why every company, branded product or service needs a logo.

Today logos are everywhere and on all kinds of media, from packaging to viral adverts on youtube, because of this it is essential for a logo to have meaning. It must tap in to the subconscious mind of the consumer and deliver a message about the corporation and/or the product it represents.

A corporation’s image or identity can be made up of many factors, but the key aspect remains integrity. Integrity consists of honesty, loyalty, determination, strength, completeness and dependability. Second to integrity is a perception of value. If a consumer believes they will be receiving something of worth for their money, the logo has achieved its goal.

Leadership is another factor, exuding knowledge of the marketplace and an ability to conduct business in such a manner that competitors in the sector recognise the company’s worth. Innovation is important if your consumer needs the newest and best product.

A graphic designer needs to address all these aspects when creating a logo, they must utilise everything they have in their armoury: fonts, colour, placement, size, pictures and design icons. Logo designers must know that some logos require a sense of movement, some need the strength of heavy block lettering an infants product for example would be best served with soft pastels and lines that are rhythmic and flowing rather than having sharp angles and dominant colours.

Any entrepreneur commissioning a logo for their company or product should first choose the elements he or she wants to present as a communicator of the corporate image. With this brief a logo designer can then create a logo that attention and encourages imagination, sending a subliminal message about your company’s image and indelibly imprinting the logo in the consumer’s memory.

If you are looking to impress with high end stationery printing then you have come to the right place. logosupermarket.co.uk offers only the best quality material and finishes that your company deserve. From heavy duty 380gsm business cards with a matt laminated finish and a spot UV varnish to one side, to 120gsm double sided letterheads and compliment slips. All these aspect are vital to promoting a professional market leading outlook for your business.

Remember at logosupermarket.co.uk we offer a professional design service specialising in corporate logo design and business stationery starting from only £89. With logosupermarket.co.uk, we'll deliver you a professional brand identity and bespoke business logo with fast turnaround and minimum fuss, but with the care and attention of a premium design studio - all at a cheap, affordable price that meets your budget.