Logo designs play an important role in your company by showcasing it. A good logo helps make a lasting impression and represents the brand. The importance of the brand logo cannot be minimized. It will ultimately play a key role in your entire company.

There is no doubt that creating a killer brand logo is time consuming, tedious, and hard work. However, there are a few principles that always work. Understanding the basic concepts of what makes a logo successful goes a long ways towards assisting with its creation.

Here are the principles that will make your logo go from mundane to exceptional.

Simple

The best logos are often the simplest. Yes, they took a great deal of creative energy to create but the sheer simplicity is what stands out in bold contrast. It is what makes it live on in a person’s mind. The human mind can grasp a simple design better than an intricate one. The memory will also hold onto that design far longer than something complex. Ultimately, you want your logo to live on in everyone’s memory who views it. A logo that is immediately memorized and identified is a timeless achievement. Just look at the Nike swoosh. Anyone who sees that swoosh immediately knows it represents Nike. The Apple logo is the same. Both are known and recognized around the world. There is no need for words to be printed beside the design, the logo says it all in its sheer simplicity.

Distinctive

Distinctive is unique. You want to come with an idea that in no way looks like any other. It needs to stand alone. It should quickly and easily display the company’s business. Unfortunately, there are millions of logos and more are being designed on a daily basis. Finding a distinctive design is not easy and it is truly a talent.

However, if you feel passionate about your business and you truly want to reach out and grab someone's attention then you can use that fervor to your advantage. The best creations are made by individuals who feel true excitement for their business. Remember, nobody can truly showcase your business like you can because it is your baby. This gives you the edge and helps you truly go out on the limb with creative leeway to come up with something truly top notch.

Relevant

We all like to doodle in our spare time but doodling a design and creating one that is truly relevant to your business are two very distinct things. You want your logo to reach your target audience so they instantly see it and know what type of business you are featuring. Although, in some cases, the logos have very little to do with the business itself.

However, most successful ones are some form of representation of the business’s nature. This does not mean that the logo should be an exact picture of the product. Instead, it must be the personification of the business’s identity. Look at Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, or Harley Davidson. Neither of those has logos that depict what they are but they are the very heart of the business.

Memorable

As stated previously, the human mind tends to remember simple things. That is very true when it comes to designs. Creating a memorable logo is key to any business. Ultimately, you want your target audience to become accustomed to your design and instantly associate it with your business or product.

Versatile

Your logo needs to be versatile. It should look good on a huge billboard or a tiny business card. To achieve this, the logo needs to be in vector format. This will assist with the scaling of the logo without hurting the image’s quality. You can design the logo in vector using Adobe Illustrator. Even if your business is an online business only, you still need to have your logo be capable of being portrayed throughout many mediums. Think about size and shape. Where will the logo be portrayed the most? If your logo will regularly be on a letterhead or other small areas, then you won't want a design that is circular or created like a chevron because those would not look good at the top of the letter.

Timeless

Styles change with each passing decade but your logo has to be timeless. Steer clear of trends. Creating a logo that is trendy or inadvertently letting yourself be influenced by the trends when going through the steps of the design concept can be detrimental. Normally, trendy designs end up needing to be redone every few years. Whenever you have to redo your company’s logo you confuse the consumers who have come to associate a specific image with your company. You want your logo to be timeless and never need to be redone. When avoiding trends, you should also avoid trendy colors which also change with time. Just look at the 1970s.

Everyone wanted green, gold and orange in their house but, nowadays, those colors are rarely used by designers. They are dated. Colors become dated very quickly. If you must use colors, use only one or two. Using an excessive amount of color is often overwhelming for the viewer. It simply looks like a kaleidoscope and the viewer can't decipher the form, shape, or lines. Remember, that most logos are only glanced at for a couple of seconds, so the design and colors must live on in the person's mind.

Logos are paramount to the success of almost any business. A logo should be recognizable to the public. It needs to inspire a feeling of trust and admiration. When a person looks at it they must know that your business is superior to its competitors. In the end, it should also create a feeling of loyalty in your clients or customers. Remember, to keep things tasteful and basic with defined shapes and lines.