My Logo Design process
I’m not just a logo designer. I’m a User Experience Designer who also designs logos and brand identity.
Logo Design, at its core — is solving a problem — having a unique brand’s identity.
I have this in mind when I design logos. My process revolves around this -
A logo is s symbol, sometimes a wordmark but it communicates much more than what meets the eye. — A logo represents the brands. It helps identify a brand from its competition. And sometimes, it even conveys some of the values the brand stands for.
Here’s my process for designing logos and brand identity-
5 steps of my logo design process
Step 0: The Brief
Yup, you read that right. ‘Zero’
Before starting working on the project, I have many meets with the client and gather as much data as possible. And, after gathering all the data- all the needs of the client, I prepare a Design Contract.
A contract lays down all the expectations — from both the side.
It has all the things that I’m expecting from the client, all the things that the client is expecting from me. It has all details of the date, working terms, revisions, and payment terms.
I send a signed copy of the contract to the client and keep one with myself.
The signature on the contract marks the start of the project
Step 1: Researching the brand (Discovery)
I call this phase the Discovery phase.
There’s no one-size-fits-all for logo design. It won’t be effective unless I know what the brand’s goals are, what kind of impression do they want to create. And not all the information I need is there in the design brief. Sometimes there are clients who can’t articulate what they want. (So it’s up to us designers to draw all the information out.)
Researching about the brand I’m designing the logo for, really helps in understanding exactly what is needed, what the client needs, and what is right for them.
Here are a few questions you can start with to kick off your client research-
- Why are you getting a logo design? What problem are you trying to solve?
- Which beliefs and values are important to your brand?
- What is your unique value proposition? What does your company offers that other competitors don’t?
- How do you want your customers to describe your brand to their friends?
Researching about the brand helps find the key values the brand stands for, its principles, and what it is that sets them apart from the competition.
This phase also including researching about the competition, the industry, and the applications of the logo — where the logo will be used (website, banners, product packaging, business cards, etc)
Step 2: Sketching out ideas
Delay jumping into the design software.
I’m a User Experience Designer as well and I learned this lesson in UX — to delay jumping in the design software and spend as much time on the paper as possible.
This makes me focus more on usability rather than on its visuals.
Sketch plenty of ideas
Sketching is cheap, fast, and easy. But most importantly, it’s an effective brainstorming tool.
Sketching out a bunch of ideas allows me to see what works and what doesn’t. Many times I take certain ideas that I like and mix and match them together.
I take adequate time in this process — I sketch, I go for a walk, I sketch again. I try to come up with as many ideas as I can.
With the gazillion ideas I have in my sketchbook, I also get the added benefit of a backup plan in case the client doesn’t like the direction — there are tons of different logos and different variations of the same logo.
Apply psychology
Knowing few things about psychology surely helps.
If I’m designing for a Brand that wants to come up as Bold, and Formal, I’d try to use fewer curves but if the Brand wants to be perceived as playful and joyous, I’ll use colors and warm colors there.
Psychology is what helps me choose the right shapes, colors, and typefaces.
Step 3: Create Vectors
By now, I have a messy board of logo sketches as well as a clearer idea of what I want the final logo to look like.
I take my best logos and recreate them in the design software. (Adobe Illustrator or Affinity Designer)
Here, I get the power of software to design the details that weren’t possible in sketching. I also experiment out with the width of different elements, typography, and even color (this one depends as I always start with black and white logos).
Once I have a final draft of the logo, I create presentations to showcase the logo.
I usually present 2 logos to the client, in multiple formats- multiple screens, with multiple use cases and mockups.
The goal is to communicate my vision in a clear way.
Step 4: Revisions/Approvals
A fresh set of eyes often reveals some scope of improvement that I haven’t been paying attention to during working with the same pixels for hours or days ( or weeks ).
I encourage criticism on my logo design as it helps me grow as a designer.
And after getting the feedback, the real challenge is to interpret and act on it.
I ask follow-up questions and use effective communication techniques to reveal exactly what’s needed. And I act accordingly to create a recognizable logo for the brand.
Step 5: Delivery
At the start of the project in the contract, there is a section “Final Deliverables”
It includes things like different formats of the logo, and whether the client needs a color scheme for the brand or not, and other requirements.
I include these must-haves:
- Vector format of the logo
- High-resolution PNG file with transparent background
- Light and dark version of the logo
- Different versions such as black, white, monochrome
- Font package (if using a standard font)
Conclusion
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to logo design. Every designer tailors his process to his own needs and workflow. My Logo Design process is influenced by the Design Thinking Process — an excellent way to solve product design problems.
And at the end, it all boils down to your unique creativity.
Carve out your own path, your own workflow, and create a system for solving problems!
And always remember- life is pretty boring without creativity!
Design a creative logo, Be unique and share your unique process as well!
