I woke up today and suddenly realized that my logo is just plain awful.
The fact of the matter is, it can be really difficult to know when you need to make a design change. There are a lot of reasons that change might be necessary; like re-branding a change of direction, or even business growth. But how do you know when to change everything, or if you should just keep on truckin’?
The last article I wrote, The 25 Brands That Nailed Logo Design, was about – you guessed it – logos that rock. More specifically, I talked about how well those logos were designed, the brand recognition that they create, and how well they portray their businesses. The Confused-istockinspiration for that article, and the one you’re reading right now came from the fact that I just recently finished redesigning our logo
During the process, there were times where I found myself feeling frustrated or confused. I wasn’t sure about what direction to take, or what message we wanted to convey, or even what colors to use! Now that it’s done, I’ve looked back at the solutions I found to each of my own problems and questions. And I’m going to help you figure out if your logo needs work.
Photo courtesy of Miia Ranta.
To start, ask yourself the following questions:
- Does it tell customers who we are? If someone came up to you and said “hey, try this product”, you’d probably want to know who this person is before you try it, right? Well, the same goes for when you’re advertising something online! It’s important that your logo properly tell customers and potential leads who you are. That doesn’t mean that your logo should be a strict representation of your business, but it should reflect who you are and what you do. If it doesn’t, you might want to consider revising.
Are we attracting the right people? Having a high UVM (Unique Visitors per Month) or lots of social media followers is a great way to spread your brand. But it doesn’t mean anything if they aren’t ever becoming leads and subsequently, customers. If you haven’t done so already (and it’s REALLY important that you do), try to pinpoint who your targets are. Who’s most likely to want your product or service? Sort out your demographics. Once you’ve done that, decide if your logo reflects those people and their interests. If you’re not hitting those main demographics, it’s probably time to make adjustments.
How does our logo compare to those of our competitors? Maybe you’re in the cake industry. Maybe you’re a plumber. Maybe you make socks with cats on them. Whatever it is you do, you have competition. You should be keeping an eye on them. Take one of our clients, FlatRate, for example. When it comes to moving companies, there are a lot of logos that are very blatant about what they do. Some logos are of moving trucks, or boxes, or similar themes. However, FlatRate has taken a more esoteric approach to their logo. And it works! The simple design reflects the fact that their all about a simple, stress-free moving experience. And the colors are really attention-grabbing.- Does it evolve when we do? Whether you like it or not, if you’re company’s making a drastic change, you might need to change your logo. Heck, some businesses tweak their logo every few months just to keep it fresh and interesting. Google is well know for this, given their ‘Google Doodles’ campaign. From 2011 to 2012, they showcased over 250 unique and vastly different iterations of their logo
Now that you’ve asked the important questions, decide if you need to take action!
Even if answering some of those questions led you to some shaky answers, that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to change everything. There are plenty of reasons to redesign your logo, but there are just as many reasons not to! Before you do anything, weigh how much you stand to gain from change against how much you stand to lose. Consider the time and money it takes to design and implement the logo, the affect it might have on your customers (good and bad), and what direction you might take.
“I’m still not sure if I need a new logo, what else can I do?”
If you’re still unsure about what to do, there’s one great option that I strongly suggest: tweak your current logo in a bunch of different ways and see what people think. Show those tweaks to coworkers, customers, followers, etc. Who better to tell you how your logo will affect your audience than your audience!
