Many small business owners may work hard to develop their companies into respectable and well-known entities in their communities, with strong customer bases and good brands. However, when it comes to other issues, such as the logo a small business has on its signs, website, vehicles, stationary and more, it seems as though many may not be doing enough to ensure these images are as good as they can be.
The thing that small business owners need to keep in mind about their logos is that these graphics are supposed to be as instantly recognizable – and simple – as they possibly can, according to a report from New York Newsday. While there are a large number of logos that the average American will know on sight, those that leave the most lasting impressions are usually the simplest; think of the McDonald’s or Apple and the first thing that likely comes to mind is the golden arches and bitten apple logos they’ve had for decades. A full 50 percent of major brands’ logos incorporate both a graphic and text, while 41 percent are text-only, and 9 percent are graphic-only.
“In a lot of cases, the logo is the first identifier someone sees in an organization,” Andrew Bogucki, executive creative director and a partner at the Manhattan brand consultancy CoreBrand, told the newspaper . “It might be the only visual they see. There’s no right or wrong or bad or good. It’s just a matter of what you need that logo to do for you.”
Of course, that might be an issue in and of itself: Many owners may not know exactly what they need their logos to “do” for them, and thus could be unsure of how to proceed when designing it, the report said. Many may rely on both a graphic and text, but beyond that, there could be other issues that they don’t even think of which will weigh heavily on the impression a logo can create among the general public.
What do owners need to know?
The first thing that owners should absolutely keep in mind when they set out to design and start using their logo as often as they can is that the color they pick matters a lot, the report said. For instance, many of the most popular brands usually have logos that rely heavily on red, black or both. In fact, 29 percent of the largest companies in the world use red, and 28 percent use either black or gray scale. The reasoning behind this is that red is often considered a powerful color, while black is more classic and lends itself to use in words in addition to graphics far better than other colors. Likewise, businesses should try to avoid using colors that contrast with each other starkly, as this may make a logo a little less pleasing to view.
Moreover, many companies may not be aware that the point of a logo is to stick in a person’s mind and thus it’s important to keep things as simple as possible, the report said. Complexity will generally make things a little too difficult for remember quickly and easily, and for the most part, logos should try to be reflective of what your company does or its philosophies.
Having a proper logo can help companies to grow in their communities, but some might be having a little bit of financial difficulties when they first start out. One way in which they might be able to give themselves some added flexibility is by finding more affordable small business insurance, including policies for liability insurance, which can reduce their overall costs.
