Logo design is not a simple task, it is a true test of a designers skill and requires years of practice to perfect. The best logo designers spend hours working on hundreds of variations before finally narrowing them down and presenting the best ones to the client. A designer will usually hone and refine a specific process which allows them to get great results every time. We’ll share with you the 5 key stages of a logo design project put simply it’s Gorilla’s process for ‘laying a golden egg’.
Stage one: The logo design brief.
As with all creative processes, the better the brief, the better the end result. A good designer will interview the client to find out exactly what they want from their logo. They’ll ask the client to gather together visuals which inspire them, this helps the designer understand the desired design direction. They’ll also spend time discussing brand values and the messages the client wants to communicate.
Stage two: Do your research.
One of the most important stages of logo design happens before a designer even picks up a pencil. As well as reading about the history of the client’s company, they’ll research the industry itself to find out what already exists in the market sector. Knowing what the competition is doing provides an insight into what works well and what can be improved upon. It also ensures that the client doesn’t end up with a logo design which is identical to someone else’s. The goal is to carve out a unique brand personality to compete with what exists rather than imitate them.
Stage three: Conceptualise
A designer will use their research as the basis for a brainstorming session. They’ll sketch dozens of rough logo design ideas – some design schools even train designers to come up with exactly 100 ideas before they decide on the right one – so that they can separate the good from the bad. They’ll then choose a handful of the strongest designs and present them to the client for initial review. Through discussion the client and the designer will then decide together which designs to take forward for refinement.
Stage four: Refine the design
This is when the exciting stuff starts. The initial concepts are developed, pushed and pulled until they communicate the message in the simplest form possible. The refinement stage can be the longest because it often involves a lot of back and fourth communication with the client to get the logo in it’s perfect final state.
Stage five: A logo is born!
The finished logo design is presented in a variety of formats so the client can see how their logo will look across different platforms. The client is given ‘brand guidelines’ which explain how to use their logo and prescribes standard layout, colour, imagery and typography guidelines for common marketing materials.
This should give you some good insight into how a logo is designed, of course the results will still depend on the talent and creativity of your designer. If you would like any more information, or would like to speak with Gorilla’s expert design team about your logo then get in touch here.
