The DIY Logo Design Era is Here

Guest Post by Shridhar Luthria

These days, the most important thing for any business is a great domain name. And if you’re here already know that. But it’s just as important to get a great logo. That’s why, after running a major web presence provider, we decided to take a leap and found our own start-up offering a DIY logo maker BuildMyLogo. 

We are fascinated by logos for so many reasons: your logo is your business’s first impression, it’s visible to your customer every time they look at your product, it’s on your website, on your packaging, advertising, business cards, banners, and even uniforms! In some cases, logos become such a natural extension of your brand that they can take a life of their own and come to represent the entire experience of the brand. 

Which is a long way of saying: you have to make your logo count. 

Despite how critical it is, making a logo is not rocket science. It’s simply about finding something that represents both your brand and what you stand for. They don’t need to be over-engineered, just focused on your brand promise. 

To kick things off it just asks for your brand name and starts generating options based on that. Once you like a few logos, our algorithm quickly learns from your preferences, adapts to them, and gives you options for you to play around with and edit.

Do-It-Yourself vs Do-It-For-Me Logos

No one understands your brand better than you. So, you’re the one who should handle its logo. With a DIY logo builder, you can give your brand a visual depiction with absolutely no design skills, and without having to hire an external designer. Here’s a quick comparison between doing it yourself and getting a designer to handle it:

• Number of Options: A designer will always show you a handful of options. Some of these options could have very rudimentary differences between them, such as a color change or a gradient edit. With a DIY logo builder, you see hundreds of options by simply aligning with your brand name. Each option is unique in every respect, and so you have a much wider palette to choose from. And that’s not all, the algorithm quickly learns and adapts to your choices, showing you logos that are as close to home as can be.
  
• Time Taken: Working with a designer on a logo can sometimes take several weeks. With a DIY logo builder, you can get your logo in 3-4 minutes, and sometimes even seconds (ok, that might be pushing it!)
  
• Cost: Hiring a designer is an expensive process vs. a logo builder that often allows you to see options for nothing upfront and charges relatively little depending on the files you want to download.

Different Logo Types

Image-Based vs Text-Only Logos

An image-based logo is one where the brand name is attached to an icon or some other imagery. That imagery is typically representative of the business or product. For example a slice of cake for a bakery. Brands with abstract names often prefer these. 

On the other hand, brands who describe their business in their name can find it redundant and would prefer text-only. Here the focus is on finding the most appropriate font and colors to complement the look.

Slogan-based Logos

Another effective way to create brand equity is to include a short statement below the brand name. Effective slogans are those that describe the brand experience in a catchy, simple way.

Single Line vs Multi-Line Logos

There is no rule that says your brand name has to fit on a single line. Actually, if you’ve got a name that describes your business, it’s more likely to be longer.

More than 70% of the brand names generated at BuildMyLogo are longer than 3 words. That’s why we create logo options where the brand name can be split across two or three lines. This gives your logo a sense of space, making both easier on the eyes, and simpler to read. 

What Goes Into Buying a Logo

When you’re buying a logo using a logo maker, make sure that you get everything you need to use your logo flexibly across various channels: online, print, etc. So make sure to get the following elements:

• A high or decent resolution set of PNG files for multiple color combinations – all black, all white, only font and image colors without a background, etc.
  
• Vector Files. You need these (in the same color combos mentioned above) for any sort of printing you want to do for your packaging or promotions across hoarding and banners. Because they can be adjusted to any size, vector files will allow you the flexibility and resolution for anything you can think of.
  
• A Brand Guide. A simple file that gives you the name(s) of the font(s) used in the logo, as well as color codes used for everything: font, image, background, etc.
  
• Social Media versions. Make sure you get your logo in all the sizes you need to add your logo on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.
  
• Business Card designs and editing. Logo makers have started offering designs for business cards as well. However, unlike many out there, we let you edit the card to add your name and contact details.

And that is all you need! You’re all set to go ahead and try a DIY logo maker and get the logo that means the most to you.

Shridhar is the Founder & CEO at BuildMyLogo and has spent over a decade leading web presence brands globally.