Logo vs. Brand
Can a logo designer design a new brand?
Hello beautiful reader, I am glad that you are here again to get some logo design tips. Today we are going to talk about the difference between a logo and a brand.
Logo vs. Brand
People seem to be a little bit confused about the distinction of logos and brands. And by people I mean both, designers and clients. Often when clients refer to a brand they mean their logo. On the other hand there are logo designers who claim that they are doing a new brand for a company although they (“only”) design a new logo for them.
Let me put this straight. A logo is not a brand. A logo is like a tip of an iceberg whereas a brand is the whole iceberg. A logo is a natural part of a brand.
Brand and branding
Let's take a look at several different definitions of brand. Marty Neumeier, an American author who writes on the topics of brand, design, innovation, and creativity, in his book The Brand Gap says:
A brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or organisation.
Jeff Bezos, CEO and founder of Amazon, brings another definition of branding:
Your brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room.
A great man and a father of advertising, David Ogilvy defined brand in his master piece On Advertising, as follows:
In a nutshell, branding is everything you do in business. The way you communicate, the words you use, the images you share, the values you stand for, the people you hire, the people you work and cooperate with and your logo. It all matters and altogether creates a brand.
Logo, trademark, mark …
Logo (also known as a mark, brand mark, trademark, logotype, symbol, or brand icon), when designed well, is an accurate graphic reflection of a brand. A Logo is a like the face of your brand, throughout which people associate and perceive you.
Logo became a marketing tool in the second half of the 19th century when the Industrial revolution started and one of the definitions is as follows:
A logo (abbreviation of logotype,[2] from Greek: λόγος logos “word” and τύπος typos “imprint”) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public recognition. -Wikipedia-
I would add that the ultimate purpose of a logo is to represent and identify a product, service, business or a person. Since logo is here to identify you it is really important to perceive your logo as a strategic business and marketing tool. Your logo helps you stand out from the crowd.
Don't forget that the logo is the very first impression you make. People will judge your business, product or service in the way your logo is designed. Does it look too cheap or too expensive? Is it too corporate or too casual? Is it too serious or not at all? Don't miss your chance to make the right first impression.
A logo can also carry an additional meaning and message values of a company. Be careful with that, do not overdo it. I advice you to concentrate on one core value of your company to be represented in your logo.
A typical example of a logo with a hidden message is Amazon. The smile beneath evokes positivity and it is an arrow at the same time, that is connecting the letters “a” and “z”, meaning that Amazon has a wide variety of products.
A logo is not a pretty picture that you fancy. It is here to represent and identify your brand. Understanding the fact that the logo is an important and crucial part of your brand helps you create a strong identity working in favour of your business. Read more about logo design essentials here.
Do you have any additional thoughts on the given topic? Feel free to get in touch to share them. Or are you looking for a logo designer, let's get in touch then.
Thank you for taking your time to read my article. I hope that you find it useful. I am looking forward to see your thoughts in the comment section below.
