Name logos present a different kind of problem. With logomark, you must think of a unique symbol. And symbols are not something you consider when creating name logos aka wordmarks. Logos that are based on text rely on different factors to become as effective.
Before you craft your wordmark, it’s good to consider factors that are often glossed over in the world of word logo design. As a bonus, we even add direct quotations from design experts, urging pro and beginner designers to take the following steps before or even after the design process is over.
Hopefully, with these nuggets of wisdom, you could create a more interesting, appealing, and memorable name logo design.
1. Test the font in a number of sizes
Once you find the right font for your word logo, you don’t stop there. See what that font will look like in different sizes. Because once approved, it will surely be used in a number of materials for marketing purposes, say billboards, flyers, tarpaulins, websites, etc.
A lot of fonts tend to change in appearance when resized. “At three feet high, the serif of a face like Bodoni is going to be two inches thick,” said the Legendary typeface master Ed Benguiat. So you must be prepared for such moments when the font suddenly changes in appearance and be ready to redesign the font from scratch or look for other font options.
Not only does the thickness change, but also the quality of the design. Vector quality images are best for logos. If it’s not vectorized, the font will degenerate in quality and will look pixelated. The solution is to design the font in vector format. Or look for fonts that are in vector graphics
. Otherwise, you can’t really stretch the image to bigger sizes.
2. See how the font will look like in different materials
Now that you have seen the logo in different sizes, it’s time to evaluate the logo based on different platforms and materials. As mentioned before, your logo will appear on many kinds of things. You will use it on billboards, websites, Facebook pages, merch products, boxes, tarpaulins, etc.
All these materials have a tendency to alter the look of your word logo. So take time to reevaluate the design by placing the wordmark on a number of places. Print a copy of a flyer and assess the quality of the logo. Place the tentative logo on t-shirts, websites, social media pages, even on billboards.
Because if you finalized a word logo design even if you haven’t tested its usability, there’s a high chance of disappointment when it under-delivers its purpose. So consider placing the tentative wordmark and some font options on a number of circumstances and see which one performs best.
3. Toned-down type
There’s no more interest in big bold capital letters this year. The pandemic has toned down the aggressiveness and boldness of some brands and made way for a more human, personal, and conversational approach. This is made evident by the preference for toned-down, small letters, in wordmarks, and similar text logos.
“Logos have become less official-looking and more conversational,” said Patti Williams, a professor of marketing at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. “They’re not yelling. They’re inviting. They’re more neighborly.”
Nowadays, people favor lighter and rounder letter styles. Bigger and thicker letter styles have an air of authority and bureaucracy in them, something not so millennial and Gen-Z friendly.
This approach not only works to brand’s text logos but also to headlines in email newsletters and web copies. This type of style doesn’t shout, rather it invites people to read. It doesn’t command but only instructs and teaches.
Some famous logos that use this approach include Citibank, Amazon, Mastercard, Airbnb, and Uber.
4. Friendlier designs
In addition to having a toned-down typeface, another factor to keep in mind is to use friendlier designs.
Take, for instance, the Amazon logo. Amazon’s wordmark, aside from having a small case typeface, uses a smile below its design to indicate a warm and friendlier brand identity.
The same goes for Walmart. The previous Walmart logo uses thicker letters with a star sign that could be a representative of the red state. But now it became more inclusive and friendlier with thinner letter styles and a starburst symbol.
If you are going to embellish your wordmark, consider friendly and welcoming designs rather than offputting and generic icons. Take the smile and starburst as inspiration. Airbnb’s use of a heart-logo speaks of their goal to bring a homey brand to their customers.
5. Happier colors
Big, bold colors are out now. You can try incorporating lighter warmer shades such as fuchsia, baby pink, sky blue, yellow, orange. Red, black, and white might seem too offputting, generic, and gloomy.
“The economy is the No. 1 influence this year,” said John H. Bredenfoerder, a color expert and design director at Landor Associates, the brand-consulting company that produced the new Cheer detergent emblem. Amid all the gloom, he said, “people need a little joy in their lives.”
Here are some colors to consider when you plan to bring in happier colors to your wordmark: yellow, purple, orange, and green. Lighter shades will work very well but not the strong electric and corporate-tian hues.
Final Thoughts
These are some of the best advice that experts say about word logos. Some designers tend to forget this and some are trends that cannot be brushed on the side.
So are you planning to create your first word logos or you’re opting for a rebrand? Time to incorporate these ideas into your planning. This way you might be able to craft a more appealing and memorable logo design.
For some people, they might think that word logos are expensive to create. That it may take a professional designer before you can come up with a good typeface or font style. But that is not the case anymore.
Word logo makers exist. Take, for instance, BrandCrowd Word Logo Maker. Once you visit the site, expect to see modern, traditional, and creative fonts for your wordmark. You can also customize some features such as color, size, shadows, and more.
Then you can download one or several designs for a very minimal cost. If that’s not enough, you can hop on to DesignCrowd and hire a professional designer. Either way, take the above tips and advice from experts into consideration.
How about you, share in the comments, some of your best advice for wordmark designing.
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Written by DesignCrowd on Monday, October 11, 2021
DesignCrowd is an online marketplace providing logo, website, print and graphic design services by providing access to freelance graphic designers and design studios around the world.
