Branding your business is no easy task. One of the first places to begin your branding efforts is by selecting a logo for your business. Your logo is one of the first things people will begin to recognize in association with your business. It will appear on everything from storefront signs to brochures, and even the letterhead you send out with business mail.
It will become the single most recognizable thing about your business to customers and its purpose is to succinctly tell the world who you are as a business. Every aspect of your logo must be carefully constructed and designed to attract favorable opinions from those who view it, including the font.
Below are tips to help you select the perfect logo font for your brand.
Be Intentional When Choosing Your Logo Font
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of font options to choose from for your logo. Be careful when choosing, though, because the font in your logo sends unconscious messages to consumers. For instance, GEC designs recommends serif fonts for businesses seeking to build brand awareness or convey reliability while suggesting that sans serif fonts indicate honesty and neatness. Script fonts may indicate businesses are more creative and offer a more personal touch while display fonts indicate originality and fun in a brand.
It’s not all about the specific font you choose either. It’s also about consistency with your logo. Logos are small and will represent your brand to the world. For this reason, something that may seem as insignificant as the font, can have a huge impact on how potential customers and clients view your business. Choose one font and stick with it, unless you have a specific reason for mixing fonts. After all, it’s all about intentionality and not just the fact you think it might look cool.
Timelessness with Logos and Font
The font you choose for your logo also needs to be one that will stand various tests of time. When you’re branding your business, one of the most difficult things to do is rebrand a new logo. However, if you choose a logo font that is incompatible with your business, for instance, a futuristic looking font for a traditional business, or even a logo that was once immensely popular that has now fallen out of favor with the public, it can make your business appear out of touch with your audience.
Look for fonts that will grow with your business and consistently reflect the values of your business for the long-term so you do not have to go to the expense and challenge of rebranding with a new logo because you chose a font that does not aptly reflect the nature and values of your business.
Test the Readability
In addition to ensuring the font fits your message and works with the image you want to portray, your font must also be readable to your audiences. It’s one thing to see your logo on the web and be able to read the logo clearly online. It’s something else to see it in the real world.
Before you commit, print it out, see it on paper, in different sizes, and with different backgrounds to determine the readability. Test it against different background colors too. You want to see it in many situations before you commit to it. After all, your logo will appear on signs, in advertising, on brochures, menus, and non woven bags and other items. People need to understand your logo and you want them to understand.
Beyond Selecting the Font
The font itself is important. There is no denying that. But the appearance of the font is also important. During the design process, be sure to consider bold, italics, etc. to see which iteration of the font best reflects the statement you’re trying to make with your logo. You can even change the size of the font within the logo. While most people are eager to keep their logos short and sweet, you also want to make sure it is memorable and doesn’t become easily lost within a sea of benign logos that go unnoticed every day.
Color also plays an important role in font and your overall logo. It’s not solely about the color of the font or the image. It’s about both, if your logo includes words and images. Ray Vellest of Web Designer Depot suggests choosing a single color for logos. When you think about it, he’s probably onto something. Think of some of the most iconic logos today, McDonald’s yellow “M”, the single color Nike “Swoosh”, the blue Twitter bird. All these are one color. Even Facebook, Yahoo!, and Pinterest are sticking with the single color theme. And it works for them.
The other important thing about your logo is to keep it simple. If you have too many things competing for attention, then the message gets lost in the mix. This holds true for the font as well. Complicated fonts become a distraction rather than enhancing the message you want to convey.
Use Your Own Font
It can be tempting to model your logo after businesses you admire. Perhaps even businesses within your industry. It is best, though, to be unique if you really want to stand out. That includes the fonts you choose, the colors, and the images or icons that appear in your logo. It will make it clear that you are something new and exciting and help you stand out as your own unique business rather than an imitation of someone else.
Once you’ve hammered out your logo design and font, it’s time to invest in some serious swag to help tell the world about your business. Promotional cotton bags and totes are ideal for doing just that. Not only do they make show-stopping backdrops for your new logo in a variety of colors and styles, they are also highly effective advertising tools for the person using the bags as well as everyone else they encounter.
Visit ReuseThisBag.com today to learn more the many amazing custom tote bags we have to offer you for better branding for your business.