When presenting logo concepts to a client it is often productive to have written rationales to accompany each concept. This can help you, the designer, clarify your thoughts before getting the concepts in front of your client. The rationales will help your client to better understand the concepts from your point of view (especially if you are not there in person to present the concepts to your client). In turn, this will help your client make an educated decision when picking their final logo. All that effort will also help you to better defend and explain concerns and questions that may arise during the logo revision process.

The latest logo design book from TASCHEN, entitled LOGO Design, Vol. 2, just arrived at my office on Tuesday. It is a follow-up to the popular first volume entitled LOGO Design, Vol. 1. The book contains around 2000 logos and 13 case studies, in 3 languages (English, French and German), on brand identity for companies like Burton, Wrangler and MTV. The featured design firms include Stefan Sagmeister, MetaDesign, Saffron Brand Consultants, BlackbeltMonkey and others. In the foreword Uli Mayer-Johanssen, of MetaDesign, talks about Brands and Identity.

“Brands that communicate an idea, a purpose, and a clear promise together with technical and rational aspects almost always have something in common with the values and attitudes people have” - Uli Mayer-Johanssen

Color offers an instantaneous method for conveying meaning and message in your logo designs. It’s probably the most powerful non-verbal form of communication we can use as designers. Our minds are programmed to respond to color. The subliminal messages we get from color shape our thoughts. As humans our very survival is hung on the identification of color. We stop our cars for red lights and go on green, we look at the color of certain plants and animals to determine whether or not they are safe for us to eat or touch, the bottom line is that color is a very important part of our daily lives. It’s important for us as designers to use color appropriately and understand the meaning behind the colors we choose.

A logo, trademark, emblem, brand, logotype, symbol, identity, mark, insignia represents a company to consumers. It gets its meaning from the company it represents, not the other way around. It’s effectiveness can help to sell a product or service to the public. It’s the identifier that consumers sometimes attach themselves to and become loyal to. It’s a visual expression of a company, product or service. The role of the logo is to point or designate in the simplest form possible.

There are five elements that you can find in great and successful logo designs. Most of the logos you know and love will meet all these criteria. When you think of a great logo what brands come to mind? Remember the logos for those brands as you read through this article and see if they meet the five criteria.

Before beginning a logo design, consider gathering the necessary information for the job at hand. Some people call it a discovery process, creative brief, introduction meeting or creative interview. I like to call it a creative brief, but whatever you want to call it, just make sure to do it before you begin designing the logo.

The goal of this logo design creative brief is to grasp the essence of the company. This will be your jumping off point for the logo design concepts. What do you want the viewer of this new logo to walk away with? How should they remember this company?

As designers we often look for inspiration for our work, so I’ve compiled a short list of some useful logo design and branding books. The people behind these books have some useful insight and inspiration for their readers. If you don’t already own them, I suggest you consider adding them to your library.

There are many mistakes we can make when designing logos for our clients or even ourselves. I have compiled a list of 10 common mistakes I’ve seen in mine and others work. This list is merely my view of a Top Ten. Please feel free to add to list or submit your own list via the comments.