Are You Proud of Your Logo?

If you’re not, it’s time to get a new one. Even the best logos need freshening up every now and then, so if you’ve had yours for a long time (or worse, you don’t have one at all) think about getting a new one you can be proud of.

Logos are tricky to pin down when it comes to choosing one that represents the best of your business. That’s why many people hire the services of an experienced graphic design team like Ratio7 to get the job done for them. Experience in this area is vital in order to understand how effective a logo can be in defining everything a business stands for.

So you can see how important it is to be proud of your logo. Take a good look at the logo you have now and see what it makes you think of. Some people will immediately think of when they started their business, because they’re still using the same logo they had then. Certainly, if your business logo is outdated and tired looking, it will convey the exact same message about your business. This isn’t a good thing, and it is why so many logos eventually reach the end of their lifetime.

A logo should make you feel positive and enthused about your business. If you feel this way there is a good chance your customers will feel the same way too. Another point to note is not to be too complex with your logo. Again, a professional logo designer will come up with something that is relevant, eye catching and gets the right message across in the right way.

There is no defined period of time that a logo can or should last for. In reality there is no reason why you can’t use the same logo for many decades. But of course it is very unlikely that one logo could ever last that long, owing to how quickly the world changes.

Just be sure that when your logo finally looks dated and tired, you change it as quickly as you can. It could be the start of something new for your business.

Magna Carta Branding & Website

Over the last few months we have been working on the branding & website in the build up to the Magna Carta 800th Anniversary in 2015 on behalf of HCL.

Work included: branding, logo development, website design & development, interactive elements and copywriting.

View our portfolio to see the results.

Magna Carta Branding

This complete branding exercise for the Magna Carta 800th Anniversary features strong, clean lines that connect clearly to a contemporary world while retaining subtle medieval overtones. This logo will be widely used as part of the national celebrations in the lead up to 2015 and so the logo has been kept as simple as possible to allow for wide variations in how it can be displayed. As part of the branding toolkit we have included the use of reverse type on a series of different colours and background textures to further underscore the Medieval connection.

How Do You Know When Your Brand Needs a Revamp?

A brand is the image of a business. It’s amazing how we can take a shape, a colour or a clever idea and combine them to create something that people will instantly recognise.

The best brands are world famous. A successful brand is something that every company and business strives to achieve. But what do you do when you gain that achievement? How long can you hang on to a successful brand for before it needs a revamp?

It’s important here to distinguish between a brand and a logo. A logo could be said to be a part of a brand. Change the logo and you could change the brand in some way. The two are connected but different. You could make alterations to the brand and the logo may no longer be relevant.

Clearly sometimes it is time that catches up with your brand. A brand is all about making people believe your product or business will give them a positive experience. A successful brand sells more products.

Sometimes even a successful brand will come to the end of its lifetime. Sticking with the same brand for years on end gives the image that your business is a stick in the mud that never moves with the times. Take a look at the branding for businesses in the Fifties and see how much of it is the same today. You won’t find much – if anything – that is still around today.

On some occasions a company that wants to take a whole new direction might find its existing branding won’t adapt to go with it. But the views of the public can also make a big difference, since some changes in logos and branding have been met with derision from the public. Clearly you have to consider the views of your audience – it’s not just about what you want to do.

One thing is certain though; you have to get the advice of a professional company in order to consider any changes you want to make to your brand. This is one area where professional knowledge counts for an awful lot.

Getting the Balance of Words and Images Just Right

Your website is a window onto the world – a window through which potential customers can look to find what they need. It almost seems as if everyone knows what a good website should look like, but actually designing one and getting the right mix of words and images is a lot harder than you think.

Images speak a thousand words, or so we’re told. But content is king too, and content is what people come to read. We all like images and they can catch your attention long before the words on a page do. But the two components of a website have to work together to have the desired effect on anyone who visits that site.

There is no dream equation or formula that unlocks a great web design. It’s not as simple as putting one image in place for every four hundred words you use. If only life could be that simple. This is why it’s best to get the experts in when it comes to designing a website that makes the most of each component. It’s the only way you can be sure of getting a website that is designed to do what you want it to do.

Furthermore the words and images need to be working together and not against each other. When you’ve got the skills of an experienced web designer working for you, you can be sure that the balance will be much easier to strike than if you were to tackle it on your own. You might have ideas for your website but actually getting them to work and making them real can be very difficult. Just how big should your logo be, for example? Do you have so many words for the home page that you’re tempted to squish them down to fit them all in?

Less can be more when it comes to web design. But you can only get the balance of words and images just right when you think of them as two halves of the whole. It’s the only way you’ll get the website you want.

How can you tell if your logo is good enough?

Hop on the internet and it won’t take you long to find reams of information about logos. What makes a good one? When is it time to change an old logo and revamp it into something new and more modern? How do you know if you’ve got a real stinker?

Logos are one of the things we do here at Ratio7. We’ve got years of experience in knowing just how to create the best logo for any business. A logo is one of those strange and wonderful things that are hard to describe – you know a bad one when you see it, and you know a good one too. But putting each type of logo into words is incredibly difficult, which is why it’s always best to get the experts in to design a new one.

A good logo is something that instantly brands your business. A bad logo will brand it too, but not in a good way. The worst kind of logo is arguably one that you look at for five minutes, and you’re still not sure what on earth it is or what it represents.

If you’ve got a good logo it will get positive responses from your clients. It will also be recognisable, even if they see the logo outside of its usual placement. For example if a client happens upon your social media pages and sees the logo before reading any text, will they be able to recognise it as yours? Furthermore will it give them a positive image they like? Positivity is a major aspect to remember here, as the logo has a major job to do to represent your business.

Great logos look good whatever size they are as well. If your logo looks great in large format but practically disappears when it has to be shrunk to fit a magazine ad, it’s time to get a new one.

In short, if you’re not sure how well your current logo is performing for you, you can always contact us here at Ratio7 to find out more about getting a brand new logo designed with just you in mind.

Successfully Name Your Business

A catchy, memorable business name is the starting point for an eye-catching logo. While a poorly imagined name won’t necessarily kill or stifle your business, great business or product names can spread more easily and help your customers find you more easily. Can you imagine Google as anything different?

A great business name can be informative as well as catchy, letting clients know instantly what business you are in (Microsoft-software). There are experts in this field and, as you come up with a logo design, Ratio7 can certainly work with you on finding a name that supports a logo and marketing strategy.

Somethings to consider when naming a business or product:

• Start off by identifying your idea customer and what you want to say to them
• Generally, the shorter the better. American Telephone and Telegraph became AT&T
• Avoid putting a location in your name (Hertfordshire News and Books) in case you move out of the area or expand
• Consider your name’s search engine friendliness-the more unique, the easier to find
• Think of the emotions or status you want your business name to convey: peace? excitement? curiousity? youth? maturity?
• Before meeting with a designer or professional naming company, brainstorm a very broad list so you have something to work off of
• When considering the potential name, do consider the potential logo and if it will be labor-intensive to design
• Use root words (Intel=intelligence) to build off of
• Be prepared to do a trademark search to make sure your name isn’t already in use
• Consider browsing stock photos of nearly anything to stir creativity (landscapes, people, business photography are all good choices)

If you need help and are ready to get to work, Ratio7 would love to be your design partner for the long-term. Working with startups is one of our specialties!

Colour Trends for the Web

Colour trends vary by genre: home decor, fashion, automotive and, not surprisingly, digital media. Like fashion, certain colours and colour combinations are often in or out, hip or passe’. Who can forget peach and teal from the 1980′s or burgundy and hunter green from the 1990′s? But, like fashion, certain colours and combinations gain new popularity because of their retro feel.

Some colours have staying power and what your digital media needs to say and who it needs to reach is often affected by these standards. Red=power and confidence. Navy or grey=tradition. Green=organic (and now, sustainable). E-commerce sites for little girls are nearly uniformly pink.Generally speaking, you can’t go wrong with some of these colours in graphic design if your business needs to send one of these messages.

But if you need to re-brand or start a brand based on the cutting edge, current trends, here are some suggestions:

Vintage Wine per Benjamin Moore

Lemon Citrus Yellow from Colour Futures

Organic Meets Industrial (think soft green and silver or brown and copper)

Retro (yes folks, keep your eyes open for both turquoise, burgundy and hunter green)

Colour is trending a bit more muted, less electric orange and citron green and, instead, more soft clay-like colours.

Keep in mind. Colour, like branding, needs to be updated periodically. Consumers eyes grow accustomed and they stop seeing your logo after many years. A great way to re-brand is through the use of new contemporary colours. If you feel that your business needs a new look to signify new growth or to attract a new demographic of customers, contact Ratio7 for a free consultation. Our web and digital media designers understand the message that colour sends and how it translates onto computer,  television and mobile screens.

Leverage That Logo!

Many companies use their logos in very traditional ways (signage, letterhead, business cards, online branding), but new and exciting ways of using your logo are popping up. You may have heard of Jason Sadler and his I Wear Your Shirt endeavour? Companies are paying him to wear their logos on a t-shirt. It is brilliant concept and certainly a different kind of marketing strategy for a business!

Temporary tattoos have increased in popularity recently. If you have a company with a hip focus or one that markets to children and young people, you can purchase temporary tattoos of your logo and distribute these as a “freebie” for people to wear. Every time someone sees the tattoo, it is free marketing for you.

Stickers have a real cult following! People are putting stickers everywhere as a form of “tagging” like graffiti. Now, we don’t recommend that you break any laws, but offering stickers for convention or seminar attendees (who love “schwag”) can be a great way to get mileage out of your logo. There are also removable window decals for cars.

With Christmas approaching, consider giving away company ornaments. Many businesses put up trees and your logo on an ornament could catch someone’s eye. Another surprising affordable interesting item are jump or flash drives. There are also Swiss Army style tools.

Provide your employees with logo gear as well! Every time they wear that t-shirt or use the umbrella they received, they are marketing your business.

Make sure your logo is fresh and eye-catching. If you need rebranding or a new logo, feel free to contact us.

Before You Hire a Logo Designer

Logo design is an art and a science. The process can seem a bit tedious and like it is lacking a structured process. There is no way to do logo design without a great relationship between designer and client. Lots of communication and tweaking are involved until the client feels fully satisfied. There are a few steps to take in advance of hiring your designer and ways to make the process of logo design smoother.

Talk to your team, if you have one. If not, solicit input and ideas from people you trust and who know you and your business. The more ideas you have upfront, the easier it will be for the designer.

Ask yourself some questions. Do you want a casual colorful image or something more conservative and traditional? Where will you conceivably use the logo? Web, print, uniforms, banners, or additional licensed products to sell? Jot them all down.

Do your homework. Get out there and really look at other business logos. Identify the good from the bad and then save the ones that really speak to you and that seem like something that fits with your company’s culture.

Develop a budget. Most logo designs are bid as a single project, but do keep in mind this isn’t a 1 hour task. There will be lots of conversations, research on the designer’s part, and actual drawing and design. Ask yourself what you can realistically afford.

Once you’ve started the process, make yourself available to the designer. Your logo won’t get done if your designer can’t reach you! Realize that you are a key element of the design and make time in your schedule for phone calls and meetings.

A logo should reach out and visually grab potential customers. Great logos stand out in people’s minds: McDonald’s arches, Nike’s swoosh. Talk to Ratio7 about your logo needs. We’ll work with you to develop your distinctive brand!