Gone are the days when a career in graphic design meant years of formal education, followed by what seemed like an eternity of grunt work using techniques that most “designers” today have never even heard of, much less, used. Today, anyone with a copy of Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator can claim to be a designer. If you are a designer, when a client comes to you for a logo, are you the type who’s first reaction is to fire up Illustrator and start churning out logo concepts? Or are you the type who takes the time to learn about your client’s company, mission, goals, USP and a litany of other information that’s critical to design an effective logo that will not only accurately convey the image they need, but also stand the test of time?
Sadly, many people today just don’t understand the true value of a professionally designed logo. This often results in a strictly price-based decision, which leads them to seek out the cheapest designer, or even worse, buy a stock logo. To a cash-strapped business, investing between a few hundred to a few thousand dollars for a professionally designed logo may be impossible, so buying a stock logo for well under $100 may seem like a fantastic alternative. It’s not, and here’s why. Stock logos are sold over and over, so another company can buy the same exact logo – even your competitor. What would that do for your brand? You also won’t be able to trademark or copyright your logo since you don’t own the rights to it. And if that wasn’t enough, most stock logos follow the latest design trends, so while it may look cutting edge and trendy today, it will look dated in a few years.
Effective branding comes from investing in your company’s image. There are no short cuts.
I designed a logo with colors and gradients for a group of doctors. They like it, but aren’t too happy with the printing costs. Yeah, prices have come down, but not enough yet, I guess.Also, I don’t think you can use a famous logo to make a point about style. E.g., I’m not sure Westighouse (or even IBM/Coke, for that matter) would be considered if designed good today. They look good now because we’ve been seeing them for ages.