Don’t Fall for Cookie-Cutter Branding

Given the popularity of template-based design apps, it’s easy to think that a logo design is also template-based – a quick generic copy to be used in branding. However, this dumbing-down of logo design presents real risks for business owners — risks that can cost money, not to mention loss of credibility.

What Are the Risks?

• Copying a logo (or designing something very similar) within the same market is likely a trademark violation, culminating in a potential lawsuit. You may also lose whatever funds you invested in that logo design and its application on marketing materials.
• Why would you choose a cookie-cutter approach for your unique product or services? Using a template pretty much ensures that your logo will NOT be unique; it will be confused for other company logos, preventing you from standing out in your market.

Instead, go the professional route: Hire a logo designer/brand expert who will deliver something special and unique to your company alone.

What a Design Pro Can Bring to the Table

1. Experience. Years of expertise in branding and design mean that your pro designer has learned many lessons — about business, trends, and what has and has not worked. You’re not their first client; they have seen a lot and know how to handle anything that comes up.

2. Expertise with the right tools. Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop are still the premier tools for custom logo design, both print and digital. An expert will be skilled in the right tools for creating unique, well-thought-out designs. And they will provide the correct file versions for both digital and print.

3. Professionalism. Professional designers know to ask for, carefully listen to, and interpret a client’s needs. They do their research on your competition. A pro will help develop a consistent visual marketing message across materials.

4. Patience. Like anything worthwhile, design is worth the time it takes. Logo development time is spent:

• researching the client’s competitors and market
• initial brainstorming
• creating rough concept sketches
• tweaking and refining those sketches, choosing fonts and colors
• translating concepts into vector files
• presenting concepts to client
• tweaking for any refinements
• creating online and press-ready files

5. Flexibility. Professional designers want and welcome client feedback; it’s naturally part of the process and is necessary in order to satisfy the client that their logo is one of a kind.