6 Logo Design Principles for Creating a Standout Brand

Author: Rachel Durkan Category: Branding Date: May 13, 2021

Your logo carries a ton of weight. It sets the tone for your entire brand and gives the consumer their first glimpse into who you are as a company. So, if there’s one part of your branding that must make a good first impression, it’s your logo. That’s a lot of responsibility for one little image file, but fortunately, there’s a pretty widely-accepted set of logo design principles that, if you follow them, will help you create a successful symbol of your brand.

There are six main principles of good logo design, and they are:

1.     Simplicity
2.     Originality
3.     Versatility
4.     Scalability
5.     Balance
6.     Timelessness

Of course, there are plenty of poorly designed company logos out there that don’t follow these basic principles of logo design… but that doesn’t mean you should follow suit. Even if you can’t quite put your finger on what’s not working, you know these logos when you see them. They just look off, or cluttered, or outdated, and they fail to convey a sense of professionalism or credibility – which is a problem, considering those are exactly the types of characteristics your consumer is going to want to see in any company they’re paying money to.

But when you do utilize those six logo design principles, each one plays an equal part in helping to create a strong, standout visual identity for your brand.

6 Logo Design Principles

1.     Simplicity 

Simplicity isn’t always simple to achieve when it comes to logo design; but when you get it right, it really pays off. A simple logo is one that is uncluttered and comprised of only a few easily-discernable and clearly identifiable elements. This first logo design principle also refers to an uncomplicated color palette. If your existing logo is made up of several overlapping shadings, images, fonts, etc., you’ve got some work to do. You want to strive for a logo that’s as clear and visible as possible so that it stands out, speaks to your audience, and – for your own sake – is easy to work with. Like the saying goes, less is more.

2.     Originality

Your logo should be unique and memorable enough that anyone who sees it can immediately identify it and associate it with your brand. A good graphic designer can help you come up with logo design elements that are exclusive to and indicative of your brand values.

3.     Versatility

Versatility is one of the logo design principles that’s easy to overlook. Maybe you’ve designed something and it looks great on your computer screen; but place it on a dark-colored t-shirt, for example, and you suddenly run into visibility issues. You may not realize the full scope at first, but your logo will likely need to be used – and look good (i.e., crisp, clear, legible and identifiable) – across a wide range of applications, like on letterhead, t-shirts, websites, and more. Truly versatile logos are ones that are adaptive and have different variations of size, complexity or even color to accommodate and adapt to wherever they’re placed.

4.     Scalability

Drawing upon the idea of versatility, scalability refers to your logo’s ability to be used at a variety of sizes. It should look just as sharp on a poster as it does scaled down on a business card, or scaled up on a billboard. That means avoiding tiny font sizes or trying to cram in long-winded taglines, which become unreadable at small sizes. Achieving this particular logo design principle also means having a graphic designer create your logo as a file type known as a vector, which can be scaled up or down to any size without losing its resolution.

5.     Balance

The human eye responds best to balanced and well-proportioned images, which is the driver of this next logo design principle. To achieve proper balance, aim for either symmetry – equally weighted elements aligned on either side of a center line – or purposeful asymmetry – opposite weights that create a composition that is not even, but still has equilibrium.

6.     Timelessness

Trendiness is the enemy of a well-designed logo. Yes, you want a logo that is modern, but it should also be classic and timeliness. You want your logo to stand the test of time so that it never looks outdated and doesn’t require a rebrand or refresh every few years.

So, in closing, creating a logo that is worthy of standout status means ensuring it encompasses your brand values while also hitting on each of the six logo design principles outlined above. To get started creating you own standout logo, contact Paradigm Marketing and Design today, and one of our team members will be in touch.