Target hits the bullseye, Nike goes swoosh, and Apple catches the eye. All three company’s iconic logos are unique, memorable and stand the test of time. They instantly and consistently do what a potent logo should: Identify a brand, make it stand out and, ideally, drive customer interest and sales.
Your logo — from the color to the shape — should provide an immediate sense of what your company is all about.
“When people look at it, they should get a feel for your brand personality and your distinctive point of view,” Wheeler says. “They should know that you’re different from your competitors, you’re professional, a real business and you’re confident and successful in what you do.”
Amazon’s logo, represented by the company’s name, with an arrow below it pointing from the “a” to the “z,” is an example of a logo that embodies its namesake’s brand identity exceptionally well, according to Wheeler. “The arrow doubles as a smile that conveys friendly customer service and it connects the ‘a’ to the ‘z’ because Amazon offers everything A to Z. It’s all there.”
Color choice is incredibly important. Fonts, like colors, convey and inspire various emotions. Different fonts work best for different businesses.
Black is used to commonly target youth and a high-end audience. It creates a mystery while representing power, authority and elegance in the logo.
Red has the power of attraction and is one of the most popular colors. Used mostly in food, health, beauty and entertainment logos, it grabs the attention of the consumers. Several red foods, such as red peppers or red wine, are known to help increase metabolism.
Yellow is a warm color that invokes the feeling of happiness, warmth and relaxation. Generally it doesn’t play a central role in logos and is sparingly used to highlight important features of a logo.
Blue is used in corporate logos as it creates a sense of security while showing loyalty and professionalism. This color is used by various businesses related to software, finance, pharmaceutical industry, government and banks.
Green is mainly used to represent eco-friendly companies or businesses revolving around agriculture, recycling, landscaping, gardening and solar power. It is the color of nature and gives a calming effect while representing growth.
Orange is another beloved color of the food, art and the sports industries. While in one sector it evokes an appetite, in others it suggests playfulness, creativity and energy. Being bright makes orange the favorite color for industries dealing with kids’ products and foods.
Being a color of royalty, purple is mostly used to represent religious institutes and educational organizations. It is seldom used for commercial services, unless it can clearly represent the main essence of the company it stands for. Chocolate is one food which is often represented by purple logos.
White is a neutral color that implies purity. It is also the essential color in negative spacing logos. The FedEx and the Adobe logo make the best use of white. FedEx has a white arrow while the ‘A’ in Adobe is designed in white over a red background.
Pink is often taken to be a feminine color, which is why it is popularly used in logos related to beauty, fashion and others. It is also used for companies dealing with children’s clothes and accessories.
Brown is a neutral color that is reliable, solid and dependable. This color is most commonly used for agriculture, construction and legal industries. Some food related products like coffee and chocolate are also best represented by brown.