9 Logo Design Mistakes Often Made By Designers

One of the best ways to tell apart a company is by having a unique and unforgettable logo; but, making a unique and unforgettable logo isn’t as simple as it sounds. Here are 9 logo design mistakes that amateur logo designers usually fall victim to.

1. Typographic disorder

Typography in logo design can make or break a design, so it’s crucial that you are aware of typographic ABC. A logo needs to be retained as simple as possible though still portraying the intended message, and for this to happen, one should look at all typographic aspects of the design.

Don’t use too many fonts or weights (two maximum). Never use predictable, insane, or ultra-thin fonts. Seriously consider kerning, spacing, and sizing and above all, make sure you’ve picked the correct font(s) for the project at hand.

Font selection could take as long as the creation of the logo takes itself and it should not be carried out quickly. Spend time looking into all the different fonts that might be useful for the job, filter them down more, and then find out how each of them suits finest together with the logo mark. Don’t hesitate to purchase a font, customize one, or make your own. Also, consider the way the logo’s font could be used over the entire brand identity together with other fonts and imagery.

2. Too complex, too abstract

Simple logos are more memorable as they enable easier recognition; however, for a logo to be unforgettable and stand out from the crowd, it should have something exceptional about it, without being too over-drafted. Besides simplicity make a logo more memorable, it also makes the logo more versatile, which means it can do the job well over various dimensions. For example, a logo should work on something the size of a postage stamp and also on something as large as a billboard. Also, never make your logo too abstract either.

3. Depending on special effects or color

If a logo requires color or special effects to make it a powerful logo, it’s not really a strong logo. To get to this, work initially in black and white and then bring the special effects or color afterwards. This enables you to concentrate on the shape and concept instead of the special effects. Don’t use drop shadows, embossing, or other layer styles to shine up logos – an excellent logo will get up on its own. Additionally, you can produce different variations of a logo to make sure it works in color or gray scale.

4. Using raster images

A logo needs to be designed in a vector graphics program such as Adobe Illustrator to make sure that the ultimate logo can be scaled to any size, allowing the logo to be utilized easily to other media. A vector graphic is comprised of mathematically accurate points, which guarantees visual regularity across all mediums and dimensions. A raster image is made out of pixels, like what you would get in Photoshop, can’t be scaled to any size, meaning at large sizes, the logo would be useless. Make use of a vector graphics program when designing logos.

5. Staying in a monogram

One of the more usual mistakes of the inexperienced logo designer is attempting to produce a monogram out of the business’ initials (e.g. Robert’s Appliance would turn into a logo created from R & A). Even though this seems like a good option initially, it’s instead hard to build credibility or express an expected message with just the initials of a company. You can surely check out this course, but don’t decide on it unless you can produce an original, creative, and remarkable solution that echoes the business’ goals.

Likewise, don’t shorten a business name into acronyms until it has been around for a while or if it meets the objective. HP, FedEx, IBM, and GM never began as acronyms – they evolved into acronyms after many years of high-profile coverage.

6. Using visual clichés

Light bulbs for ‘ideas’, speech bubbles for ‘discussion’, swooshes for ‘dynamism’, etc. These concepts tend to be the primary things to pop into one’s mind when brainstorming, and for the same reason should be the first ideas dumped. How is your design going to be distinctive when numerous other logos include the identical concept? Avoid these kinds of visual clichés and come up with a genuine idea and design.

7. Copying, stealing, or borrowing design

It’s sad that this has to be stated, but it’s an extremely common practice nowadays. A designer sees a concept that he likes, does an instant mirror, color change, or would alter, and then calls the idea his own. Besides this being unethical, illegitimate, and absolutely ridiculous, you’re also about to get caught at some point. Avoid the use of stock or clip art either – the purpose of a logo is to be exceptional and original.

8. Not cleaning up logo files

Logo files need to be one of the cleanest files you actually deliver a client. Node factors must be maintained to a minimum; curves should be as smooth as possible and without overlapping. Shapes needs to be merged, and if your logo is symmetrical, it should be flawlessly symmetrical. Everything in the supplied file needs to be perfect and as minimal as possible. Think about if the client needs to inflate the logo to place on the side of a truck. If the logo has any mistakes, will now be obviously noticeable. Make it perfect.

9. Not delivering proper files to client

Delivering the correct files to your client is one means to make sure that your client never pops up seeking revisions or different versions of a logo. Additionally, it ensures that the logo gets viewed effectively in all conditions, which should be backed up by a style guide.

You must provide your client 4 high-quality files for each logo variation – this includes delivering a spot-color file, a pure CMYK (no spot colors), a pure black file, and a pure white (knockout) file. These should usually be in EPS, TIFF, and JPEG formats. You can provide a favicon too, if you’re feeling great.