I often see posts in the various Facebook business groups asking for feedback on shiny new logo designs, or “Help me choose which logo’s best” polls
As I’m too nice to say that on a public forum I always tell them that Number 3’s best…
If you’re a small business, unless you’ve thrown $$$ Gazillions $$$ at brand awareness you’ll be bloody lucky if your most loyal client can even remember what your logo looks like!
And that’s absolutely fine
Clients don’t give small businesses work because they like your logo
Before I have an angry mob of graphic designers waving impeccably typeset Helvetica placards outside my house, I’m not saying you don’t need a nice logo
What I am saying is that for a small business it’s not really the first thing you should be worried about. Or even the 17th.
I know that a good designer will tell you that your logo should be the physical embodiment of your brand values and if done right can immediately communicate a whole host of subtle visual messages to your prospective clients
They’re right. It could do that…
I’ve worked with a lot of very good designers over the years who have produced very powerful logos that have encapsulated everything that’s great about their clients and really helped to transform their businesses
But if you’ve spent $5 on it from fiverr.com, I can guarantee it certainly won’t do all that
That’s taking it far beyond the dull and boring list of bullet points “stuff that you do” on your website, and getting down to the nitty-gritty real reasons people buy from you and the real benefits they get
It’s not always easy to get this understanding…but it’s well worth it once you do
And a good graphic designer would want to know all this anyway
But instead of then spending time or money on ‘rebranding’ use that insight to create something that you can send to you prospects or current clients
That could be an email, a letter, an ad, whatever…as long as it’s something that demonstrates your understanding and your ability to help them with a particular challenge they’re facing
Then make them an offer
And if it results in a few sales, you could even invest some of your proceeds into getting a new logo, brochure or stationery professionally designed…
Am I being a little harsh here?
