Your company logo is important. Much more important than taglines, which we’ll get into next time.

By “logo”, I mean the design, size, font and color of your company name, not necessarily a symbol.

Why is your logo important? Because your logo is a message that is repeated over and over. Logos build brand awareness. When a logo has become fixed in a customer’s mind, it establishes your credibility. When your sales rep calls on the customer, she already knows who you are.

It follows that what kind of logo you have will affect what kind of impression customers develop about your company.

1. If your logo looks like it was designed during World War II, customers might think you’re old-fashioned.

2. If your logo looks like it belongs in a science-fiction movie, customers might think you’re impractical.

3. If your logo looks BLAH, customers might think you’re BLAH.

So what makes a good logo?

1. Easy to read. Many logos are overly-stylized. If a reader can’t quite make out the spelling, back to the drawing board. Your message isn’t sufficiently clear. Remember that capital letters are harder to read than upper/lower case.

2. Easy to identify. Can a reader identify your logo when it’s too far off to read? If so, you have a winning design.

3. Short. An extremely long company name presents major design difficulties for logos. Long names are difficult to remember, too.

4. Square. Generally, it’s easier to incorporate block logos into business cards, letterhead, etc., than long horizontal ones. My logo, pictured above, is an example of block design.

5. Reproducible color(s). Consistency is what logos are all about. Some colors are difficult to reproduce in various media. For example, a logo that looks red on a business card may appear pinkish on a baseball cap. Consult a graphic designer.

6. Design for Your Audience, Not Yourself. Having gone through numerous logo selections, I’ve learned the danger of making choices based on personal taste. Like any other form of sales communication, a logo must resonate with the customer. Logo reviews are a perfect opportunity to involve customers!

A new logo can cost anywhere from $500 to $10,000, depending on the reputation of the design firm, complexity of the project and whether a trademark search is involved. Some companies design their logo in-house. That can work just fine–or backfire badly.

Logos-by-committee are to be avoided. The least effective logo I ever developed involved a pricy design firm and a large internal selection team. In the end, we made so many comprimises to reach consensus that the logo wound up BLAH in the extreme.

How do you know if you need a new logo?

1. If you’re in gross violation of any of the above recommendations, consider a logo facelift if not a whole new design.

2. Ask customers what they think of your logo. If you don’t like the answers or get lots of blank stares–change it.

3. If you have something new going on–an acquisition, a reorganization, a new marketing plan–consider making a new logo part of your announcement.

Of course, there are no hard and fast rules. If you haven’t had a new logo since World War II, it might be high time for an update. On the other hand, the General Electric logo is working quite nicely, and it’s been around since 1887!

Word Sell … Scrambled Toast