This document is a DIY guide for non-designers on logo design, emphasizing that a logo represents a brand's collective experience rather than being the brand itself. It discusses the importance of understanding brand identity, including values, colors, and icons, and provides examples from well-known companies. Additionally, it offers guidance on whether to hire a designer or attempt to create a logo independently, recommending resources like logomaker.com for those interested in creating their logo.

1. HOW TO
DESIGN A LOGO
A Do-It-Yourself Guide
for Non-Designers

2. What is a brand?
A brand is the promise or expectations associated with
your product or service in your customer’s mind.
An effective brand helps your product
get noticed, liked, and remembered.

3. Your logo is not your brand.

4. Your brand is:
Trade
Shows
Website
Business
Cards
Newsletter
Signage
Store
Invoices
Emails
Employees
Word
of Mouth
User
Experience
Public
Relations
Look and
Feel
Advertising
Logo
Voice
Mail
Services
Billboard
Product
Uniforms
Letter
Head
Packaging

5. While important, your logo simply represents the collective
experience your customer has with all these brand “touch points”.
“A logo is the point of entry to the brand.”
—Milton Glaser, Designer

6. Before you design your logo,
you need to understand what your brand represents.
Luxury
Dependability
Creativity, Fun

7. Before you design your logo,
you need to understand what your brand represents.
Luxury
Dependability
Creativity, Fun

8. “Brands help consumers cut through the proliferation of
choices available in every product and service category.”
—Scott M. Davis, Brand Asset Management

9. Once you understand your brand…
Think about images, colors and styles that might
represent the ideas your brand stands for.

10. A few examples
McDonald’s sells hamburgers and other fast foods. Notice
that their logo doesn’t include any food items.
The golden arches are bright and friendly. They have come
to represent quality and consistency—and fast food.

11. A few examples
that stands for stability and growth.
They use a bull as their icon,
which represents strength, growth, and a rising market.

12. A few examples
Nike sells shoes and other sporting goods.
However, their logo doesn’t include shoes or sports equipment.
Instead, the Nike Swoosh is a stylized wing, representing speed
and victory—two brand ideas that Nike is associated with.

13. Incidentally…
saw the swoosh logo he said:
“Well I don’t love it,
but maybe it will grow on me.”

14. Types of icons
Abstract
Emblems
Logotype
Characters
Combination
Hidden
Sprint, BP
Tivo, Mini
IBM, Disney
Energizer, Michellin Man
Amazon.com, Starbucks
FedEx, Toblerone

15. What images or icons can be
associated with your brand?

16. What about fonts?
Like icons, the fonts in a logo communicate different things.
Friendly, approachable
Creativity and fun
Trust
Natural, non-authoritarian

17. What ideas should the font
used for your brand represent?

18. What about colors?
Blue
Tradition, safety, calm, loyalty
Green
Healthy, natural, growth, freshness, money
Yellow
Happiness, fun, energy
Brown
Responsibility, security, home
Orange
Enthusiasm, creativity, action
Red
Strength, power, passion, danger, wrath
Purple
Royalty, power, wealth, mystery, magic
Black
Elegance, formality, wealth, power, evil
White
Purity, innocence, faith

19. What colors best represent
the ideals your brand represents?

20. Now you’re ready to put it all together

21. Wait...
Should I hire a designer or do it myself?

22. Hire a designer if...
You’ve thought about your brand and you still have no clue what to do.
You need more ideas.
You’re willing to take advice from a designer.
You’ve tried to do it yourself and failed.

23. Do it yourself if...
You
You
You
You
don’t have much money to spend.
just need a logo to get started.
have an idea for your logo already.
need a logo fast and can’t wait for a designer to think about it for days.

24. Logomaker.com
Start now

25. Logomaker.com
Click the “Try It Now” button

26. Logomaker.com
Choose an icon

27. Logomaker.com
Enter your text and choose a font

28. Logomaker.com
Change the colors

29. Logomaker.com
Arrange your logo and save

30. Logomaker.com
It’s that easy

31. Want to learn more?
Start your own logo now
Go to the Logomaker blog
Download the free “How To” ebook
Learn more about how to design your logo