Do we really need a logo design???

[Christian]

Hello, since there has been so many logo design contest, and since there where so many people interested, i think that it would be good idea to know why it is important for a company to have a logo, and what makes a good logo. People who are not graphic designers can learn about this, specially company owners. It would be interesting to know what people not into graphic design think they know about logos, since they may be wrong or not know enough to make a good decition about logos.

So, the questions would be:
- Why it is important to have a logo for your company or game?.
- What makes a good logo.

PS: For those who really know about graphic design, i think it would be a good idea not to answer these questions (until later), since i think it would be interesting to know what people not into graphic design think they know about this subject.
Also i think that if you are an artist that not necesarilly means that you are a graphic designer and that you know how to design logos.
(and excuse my english).

[Sirrus]

Most people identify with a visual representation as opposed to just a name - "I don't know whats it called, but if I saw it, I'd recognize it"

Its important to have a visual logo that is memorable and identifiable - requirement for solid branding.

[sparkyboy]

Why?
Take 'NIKE' for an example.They no longer need the wording to be identifiable, just that 'TICK' says it all!! ;)

Never a phrase was more deserved than:-
'If a picture paints a thousand words'

What?
Simple and to the point, and portrays a 'POSITIVE' attitude and/or image!! :D
Can't get much more simple and positive than a 'TICK' eh? ;)

All the best


Mark.

[Christian]

What is memorable, or how you identify a memorable logo.
And what is a identifable logo, or what characteristics posess identifalbe logos.

[Greg Squire]

What is memorable, or how you identify a memorable logo.
And what is a identifable logo, or what characteristics posess identifalbe logos.

Those are very subjective questions. Here's a few articles that could help. (Do a Google search and you'll find lots more)

http://www.designgraphics.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6
http://www.logodesignworks.co.uk/articles/logo_design_articles/what-makes-a-good-logo.htm
http://www.businesstoolchest.com/articles/data/20031209025648.shtml

[Robert Cummings]

Yes you really need a logo design.

PS: For those who really know about graphic design, i think it would be a good idea not to answer these questions (until later), since i think it would be interesting to know what people not into graphic design think they know about this subject.

And how will that help you, by having views from people who maybe don't know what they're talking about?

[Hiro_Antagonist]

Logos are important.

I agree with Robert. It's probably hard for non-design and non-marketing folk to see the importance of logos, much like it's hard for non-producers/managers to undestand the value of tight budgets and schedules, or like it's hard for non-developers to understand why a pre-cached pathfinding map is important in an RTS. Just because the importance isn't obvious doesn't mean logos aren't important.

Some short answers are:
-Logos develop identity and increase brand awareness.
-Logos are a very dense/quick pneumonic for your company, so that customers will mentally register and reinforce your identity at a glance when they see it.
-A good logo helps you seem professional, which is subconsciously equated quite quality in most customers' minds.
-A fitting logo can help convey what your company (and its products) are about.

-Hiro_Antagonist

[papillon]

... OTOH, I can't, off the top of my head, picture ANY game company logo. This may be partially because I'm ill and sleep-deprived, but really, I know them by NAME, not by image.

What does EA look like? Well, I assume the letters EA are involved... (But I can easily hear a 'Challenge Everything!' whisper in my head.)
Atari? I *should* know that one.... I think it's white? And there's a triangley shape? (upon looking it up, while these things are true, it still wasn't anything near what I was dimly envisioning)
Blizzard? Um... funky text surrounded by fire, maybe? (Completely wrong.)
PopCap? Not a clue. (Oh, THAT thing! My eyes always skip right over it. Well, it looks vaguely familiar now that I look at it.)

I knew the old Sierra logo (the mountain and the two tings!) very well, but since they are no longer what they used to be I don't know if they still use it. Probably. Besides, I respond more to the load-up sound than to the image of the mountain. Hearing it makes me smile and rush over to check out what someone's doing.

I suppose my point is that while it's definitely a useful tool to make people remember you, it doesn't seem to be 100% necessary to have a really memorable logo... cause there are plenty of successful companies whose games I buy and whose images I don't know. :)

On a game box, there's plenty of room to put the whole company's name. On a download, though, especially one that will be showing up on lots of portals and affiliate sites, you might want to have as many cues as possible to tie your games together and make people think of YOU? Maybe?

(I don't know, I haven't bothered much with logo yet.)

[Christian]

And how will that help you, by having views from people who maybe don't know what they're talking about?

I dont think it will help me, i think its interesting to know what non designers think about logos, and also, maybe they can learn something they dont know, or change theyr minds about logos, so the post its actually to help others.

I searched the internet for good links about logos, and i found these:

http://www.monochrom.at/markenzeichnen/index-eng.htm For everyone, designers and not designers, a fun experiment about logos memorability.

http://www.graphic-design.com/DTG/dickson/logos.html For non designers.

http://www.logoed.fsnet.co.uk/index2.html For both, shows lots of excellent logos.

[dislekcia]

What does EA look like? Well, I assume the letters EA are involved... (But I can easily hear a 'Challenge Everything!' whisper in my head.)
...
I knew the old Sierra logo (the mountain and the two tings!) very well, but since they are no longer what they used to be I don't know if they still use it. Probably. Besides, I respond more to the load-up sound than to the image of the mountain. Hearing it makes me smile and rush over to check out what someone's doing.

So essentially what you're saying is that unique sounds work just as well as logos ;). That's a useful observation there, in a medium that allows more than just visual branding, should we not use audial branding too?

-D

[papillon]

Except you can't put a sound on your webpage, unless you want people to HATE YOU. :)

[revve]

Sorry to jump in halfway through the conversation - I recently found out about The Logo Company (http://thelogocompany.net/). I haven't used them yet, but on another forum on which I participate, I saw very high praises for this company by people that used them before. This does mean paying for a logo, but for only $75, you get an incredible logo, with custom, non-clipart images and fonts, designed by professional graphic designers.

PS. I am not affiliated with this company in any way.

[Christian]

I think a visual representation of an action can make the viewer think about the end of the action resulting in a sound, like...a car going in full speed and in front of it a wall, or a person heh...the sound resulting from that would be a scream, the sound of the tires with breaks apllied, and so on.

revve: why dont you check the link i gave above (this one (http://www.graphic-design.com/DTG/dickson/logos.html)), youll realize that charging so little money for a logo has its downsides.

[revve]

I was aware that $75 was very little. They claim they use this as an oppertunity to introduce their clients to their other business, but it's nice to hear about the costs, etc from the horse's mouth. I'd guess for real quality, you'd pay an hourly rate and just have to cough it up.

[Martoon]

Sorry to jump in halfway through the conversation - I recently found out about The Logo Company (http://thelogocompany.net/). I haven't used them yet, but on another forum on which I participate, I saw very high praises for this company by people that used them before. This does mean paying for a logo, but for only $75, you get an incredible logo, with custom, non-clipart images and fonts, designed by professional graphic designers.

PS. I am not affiliated with this company in any way.
I don't like their logo. :cool: (seriously)

Looking at some of the other logos they've done, I actually like them better.

[revve]

I don't like their logo. :cool: (seriously)

Looking at some of the other logos they've done, I actually like them better.

I have to agree - their sample/previous customer logos are extemely good - this is the main reason I kept the link in my bookmarks. They are a LOT cheaper than anybody else (does raise some warning bells), but I've heard really good comments about the company, and the samples...

[Christian]

Well...excuse me if i insult someone, but, as stated in the links above, and other posts, a good logo needs to be memorable, to achieve this you need simple shapes, not as complicated as the ones on that site, and not so many colors as those logos, so, they may seem pretty and you may like them because of that, but they are not well designed...

[dislekcia]

Except you can't put a sound on your webpage, unless you want people to HATE YOU. :)

Splash screens can have sound, so can mouseovers. I wasn't talking about websites really, I meant games.

-D

[Omega]

I think that for an Indie Developer, you would want several logos for the same game. A logo I did for an indie game ( http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/5020/despspace26ny.jpg ) would work for users who are looking for an arcade game to play. But, for a portal, you could use a more colorful logo with a picture of a planet and the words Desperate Space arranged in a different way, to target portal users who want space games, but wouldn't be caught dead playing inside an arcade.

In other words, the logo should explain the market that the developer is targetting. Kids? Adults? Are there machine guns, or flowers? A lot of colors, or little color? You basically explain what kind of stuff your company produces with the logo, without having to force the customer to read pages of your About Me section. For example, for Nexic, since all he creates are space games, and all he wants to create in the future are space games, he should probably have a logo that isn't a literal jagged blade, but something extraterrestrial. It doesn't limit him because, if in 2010, he wants to create a simple puzzle game for kids, it would be better for him to create another web site with a kids theme. In other words, don't confuse the customer by mixing everything up or having a very generic white web site. Be what you stand for.

A business that is into selling Coffee and also laundry service is going to have two separate themes that work the best for each piece of their business. So, Starbucks and Larry's Laundromat would not compromise on a logo of an espresso on top of a laundromat just because they are owned by the same person. Instead, what would happen is each of the parts would have their own and very different logo, feel, theme, marketing budget, return policy, even business hours, depending on which business it is.