I am sure you have a basic idea, but to put it simply everything you see in print/web and quite a bit of TV are graphics, created by a designer/artist.

Most people who visit my web site are concerned about LOGOS,BUSINESS CARDS, BROCHURES, FLYERS, POSTCARDS, STATIONARY/ENVELOPES, PRESENTATION FOLDERS, ILLUSTRATIONS, POSTERS, GREETING CARDS, SIGNS, LARGE BANNERS, WEB ART/ BANNERS, T-SHIRT ART and other items, like tags, invitations, menus, etc.

Almost all businesses need a LOGO, something that identifies who they are. Add business cards, stationary/envelopes and maybe a presentation folder and you have an IDENTITY PACKAGE. When all the items are purchased at one time as an IDENTITY PACKAGE, the price is usually lower than when you purchase a LOGO, STATIONARY or other items individually.

With your logo on all your business papers, you are creating a brand for yourself….after a period of time, you will be recognized by your logo or even your tagline.

What’s a tag line? That is the little line under the name of your company that explains what you do….many times the name of the company and the logo itself doesn’t tell you what you actually do. For instance, a company called Equine has a horse head with the word Equine as a logo.

Do you have any idea what the company does? Neither do I…however, if they added the tagline “The best in Riding Paraphernalia” you  can envision crops, halters and other riding gear. I personally love to use taglines if there is the least bit of confusion about what the company does. Nike’s tagline—just do it—is a byword in our society, as is their swoosh logo.

LOGOS

Speaking of the Nike Swoosh LOGO, that is a good segue into a discussion of LOGOS. Now, I specialize in illustrated logos, as opposed to corporate LOGOS such as the Nike Swoosh. In my opinion—as well as the opinion of a few hundred of my favorite clients—there is a place for illustrated logos. Many people believe the hype that “simpler is better”, but let’s look at that. For the corporate world, this is usually true. A bank doesn’t want or need a complicated design….banks just need a simple glyph that may or may not relate to the name. I say that because as I look at many local banks and their logos, I often wonder—what the heck is that symbol and what does it have to do with the name of this bank? Some of them are a little too esoteric for me.

The point I am trying to get at is that big corporations, with branches around the world, don’t need a complicated illustrated LOGO that may only be of interest to Americans, or even narrower, to the people in that particular state or town.

And the Nike LOGO? How many billions of dollars do you think they spent to make that LOGO known around the world? Let’s take the billions they make and divide by 1% and…..still too big of numbers for us to worry about.

The people that hire me—-you, I trust—-are looking for something more personal. Other words that come to mind are “clever, charming, cute, pretty, feminine, masculine, funny, colorful, exciting, lively, happy”. There are more, I am sure, but these people are looking for something beside a “simple” LOGO to define their identity, their particular business.

At the risk of scaring some potential clients off (because they don’t fit the mold) I would say that most of my clients are starting a new business, maybe even starting a business to do in the evenings and weekends while they hold down a full time job. I can even narrow it down further: many of my clients are in their forties and starting a “second life” so to speak. And they want their LOGO to be personal to them. Not a meaningless swoosh that became famous because of the gazillion dollars spent on the little thing.

MY PROCESS FOR LOGOS

It is actually pretty simple. I have to have at least one meaningful conversation with my client. I might already know the name of the company from an email, and the name of the person. But, I need to speak personally with my client to BRAINSTORM ideas. That means we throw ideas around together.

I usually want to know if my client has any ideas for the LOGO. We discuss those ideas, in depth, analyzing whether we think they would work in a small logo, whether it gets the point across or matches with the name of the company. This leads me to think of ideas, which I toss into the mix.

I also want to find out if the client has any ideas about color choices, style and even fonts. A surprising number of clients have actually picked out a font they like! It may not end up being the fonts used, but it is a jumping off point.

By the time we are done with this conversation (and it doesn’t take as long as it sounds like…honest!) then I have a pretty good idea of what I am drawing. An illustrated logo is basically a drawing in the mini style…still a drawing, however.

They are usually a little complicated and take some time to create. Therefore, my policy is to create ONE DRAWING OF THE ILLUSTRATION FOR THE LOGO—AND THEN OFFER THREE DIFFERENT LAYOUTS.

I send this to the client and we start going back and forth until the client’s vision…seen through my eyes…is refined so the client is ecstatically happy he/she hired me to create their UNIQUE ILLUSTRATED LOGO.

I offer unlimited revisions, but there is an inherent understanding that this very nice thing I am offering should not be abused. I have found every time that the client and I are on the same page with this….just as I am starting to think I am in the Twilight Zone and this is the dread Job That Never Ends….my client goes and does something wonderful….I will leave that to your imagination!

Ok, the LOGO is done, my client is thrilled. What is next?