Three signs your logo is due for a refresh.
/A logo is one of the most important branding aspects of your business, but what if your logo is not working for you anymore? Would you know? Here are my three questions to ask yourself to determine whther you need a logo refresh. But first, let me explain what I mean by refresh... I don't necessarily mean a complete overhaul that's a bit drastic (although in extreme cases quite necessary).
#1 HAS YOUR BUSINESS EVOLVED?
Over time your businss can change and evolve, that's cool! When I first started my business back in 2010, I was designing invitations with a business name of Donna's Creations. Although it had my namesake, I didn't feel it was the right direction for me. I am a qualified graphic designer! I studied long and hard to become a graphic designer - not to design invitations! So I went back to what I know best and what I loved doing... LOGOS AND BRANDING! So I changed my business model and refreshed my branding to suit my target market and DESIGN CAPITAL was born! Since then my logo has changed slightly over the years, but still recognisable as Design Capital. It's nice to keeps things fresh...like a new pair of shoes!
So if your business has evolved and not it's not what it was when it started, it may be time to refresh your logo to make it match your current values, services and/or products.
#2 IS YOUR LOGO OUT OF DATE?
If your logo is older than five years old there is probably a good chance it's out of date... Just like everything, design styles go out of fashion, for example, drop shadows and shiny bits and 3D looks were all the rage a few years ago, now companies are opting for a flatter and cleaner look to their logos (I actually notice this a lot with cereal packaging! maybe it's just me that's noticed things like that!). Also customers could perceive a business as out-of-touch with modern practices. Do you keep the same phone for more than 5 years? In most cases NO! Do you have the same hairstyle for more than 5 years...probably not! So why wouldn't you update your logo too? Keep things fresh, shake it up a bit...get excited about your business again and inject some life back into a dusty, tired old logo! Don't get me wrong, I'm all for timeless designs, but there is nothing wrong with a refresh to keep things exciting and fresh.
#3 DO YOU HAVE THE CORRECT LOGO FILES?
Ok well this one is interesting and I don't want to speculate on why you don't have the correct files or don't have the files at all! They could have been on that old computer you had five years ago. Or in some cases you may not have EVER had them or had competely useless files. You may have had a logo designed and only ever received .jpg files. Ideally when you have a logo designed by a professional you should get at least a few different versions of your logo, for example when I design a logo, included in the price the client will get a jpg and transparent png file, as well as a vector (that's going to be another post) .eps file and vector pdf. I would also usually supply a few different layouts of the logo for different uses, obviously, a long logo is not going to fit into a square space.
Anyway, if you don't have these vital files, you will need to have your logo re-drawn by a professional so that you can continue using them. And while you are at it, why not give it a refresh.
As refresh should as simple and as subtle as maybe a font change but still keeping the essence of the logo. Some companies are even opting for removing some detail. The Google logo is a really good example of the evolution of a logo and it was quite subtle over the years and you may not have even noticed it happened. see below.
Find more information about the google logo and Image sorted from http://1000logos.net/google-logo/
*Disclaimer: I'm a great graphic designer, not a copywriter - spelling and grammar is not my thing. See this post for what it is...An extremely passionate graphic designer, that wants to share her knowledge with you (possibly with a couple of spelling mistakes)!