Building a Business: Designing Your Logo
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Starting a business at home can be a fantastic way to boost your income and make the transition to full-time entrepreneur much easier.
If you want to earn extra money next year, now is the time set things up. Using services like Deluxe can make the process go much smoother.
Offer Compelling Product or Service
Having a compelling product is a must for your launch. Michael Hyatt and other business gurus consider is the foundation to success.
Gary Vaynerchuk, founder of VaynerMedia and is a prolific businessman himself, points out that, “If your work is great that becomes your reputation, and that becomes the gateway to get business.”
Whether this is a side hustle or you hope to launch a business, if you don't have some product or service that can fix a need or help others in some way, you're going to have a hard time making a sustainable profit.
If you're stuck on how to hone in, here are some helpful resources:
Once you have that down, it's time to work on your brand.
Making Your Brand Memorable
As much as we hope we get noticed for the ingenuity and care that goes into what we make, creating a memorable brand is vital to grow.
Let's start with something that every business needs as an identifier – you logo.
Your logo is your public face so the last thing you want to do is rush through it or skimp on getting a good design done.
While there are numerous opinions and thoughts on exact styles, there are some principles that most designers agree on:
- Simple is better: Overly complicated design can not only be distracting, but a waste of time. In the age of mobile, your design has to look good in a variety of sizes.
- Reflects the company: Your logo should capture the essence of your business (but not necessarily product or service). Interesting fact, of the top 50 brands, over 90% of their logos do not explictly show what the company produces.
- Future proof: Don't make the mistake of getting something done because it looks ‘in'. In a few years your logo can be dated or associated with being out of touch.
Again, these aren't rules, just principles, so use them as needed when coming up with your logo.
Outsourcing Your Design to Focus on Your Strengths
While wearing many hats is part of the game, you don't want to stifle growth by doing everything yourself.
Recognizing when you need to delegate can give you more time to focus on making your product or service better.
You may find logo design is right up your alley. This can give you an outlet to express your creativity.
On the other hand, you may recognize that graphic design isn't your strength, so you'll want outsource the work.
If you don't have a specific person in mind or you'd like to explore options, Deluxe Business Services offers high quality design at a truly affordable rate.
Getting a Professionally Designed Logo
Even though a designer will be crafting the logo, the process begins and ends with you.
Deluxe takes a lot of the stress out by working with you with an online creative brief to get an idea of your tastes, style, and business.
You then have a phone consultation to build your logo.
Depending on your budget, there are three different logo packages and options.
No matter which package you choose, you get:
- a dedicated, in-house logo designer,
- an initial concept in five days,
- at least 10 custom logo design concepts,
- multiple revisions and,
- unrestricted rights
The last one is key as I had logo designers give me a lower initial quote, but it didn't include unrestricted rights.
As an added bonus, Deluxe has several other services can be incredibly helpful for entrepreneurs building their business.
If you order a logo design via my link, you’ll get a free consulation and $25 off the broze package. It's an easy way to see if they're right for you.
Thoughts on Designing Your Logo
Whether you do everything on your own or you hire a designer like Deluxe, I'd love to hear from you about your plans.
How many of you are taking on a new side job or building a business next year?
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Deluxe. While I have been compensated for reviewing, all opinions expressed are my own.