What Is A Logo?
A logo is a symbol or other small design adapted by an organisation to identify its products, uniform, vehicles.. the trademark of the company. This is my logo… 
When I was designing this, I wanted it to be bold, to stand out and be remembered. It needed to show that it was to do with work in progress, so I included the cogs. I also wanted to have some sort of passage of time – the clouds floating by, to show that whilst I am working at showing you how to make money from a second job, that it takes time… Its not in your face screaming ‘online marketing’ but I think it conveys a calm business, with an undercurrent of work buzzing away…!
Why Does My Business Need One?
The simple answer is yes.
The logo is supposed to be the face of the company, it should communicate visually the unique identity of your brand, what you are about. Granted there are some that clearly have no bearing on what they’re about but they are so well known now, but way back at their startup, they more than likely didnt have two beans to rub together for advertising either and have grown up over the last 50-60 years into the brands we know so well. They will have started up the same way you are.
I love this particular brand of breakfast biscuit… Im not from the USA and it kills me that we don’t have any outlets in the UK. I have to beg family to bring the biscuits over when they come to visit… Everywhere I go in the USA, I look out for their very distinctive logo ….
This logo tells you what it might be about… clearly its a chicken so its got to be chicken take out… right?
Chick-fil- A – Founded in 1946 in Atlanta, Georgia, officially registered in 1967… No internet then, no mobiles, and probably for most folks, no TV either… Had to start from the ground up but what an awesome logo!
None of these logos actually tell you what they’re selling, but they are so well known there is no need. Single letters, symbols, distinctive writing – they make a significant impact on the public perception of their company.
One of the most important branding investments you can make is your logo. The face of your company – a powerful symbolic association connection to people’s memory. It is an important promotional tool to set your company apart from others.
Logo is short for Logotype. There are 7 types of logos – single letters, abstract, mascot, combo, emblem, pictorial, and words. I would consider mine to be pictorial. All work well, as the first touchpoint a customer will have with your brand.
There was a time when only big companies would have logos because of the expense, but now there are so many other ways of making logos using online generators, free images, illustrator, simple drawings.
Expense doesn’t need to be at the fore front when designing your logo at the early stages. You may not have access to illustrator skills or a graphic designer but you have other exciting choices as a start up. A stylish, eye-catching, easy to memorise logo is by far the best way to go at this stage. Later on, when you are making an income, you can get it properly drawn by a designer if you want but keep costs down in the initial stages of a new business.
Features Of A Great Logo
A logo is a brand identity in visual form so you stand out from your competitors. Its not something that has evolved since the internet started, tv has a huge input into logos, although we are all much more aware of particular brand logos since the world wide web. There are even quiz apps on your mobile you can play recognising logos from Audi’s rings to Wendy’s fresh country girl.
Iconic Logos – Nike, AOL, Apple, Homepride, Disney
Logos based on product – Michelin, FedEx
Unique Logos – Fonts – Sony, CocaCola, Disney, McDonalds, Burger King
All, I am sure you agree fulfil the following features of a great logo –
Memorable, Simple, Versatile, Appropriate, Timeless.
How To Create A Free Logo
Rather than spend a ton of cash getting a logo designed, start out small, use your brand as a marketing tool from the get go. It will represent your business brand, build loyalty and a logo that customers will come to recognise and trust.
There are a lot of companies on the web that offer free logo designs. You add in the various details that you want to feature on your logo, maybe some images, your company name..etc.. They will take you through the whole process of designing it, show you how it will look for your approval… then CHARGE you for it! The cheek… and the waste of time… so I have looked for ones that are totally free, you don’t have anything to pay, unless of course you want to pay for a particular logo.
Here’s what to do……
Hop over to www.freelogodesign.org
Easy to start – enter your company name and choose a catagory…
According to the catagory you choose, the programme generates various logos for you to choose from. This isnt the only choice though, you can customise it as you go along.
Click on the one you want to use and you can start customising – changing fonts/colours/sizes. You can move the text around, duplicate lines, curve the text, move the drawing around, even change the logo if you want.
The font is easy to curve, shape around your logo. You change the colour, or have it two tone. Change the font, and the size by elongating the box around the text.
You can play around with the colours/shading/positioning/fonts… Get it exactly how you want it.
Change the logo to give a completely different look… Each feature can be individually coloured, so you have complete control on customisation.
Once you have got it as you want, you can then download the logo!
It is a simple program to use but the results are impressive. The logo is excellent quality and looks great online. The program is easy to use, intuitive and straightforward ! If I can do it, so can you ! Hop over to FreeLogoDesign and make your own logo today.
Great website, thank you for sharing. 4 years ago I spend a lot of money making a website and Logo with a company. I didn’t know that creating a website and logo is so simple and free. I have a question about the Logo, Do I have to become a member to create a Logo for my website?
No Sam, its not necessary to have a membership, this logo is free.
This is a great free resource.I will try it.However, I am not clear how to select a logo if I do not have a single company name. In my case I have two separate and different websites.One presenting products for retired persons .The other website for affiliate sales of clean air products. Do I need a separate logo for each one ?, or should I create an umbrella logo for these two websites and others that I may add in the future. Or should I start by creating a Company Name ?. As you can see I am new at Affiliate Sales, and would appreciate your suggestions regarding a suitable logo. Thank You
Thanks Carlos for your comments. I would recommend two different logos as the websites are completely different and you will have different target audiences. it might be that you have some products for retired persons that include the clean air products, but you can link them in your articles. But I think for you to make headway with your businesses, they need to be branded differently. Best of luck !
I have started a website a few months ago and I am not a drawer to say the least. I have been looking someone to draw me a logo for my site. I didn’t realize that their were free sites that you can use to design your own. Very cool idea. Thanks for the tip. I really like your logo it is very cool. Good job.
Thankyou Coralie. I am pleased that it has been of use to you and hopefully to lots of new website owners soon !
Wow, thank you
I need to create a logo and was looking online and found this article and you make it seem so easy so I am off to the link you supplied to give it my best shot
Something professional and standout is what is needed – Thank you so much for your help
You’re welcome Vicki
Hi Quinn, thank you for this informative article on creating your own logo. When we start out on our own business, you have so much to learn and often to spend money on, that finding a free resource to design your own logo is such a handy tool. I will be heading over and designing a new logo for my website. Now as I am probably the most technically challenged person on this earth, please give me some reassurance that this freelogodesign will work for me. Is it a large learning curve if you have never done anything like this before?
By the way I love your logo, so well thought out and designed.
Thank you for this helpful post, and I look forward to your response.
Denise
Thanks Denise, for your comments. The free logo design website I have used is so easy to manage, you will not find it complicated at all. Its free and has endless options for customising. You will not have any trouble with it at all, if you want some support when you are doing it, send me a message ! But I think you will find it so straightforward !
I like your logo! Logos are really important when it comes to building a brand and it’s best to start branding early. I appreciate your explanation of logotypes as I hadn’t heard much about them previously. Great reference also in FreeLogo Design. I hadn’t heard of this one either. I like that it looks pretty seamless while still producing an excellent product. Another great product is Wealthy Affiliate and I would encourage all who are reading here to check out your link!
Thanks so much for your comments. Essentially there is no reason why anyone starting out should have to pay fo their own logo. This website produces awesome logos in only a few minutes, and they dont need to be overly complicated, but simple and memorable.
Having your own brand logo is a must for business. Just by looking at it can already make impression of the company. It’s like the first step to gain trust from clienteles or customers. When i was into Essential Oil Business, I made my own logo using an app. No doubt that it’s so easy to do but you know there is no essence of originality . It would probably reflect your business but you know deep inside that one day, you may happen to see your logo in other business. They may use a different font or color but it’s still the same.
Freelogo, however looks more promising. It’s different in a way that you can put images that you prefer. There’s a distinction so to say. It may help you improve with this skill. Nowadays, a lot of people were asked to create logo for companies that are willing to pay. Thank you for sharing this with us. This is a good idea for business owners so they can be positively reinforced to at least do logo making on their own.
Thank you for your comments, it is essential to have a unique logo and with this free logo designer, you can create exactly what you want, with colours, shapes, fonts, so there is no chance of you copying some one elses logo. You have total control on how you want it to look.
Thank your for the information on design a logo for free. We see all kinds of logos everywhere and before most children can read they can recognize a few of these, such as McDonalds – the big M. Amazing.
Powerful symbolic association connected to peoples memory – deep. Looking forward to my logo with this might and power. You never know. I am already committing yours to my memory.
Thank you for the free logo design site. This information was extremely helpful and I hope you continue to send us similar posts.
Thanks for your comments, I hope one day my logo is as recognisable as McDonalds, but I think possibly not… I dont sell chips and burgers ! 🤣
Oh thank you so much for sharing this information. I always fount it hard to design a logo. As a newbie in online marketing with such a small budget, I can’t hire professional logo designer to make it. I will try the website right away and see if it can give some nice design for my brand. Thanks again.
Good to hear that its of use !
This is great! I had no idea creating a logo could be so easy and fast. And for it to be free makes it all the more appealing. I’m curious, can the logo be copyrighted?
I haven’t heard of that logo design site until now. I designed my logo with another site (can’t remember) lol. They claim it was free to design but once I wanted to use it, I had to pay to get a high-definition logo which grates because I thought it was “free” if you know what I mean. Does this logo designing site you stated require me to pay in order to use the logo?
This site is completely free for your start up logo.. If you are wanting to print it out and use it on business cards, then they do charge a one off fee. But for a website etc it is completely free.
When I designed my logo I used Canva. I probably would have used your recommendation if i’d known about it back then. Stiii, I like what I ended up with. It’s a soaring eagle with my website name under it. How many tries did you take before you settled on your final logo? How long did it take you to design it? And, now that you have it, have you been tempted to change it in any way? I know that I have thoughts at times of changing mine, but not enough to do it because I still like it.
Grant
Thanks Grant for your comments… I couldn’t get on with Canva, I think because I can do Illustrator, which is my graphic program of choice. It took a lot to learn how to use it, my son was learning at the time and to help him I decided to learn at the same time and Im really glad I did. It took me a couple of days of fiddling around to get my logo how I wanted it. But for those that dont have the time for that, this program works very successfully and looks professional. I have to be honest, I have a touch of OCD and think I see that most things need ‘improving’ 🤣 so I have to stop myself and my logo is one of them. I won’t touch it though, but what I might do later down the line is get it redrawn, maybe giving it a watercolour effect. Dont change your logo, its your brand identity!