Archive for the ‘Logo Design Tips’ Category

  • 03June
    Tanning Logos that Kick off the Summer

    Summer is beginning and what better way to kick it off but with a killer tan. The majority of the world is so image conscious that we all go above and beyond to look our best. We wear the best clothes and the best make-up and all the while we keep up with all the latest diet trends. With so much competition in the world, who could blame us for wanting to look good? For the past few years, tanning has been the latest craze in keeping ourselves looking our best. This rise in popularity brought about multiple tanning businesses all over the world and something new for consumers to spend money on.

    Of course with competition for tanning businesses at their high point so far, a great way to stay above the others is with a winning logo. Like food with restaurants and mugs for coffee places, tanning businesses usually use the signature sun symbol in their logo. What makes one better than the other? Here are a few that I found.

    Hollywood Tans Logo

    Tantopia Logo

    Here, you have your big franchises such as Hollywood Tans and Tantopia, but the majority of tanning salons are small and local. Hollywood Tans does take on a hotel or resort look with their logo. The H and T combination seem similar to the Hilton hotel logo. This seems like a classy design for them, taking a different approach than other tanning salons.

    Aztec Tanning Logo

    Sunset Tanning Logo

    Eclipse Tanning

    Bronze Age Tanning

    The above designs are all great ones and are exactly what you would expect from a tanning salon logo. They express the presence of the sun and a general feel of a tropical vacation.

    Malibu Tans Logo

    Malibu Tans has a simple flower for their design. It still works to serve the correct purpose since it is a Hawaiian flower and reminds you visually of a tropical location, but it also steers away from the overdone sun and beach design that so many of the others use.

    Planet Beach Logo

    Planet Beach uses the sun within their logo, but considering the name, I would think it would be silly not to. They incorporate Saturn’s rings around the sun to complete a simple, yet tasteful design.

    The Tanning Factory Logo

    This is an example of a terrible design for a tanning facility. The design is cold and hard and nothing about it implies tanning at all. Perhaps a factory-like building on an island would work better and brighten up the image a bit more.

    Popular grooming trends are great reasons for new businesses to arise and with our slowed economy, new businesses are definitely welcome. Tanning is a booming business that seems to be staying as experts discover safer ways to look your best without UV exposure and with the rise of a new business comes the rise of new logos!
    -Nora Reed

    Posted in Logo Design Tips | No Comments »
    Bookmark and Share
  • 29May
    Hungry? Restaurant Logos That Make an Impact

    How do you choose where you want to eat when you go out? Is your decision based on atmosphere, price, food selection? How about logos? Have you ever thought that a restaurant’s logo can determine the path your appetite follows? There are a ton of them out there and some are much more effective than others. How does a logo make you hungry? Take a closer look!

    The above designs are all, for the most part, very effective. They clearly show the type of food to expect and even a hint of the atmosphere all within a simple design.

    The Perkins logo is an example of a terrible design based on a food related business. It is plain and boring and nothing about it is appealing to one’s appetite. Word of mouth and maybe some minimal advertising seems to be the only way that we know what Perkins is and what it sells.

    The Fuddruckers logo looks to me like a logo for a disco style club or a skating rink. If it didn’t have the word “hamburger” within the logo, I wouldn’t know that it was a restaurant at all just based on the design. No wonder this place went out of business so quickly.

    Ted’s Montana Grill has a great logo in which they display the one thing that makes them most unique: Bison! Although the sale of bison meat is becoming more popular among upper class dining, Ted’s was one of the original chains to start it, basing their menu mostly on bison. Their other major theme relates to our “green” society in which they use organic and recycled materials. This is a great concept, but what I don’t like is how they attempt to include that theme in their logo with the line, “Eat great. Do good.” I think this takes it a little too far and is not necessary. It feels like it forces the issue.

    Ah, Burger King. This is a great logo for the fast food chain. It clearly shows what they sell and is large and bold implying their success in the business and that they are the “king” of burgers.

    I love the Boston Market Logo. It looks very clean and subtle, implying that there is no need to be flashy to get attention. It also has a simple oval shape, but the oval vaguely appears to be a roasting chicken so they are displaying their product all the while.

    There are way too many restaurants out there to mention them all, but a logo for the food service industry should have certain qualities. It should demonstrate the product it’s selling, avoid overly flashy styles and express a bit of the atmosphere that the restaurant has to offer. You can see that the more successful the logo is, the more successful the restaurant will be as well.
    -Nora Reed

    Tags: , , , ,
    Posted in Logo Design Tips, Logo Inspiration, LogoBlog | 5 Comments »
    Bookmark and Share
  • 15May
    Doodle 4 Google: Google’s Logo Design Contest

    Design contests seem to occur frequently throughout the online graphic design community. We’ve had plenty of contests in the past even here. It seems now, the latest contest is sponsored by Google, in which they are offering the opportunity for kids to design a new twist on their ever changing logo. This is Google’s yearly event, which includes a theme. This year, the contest’s theme is “What I wish for the world.” The winner’s design will be posted on Google’s site for one day. Along with that honor, Google is also offering a monetary grant and scholarship as their top prize. The contest is called “Doodle 4 Google.” I have to admit, it’s quite a catchy name. The contest seems to be a great way to involve kids and to share a future graphic designer with the world. A group of artist’s renditions have already been picked, but now it is up to us to vote for the best ones to see which design makes its winning debut.

    It really is a fantastic opportunity and it’s nice to see Google using a small portion of its long running financial gain to support art and education. The concept of the global awareness also is good for kids to learn if they didn’t know it already. The theme itself forces them to think about how our world is “going green” and what the actual ideas are behind that. Kids may hear the expression and just think of it as a trend, but it’s important for them to know how the idea came about and what to do to improve our global situation.
    -Nora Reed

    Posted in Logo Design Competition, Logo Design News, Logo Design Tips | 1 Comment »
    Bookmark and Share
  • 29April
    Logo Madness Winner!

    I know this has been extended a lot longer than it should have been, but here at Logo Blog, we like march madness so much that we extended our Logo Madness all through April! I am pleased to announce that the final champion of our Logo Madness bracket is Coca Cola.

    The Coca Cola logo is a classic design that has existed since 1885 and has progressed a lot throughout the years into what we know today. As a well known and successful company, I’m sure we have many more future opportunities to see the coca cola logo continue to change with time. Thanks for all of your votes. Coca Cola was a great pick!
    -Nora Reed

    Posted in Logo Design Tips, LogoBlog | No Comments »
    Bookmark and Share
« Previous Page — Next Page »