What Makes a Logo Hard to Forget?
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Why is it easy to forget most logo designs, while others tend to stick with us indefinitely?
The truth is that there are several key things that make a logo unforgettable. While each aspect of an unforgettable logo work tremendously on their own, following each item on this list will guarantee that your logo design is never forgotten.
Simplicity
These days we have to remember everything from names and faces, to phone and bank account numbers. Chances are a logo design is on the bottom of the list of “things to remember” for the average person, so make the process of remembering your logo easy for anyone who views it: keep the design as simple as possible.
From Target, Apple, IBM, and even McDonalds, all of the world's most recognizable logos consist of basic shapes or designs and little else.
Uniqueness
This one should be obvious.
Whenever we see something that is unique – meaning it's something we have never seen before – it engrains itself in our brains as if by magic. A logo that uses shapes, colors, or objects in an unfamiliar way is far more memorable than a design that incorporates familiar looking shapes and colors or expected symbols. If you want to make a logo design that is hard to forget: be daring with your design.
Color
Take your favorite logo and change the colors of it, chances are it will still be memorable to you. But what if you had never seen the logo before? Think of the first time someone viewed the Apple logo. A simple Apple with a bite taken out of the side, nothing too memorable. Add a rainbow of colors over the Apple symbol and suddenly you have something that stands out, not for it's shape but for it's unique use of color.
Granted: most logo designs don't need to use color to be memorable, using a unique or surprising color pallete in your logo design is one way to guarantee that people do remember it.
Branding
Branding is a conversation about how others feel about your company. Engaging in the conversation others are having about the business behind the logo design - while building a powerful, memorable brand - is the perfect way to make any design unforgettable.
As humans, we associate feelings with everything. You subconciously create feelings for everything, from you first car, your favorite restaurant, and even your computer. Taking the time to create a positve feeling with your logo design is another fast–track way to make sure it is never forgotten.
Repetition
Let's be honest here: the more you see a logo, the more likely you are to remember it.
Any designer or business who pours their design over potential customers again and again, like rain, is bound to create an everlasting impression with that individual. If you wake up every morning and get a cup of Starbucks coffee, you're bound to remember their logo design – right down to the details. Repetition works for creating an unforgettable logo, but going about it the wrong way (e.g. displaying your logo on annoying pop–up ads) will only make people remember you logo for the poor experience it gave them.