Your logo doesn’t matter that much.
To be clear: we run a free logo maker. Do we want you to get a logo if you don’t have one? Yes! Or make a new one if you think the one you designed in Photoshop three years ago might not cut it anymore? Of course.
But in the grand scheme of starting a business (or growing a business), a logo shouldn’t be a big focus. There are so many other pieces to figure out, and so much more that’ll make an impact on the success of whatever business or project you’re starting up.
Your logo will remove a few roadblocks in moving forward with your business — and make you look more legit — but it won’t make or break your business.
Logos are superficial
A logo is an identifier for your brand, but it’s not actually your brand. Your brand is about how you make people feel, through the product or service you offer, your user experience, your customer service, and the other points of contact someone has with your company.
Not convinced? We recently ran a survey asking people what their three favorite brands were and why. Want to know what topped the list? Amazon.
But no one talked about the logo, or even the website itself. Here’s why people chose it:
“They make my life so much easier by delivering everything I need to my front door.”
“They’re constantly driving to deliver a better user experience. Their investment into their customer’s opinions and desires is what has led them to be the most lucrative business in the US.”
“Their ability to take huge risks and still maintain investor confidence is inspiring.”
Amazon has its problems (and critics), but the fact that it has become the source people rely on for a huge chunk of consumer goods and everyday necessities makes it a huge success. Amazon’s brand makes people feel relieved because they don’t have to go to five different stores to hunt down that replacement part for their coffee maker or worry about lugging cat litter home in the sweltering heat.
Their logo? Unremarkable. But SUPER recognizable, because it lands on doorsteps every day and signifies convenience.
Next up in our brand survey came Apple, Nike, and Samsung — iconic brands that have put years into cultivating customer loyalty and creating products that people feel like they can’t do without.
These are huge company examples, and they probably don’t feel relevant to you when you’re starting your own small company. But consider the answer someone gave when talking about why they picked Samsung as one of their favorite brands:
“They’ve never disappointed me in the quality of products that they make and almost always over-deliver.”
Wouldn’t it be awesome if someone talked about your business that way? Even if you don’t sell physical products, but dog-walking services, say, or online courses. Having someone feel like they can rely on you to over-deliver almost certainly means they’ll refer you to others because the quality of your work stands out.
And that, friends, is better (and more important) than a cool logo.
Logos are superficial, BUT…
We’ve established that a logo won’t be the deciding factor on whether someone sticks with your product or service for the long term or refers you to others. But let’s not forget: people judge a book by its cover (and a store by its sign and a website by its homepage).
So yes, logos *do* matter (a little) and they *will* help you set the foundation for your brand identity and design going forward.
But that doesn’t mean they should take a ton of time or energy to get 100% right.
As a business owner, you don’t need the pressure to make the perfect logo, especially if you’re doing it yourself. Instead of spending tons of time trying to make your logo “not boring,” think of a simple logo as something that’ll make your business journey smoother. Simple logos are versatile and they look good at small sizes (and your logo will appear at small sizes more often than you think).
Landing on a logo for your business feels good — and it should! It makes your idea more real and puts a “look what I’m doing” stamp on your project.
But the real progress comes when you start building the nuts and bolts of your business — nailing down your niche, finding your first customers or clients, and providing an offering that people want.
p.s. We’re here to help — our free logo maker is awesome at making simple-yet-not-boring logos. And with a $0 (for real) price tag, you don’t have to worry about messing up or having a logo set in stone for the rest of your business-running days. Try it now!
