March 19, 2020 Designing a Logo

Why you should research your competition before designing a logo.

A logo is essential for brand identity. It is the name and face of a company. You need a good logo that communicates your company attitude and stands out from the competition. The ideal logo is not one that looks like those already in the market. You have to focus on establishing brand identity instead of getting locked to design or cultural trends.

Researching Your Competitor Logos

One of the most important steps when designing a logo is researching your competitors. You did this when creating a business plan. But, you should do this again when designing your logo. This is the trick to coming up with a logo that visually stands out. Collect some logos from local and national competitors including those from related industries. Arrange the logos on a document and you are going to notice common features almost immediately.

Types of Competitors

Consider all types when researching competitors before designing your logo. The categories of competitors highlighted below.

Direct Competitors

This is the first category of competitors with businesses offering similar services or products to yours. So, you compete for the same market. Your marketing efforts need to be focused on overtaking those of your direct competitors. It is up to the customers to select the brand that appeals to them more.

Indirect Competitors

Businesses offering services or products somewhat similar to yours are indirect competitors. For example in the beverages industry, you indirectly compete with companies selling mineral water, energy drinks, soda, and juice. So, their marketing effort including the logo designs has an indirect impact on your bottom line.

It is very important to devote time to researching your direct and indirect competitors. This is essential when creating a business plan and designing your logo. Keeping tabs on competitors’ logo designs allows coming up with a unique concept to stand out in the market.

Benefits Of Researching Competitor Logos

Identifying Market Trends

With competitor logos handy, take time to evaluate them and identify similar features. Make a list of the commonalities you notice on all these logos. You are likely to notice a similar color, a particular symbol portraying the industry, or shape. Understanding market trends makes creating a logo that will be easily identified by customers.

The features you notice on competitor logos are a good standing point when creating yours. You can leverage some of the traits to make your brand logo easily identifiable. And, you have a chance to improve on the features so your logo stands out. Alternatively, you can avoid these common features altogether by daring to be different in the market.

Understanding current identities

Researching competitor logos allows understanding current identities customers are acquainted with in the market. This allows creating an identity that makes your logo unique and imprinted in the customers’ minds. Doing this is a trick to make your brand look completely different from those already in the market.

Choosing An Appropriate Color Palette

During the scrutinizing process of competitor logos, focus on color schemes and imagery. This identifies popular imagery and color schemes in the market. Understanding this will help you select a color palette for your logo apt to the industry and easily identifiable with your niche. Do your best to locate direct and indirect competitors and to look out for eye-catching and proliferating trends. These are to be ignored when designing your brand logo.

For an industry with various monochrome logos, set yours apart by giving it color. Gathering information about competitor logos allows determining whether to go for a fun, modern, or traditional logo design. Pay attention to the colors and imagery of your competitor logos to create yours that stand out. Understanding all those features protects you from having to convince customers about the relevance of your logo design.

Identifying Opportunities

Researching competitor logos allows identifying common traits. This makes it easy to realize opportunities and loopholes that you can take advantage of when designing your logo. Understanding this allows creating a logo that stands out without leaving people confused. You have room to identify common features to avoid and those that will speak volumes about your brand.

Each feature on your logo including symbols, colors, and shapes has to reflect your brand and message. Exploit opportunities identified after researching competitor logos to strengthen yours and make it different. Heavy logos stand out in kids’ clothing stores but are confusing when attached to girly clothing.

Focusing On New Interesting Avenues

Differentiating your logo from those in the market is a smart move. Trying to align yourself with a more established competitor is disastrous. Being different allows getting noticed easily. This comes when you steer away from popular designs and colors used by your competitors. Focusing on new avenues makes it easier for customers to pick your brand out from the market.

Using different color combinations and imagery distinguishes you as a designer with a distinct style. Your logo will portray innovativeness and stand out instead of resembling logos of already established brands in the market. Being different requires taking risks and breaking design rules but it significantly pays off with a log that enhances brand recognition.

Avoiding Mirroring Competitor Identities

The ideal logo that makes your brand stand out should not conjure up memories of a famous brand in the minds of customers. This portrays your brand as a cheap copycat leading to a negative impression. Additionally, this just fortifies the integrity of the famous brand’s identity. Researching competitor logos allows avoiding various mistakes including ending up with similar:

• Shape
• Wordmark
• Color scheme
• Typography
• Concept

Getting Inspiration

When designing your logo, there is a possibility of not knowing where to begin. Luckily, scrutinizing logos from competitors is a good source of inspiration. There is nothing wrong with getting inspired by other people’s work. However, avoid the temptation to copy other people’s ideas. Competitor logos are a good starting point during the brainstorming stage to create an original brand logo that stands out.

Bottom Line

Every business wants to make a mark in the industry. Doing this requires various aspects including having an outstanding logo. It is very important to research competitor logos when designing yours. This protects you from mirroring competitor identities and allows taking advantage of loopholes to make your logo stand out.

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