Gareth is a brand identity designer specialising in creative logo design & identity.
He is the author of Smashing Logo Design, a book dedicated to everything 'logo'.
Incase you didn’t already know, here is a short background of the Occupy Movement according to Wikipedia:
“The Occupy movement is an international protest movement which is primarily directed against economic and social inequality.”
Having read that you would assume that such a ‘movement’ would be opposed to a system that only rewards winners, or people judged to be top of the pile? Well, for some bizarre reason, which I find incredibly laughable, the ‘movement’ have decided to launch a logo design competition which will offer the chance for designers to ‘win’ a cash reward for designing their identity. As of 5th February 2012, almost 600 designers have entered. That’s at least 599 designers who won’t get paid for work. Does that sound equal and just to you? Even if every designer got paid and they shared the $1000 prize that would equate to $1.68 each.
The FA Cup, the oldest football (soccer) competition in the world, has been given a new identity following the new sponsorship deal with the US lager giant, Budweiser. Most football fans across the world will be able to recognise the trophy just from it’s unique and memorable outline (see below).
The Halloween season is over and now another issue has resurfaced that scares designers worldwide. Unfortunately, Brandstack, a website which sold community submitted logo designs for three years, has closed it’s doors once and for all. I’m not one to put the boot in as I will be sad to see people lose their jobs, but the fact that another stock logo outfit has gone out of business is technically a good thing in terms of preserving the integrity of the graphic design profession and more specifically, logo designers.
From a Spring to a Tsunami
I’m not going to lie & pretend that I have never sold what is technically a ‘stock logo’. I’ve been on both sides of the fence, which is why I think I can give a balanced viewpoint. A stock logo, is a logo design that was created for the purpose of being in a shop window (website) for a potential buyer to purchase, as opposed to the more common practice of designing under a contractual agreement between a designer and a client. The practice of partaking in stock logo design differs from crowdsourcing as there isn’t yet a client, the designer sits and waits hoping for someone to catch the bait.
I became aware of Brandstack back in 2008 when it very first started (it was known as Incspring in those days). Advertisements sold ‘Incspring’ as a place for designers to sell their unused logo design concepts. Obviously, I was drawn to this as I take on a lot of logo design projects each year, which results in a lot of designs not seeing the light of day. So I thought, ‘what harm could it do to earn a little extra money for work I’ve already completed’? Looking back I was naive in my judgement and didn’t have the foresight to see what could potentially happen.
The Incspring community in the early days was primarily made up of highly skilled designers who had made a name for themselves through the logo design inspiration website, Logopond. Back then (as far as I know) ‘unused designs’ we’re exactly that, concepts that were originally created for a real creative brief that were rejected by the client. If someone else can use it, that can only be a good thing, right?
Unfortunately, a select few members of the community, decided to try and increase their own sales by poaching available domains names and designing logos as a packaged product, which means the designs were no longer ‘unused’ by a previous intended buyer. This trend really caught on which saw masses of users signing up to doodle in their favourite vector program, slap a name next to it, call it a logo and hope that it sells. In my own opinion, this is not a professional logo design service. When I noticed that this practice became more prominent I decided to take down all of my unused logos for sale and remove all previously sold stock from my portfolio as it went against my morals as a designer, and more importantly the type of service that I wanted to provide to people.
This post is not a dig at Brandstack (though I still don’t understand the name choice since they were never technically selling brands let alone stacking them), and it is not the only place where you can buy stock logos, there are still many out there unfortunately. It’s also not the first outlet of a similar type of service to go out of business. A company as large as Istockphoto (the name gives it away) had to drop stock logos from their online services.
If one business owner who is thinking of buying a stock logo, or one designer who is thinking of selling one reads this post then I will be delighted as hopefully it will make them think carefully before doing so.
As a summary, here are my reasons why I am against the practice of stock logo design:
How stock logo design harms business owners:
No real way of identifying if the design they have purchased is a product of piracy (yet this could also apply to contractual agreements)
reduces chances of a real brand message. Logo design is not just a clever trick or a pretty picture
How stock logo design harms designers:
devalues their own worth
clouds their understanding of a creative process
reduces amount of respect gained from within the design community
How stock logo design harms the design industry:
devalues the profession of designing logos, as stock sellers set really low prices to make a sale
cuts out important elements of a valid creative process which in turn confuses potential clients of how they should set about getting a logo designed for themselves
increases piracy as ‘criminals’ see it as an easy way to make money through stealing existing logos in use by real clients only to sell them via a stock proprietor
Hopefully, the closure of Brandstack, will make people reassess whether stock logo design is the best route to go down, for their business or their career. I just hope that the designers who primarily made a living from selling through Brandstack don’t just jump ship to another stockist and continue to sell ‘fake’ logos. I understand that not everyone is privileged to get real requests for proposals from clients but there are many other ways to build up a portfolio of work, which I will give advice on in my next post.
Apologies for the lack of posts of late. I’ve been trying to take a break from writing since completing my book. The good news is that blog posts will return to normal in the next few days and I hope to publish a new post at least once a week.
In the meantime, enjoy the pictures of the pumpkin carving bonanza that has been taking part at DWD over the last week or so. Have a great halloween.
I’ve decided to jump on the bandwagon and do one of those annoying competitions to allow anyone the chance at winning a copy of my book, Smashing Logo Design.
To enter, all you have to do is send a public tweet or to @downwithdesign explaining why you are ‘down with design’. It can be positive or negative, it’s entirely up to you but be sure to include the hashtag #downwithdesignbook. You can send tweets from 12pm – 12am GMT on Monday 3rd October 2011. Well, you could send them after that if you like but they won’t count.
I’m pleased to say that my book, Smashing Logo Design, will go on sale in both the UK & US on Friday 10th June 2011. Pre-orders are now being taken from all of the large book retailers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Waterstones.
Unless you’ve been hibernating for the past god knows how many months, you’ll know that there has recently been a Royal Wedding. With so much intrigue into the design of the dress, what flowers they will pick and even down the nature of the vows, I was sat watching it looking out for logos. Yes, I know that is very sad, but in a way I was forced to watch it (I’m sure you’ve all been there).
It got me thinking that in a sense logos have been around much longer than the first ever registered trademark, and that logos are not just for us mere commoners, even royalty has a use for them. Below I’ve compiled and listed the familiar logos, crests & emblems used by the British Royal Family.
Royal Coat of Arms
The Royal Coat of Arms is the official coat of arms of the reigning head of the British Monarchy, who is currently Queen Elizabeth II. It may only be used by the Queen.
The three lions are also used in a variety of logos relating to english sports teams as explained in this previous article that I have written, History of the English Three Lions.
Badge of the House of Windsor
The badge of the House of Windsor is used to represent the ruling house of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth realms. It was first used in 1930 when King George IV changed the family name to Windsor for fear that the Royal Family was perceived as being too “German rather than English”. Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was therefore changed to the rather English sounding Windsor.
Buckingham Palace
Yes, even Buckingham Palace has it’s own logo which features a one-colour version of the Royal Coat of Arms matched with a very modern looking uppercase sans-serif font. This is found on all documents (including official letterheads) issued by the palace.
Prince Charles Coat of Arms
I can’t get over the tremendous amount of detail that goes into the design of these Royal Coat of Arms. The Prince of Wales. One interesting fact is that it includes the German phrase ‘Ich Dien’ which translates ‘I serve’ which also hints towards the German links tied to the British Royal Family.
Prince of Wales’ Feathers
Technically referred to as a heraldic badge, The Prince of Wale’s Feathers are used by Prince Charles during all of his official activites and is also commonly used by the Welsh Rugby Union team. Again, the phrase ‘Ich Dien’ is taken from Prince Charles’ own Royal Coat of Arms.
Royal Insignia
Queen’s Personal Flag
Personal flag of Queen Elizabeth II is used to symbolise the Queen’s rank and dignity. It does have a European Union vibe to it, maybe it’s the circular form and colours.
Although it is no longer an official ‘Royal Service’, the Royal Mail still carries the crown emblem to symbolise it’s history. Founded in 1516, it was initially only used by Royalty until it was made a public service over 100 years later. You will see this logo, or variations on it on traditional red postboxes all over the United Kingdom.
It could be argued that logo design will always be seen as an individual discipline of graphic design, however, due to the recent change in tactics employed by design companies and designers alike, it could be determined that logo design should now be regarded as an industry in its own right.
There are two sides to the argument. Firstly designers who previously only offered logo design are now finding they have to expand their services in order to compete with the demand for corporate identity. This mainly applies to freelancers, as it’s simply not viable to make a comfortable living by only designing logos unless the prices charged are considerable compatible with high quality work. Offering additional services allows designers to offer the full identity package and prevents them from losing out on the bigger and broader branding projects.
Race for Rankings
One of the main sources of getting work online is through the promotion of the websites. The easiest and quickest way to do this is to make sure that it is listed in the popular search engines, most importantly Google. That’s all very well, but when you check out your competitors who are listed in the same category you’ll find that there are thousands but more likely millions. It can cost a lot of time, energy, and money to get to the top of the page for a particular search time, and you’ll probably never achieve it. This has not always been a problem for people who rely on getting work through online streams.
Mike Erickson, AKA Logomotive, remembers when search engines provided less of a problem for gaining new work:
“When I started out in 1998, I was on the top page of some of the major search engines at that time. I was juggling around 15-20 clients at a time during that period. I still talk to some of my competitors during that period and remember how we could just about get any job that we wanted. Since the internet has took off I would say that the number of designers targeting logo design has increased ten-fold, which in turn has made it ten times more harder to get work through online sources.”
You could argue that more competition is only a good thing as it could raise the quality of work in the hope to snap up future in leads. Unfortunately most potential clients are guided by price and therefore this has seen logo prices plummet. As a result we now see websites that knock out stock logos of very low quality for prices as little as $30. This is damaging as to be able to keep up with demand, providers who operate at that price level have to cut out very important stages of the logo design process. Most predominantly, research, which can and has led to clients being left with a logo that was either a rip off of an existing logo or included elements of stock art.
As the number of designers with websites, portfolios and affiliates increase it is only going to get even harder to get the leads required to keep designers wo do this for a living in the black. Luckily there will be clients out there who see past all of the underhand tactics and look for the work that truly shines.
A new source of inspiration
Increased connectivity has led to the emergence of logo specific websites that aim to bring logo designers together not just to showcase their work but also as a means of communication. Started by logo enthusiasts they offer a glimpse of logos we would probably never normally see in the real world. The number of logo-orientated websites is growing by the week with a new logo inspiration website popping up what seems like every week. Back when this first started, about 4 years ago this was great but it seems like most ‘inspiration’ sites are now full of the same content, which is ironic to say the least.
Availability of tools
Most professions involve working with tools that have to be sourced from a specialist supplier. The design industry is a little different as the main tool used by designers is computer software, and unfortunately this can easily be pirated. As a result software could easily fall into the hands of anyone that wishes to use it, and leads to non-designers passing themselves off as professionals and offering their services, whether they intend to be legitimate or not. Graphic design software is not cheap, and whilst the large providers offer students discounted licenses, it’s understandable why they may be tempted to download illegitimate software. Unfortunately, piracy is such a widespread problem online, for all the creative industries, music and film included, that there are no current signs that will end sooner rather than later.
So has the internet been a good thing for logo design
In the main, absolutely. Most of my own clients come through seeing my previous work online and without the internet I wouldn’t have had nearly half the opportunities that have come my way in the past year or so. Unfortunately, everything has two sides to the coin and it’s for this reason that both designers and clients need to remain professional when dealing with people online. If you’re works good enough so will the leads, there is no reason to sell yourself short just because the rest of the flock have been persuaded by a quick and easy dollar.
It’s getting to that time of year again in the UK where the mad dash begins for University and College graduates to find a job in their desired field. It’s no easy task by any means, especially if you are seeking to gain a foothold in the creative industries. Considering the state of the world economy, it’s no surprise that there aren’t enough jobs to go around, though this has been the case for some time even before the aftermath of the credit crunch.
A Saturated Market
Graphic design is an over-saturated market, no doubt about it. The lure of what seems (from the outside at least), an attractive lifestyle, along with a misconceived acclaim to fame, means that more students are enrolling in design-related courses than ever. Eventually, a percentage will graduate and seek design-related jobs. Also, don’t forget the uneducated hobbyists who claim to be ‘Graphic Designers’ & then, of course, there’s those already established within the industry. With service providers multiplying at a rapid rate & the current economic climate limiting the number of new start-up businesses, is there enough work to go around?
Unfortunately there isn’t, which results in thousands of graduates struggling to get a job within the industry regardless of the level of their degree or talent.
From my own experience, my design class at University had roughly 30-40 attendees on the books. Of those, I know that only 3 or 4 now work in a creative field, the rest simply weren’t able to find a job or didn’t feel comfortable in their own abilities to look for one properly. I still keep in touch with those of us that were able to find employed work and I know that each one of us found it extremely difficult, mainly due to the university not fully preparing it’s students or teaching them how to land a real job. After graduating it took me around 8 months to build up a solid portfolio before I was even considered for an interview at an established firm in the creative industry.
Freelance vs Agency
Jumping straight in at the deep end with no real world experience can be seen as a massive risk to take, especially if you see freelance as being your only source of income. Due to the current density of competition, it can take time to build up a good reputation and client base. Even for the most talented of designers.
Having said that some designers have managed to forge a career with only freelance experience, preferring to learn along the way. Recent figures show that there are 20,000 design businesses in London alone as well as 15,816 freelance designers (source: Design Finder), which shows that more and more people are deciding to go it alone, as I did in 2009, but only after working in-house to gain real world experience first.
Experience is Priceless
One thing that used to really bug me when looking for work is that most vacancies required previous experience in the designated field. Which meant of course if you didn’t have any you wouldn’t even be considered, which makes the situation for students even harder. How are you meant to get experience if you need experience in order to get it? One way around this is of course working for free in work experience placements but not everyone can afford to do this. I guess it just depends on how badly you really want it.
The best form of education is working professionally in your field. You can read all of the textbooks under the sun, but until it comes time to put what you know into practice, you won’t truly learn any of the tricks of the trade that matter. This really applies to any industry, not just design. This is where I believe that designers without a formal education can really shine, as they have no predetermined opinions on how things should be done and can absorb real world skills. This is of course depending on the work placement that they do undertake is at a place that knows the profession inside out.
I certainly do not envy any design student who is going to have to go through the mad rush for work this summer but I’m confident that at least those with genuine talent will be successful. It’s just a shame that not everyone will be so fortunate. My advice to any students looking to get work would be:
Don’t rely on email to get in touch with companies. Pick up the phone and meet people in person, but at the same time don’t be a nuisance and respect people’s valuable time.
Curate you portfolio. Be critical of your own work and only include your best work. Remember quality over quantity.
Show your personality but don’t always let it influence your work.
A portfolio can be creative too. Think of a unique approach of how you can grab people’s attention. An A4 CV just doesn’t cut it anymore.
Keep Learning. Just because your studies have finished doesn’t mean you know everything there is to know. This is just the beginning.
Don’t give up. If you want it bad enough, you’ll get it (but not in a stalker kind of way!)
Seen as I’m feeling a little guilty for all the time off I’ve been having recently for Easter and a certain Royal Wedding in the UK, I thought I’d give a little something back and give away a free 3D vector twitter icon.
A statement that I have read many times recently, in both books and during online discussion, is that for a logo to truly be considered ‘great’ it must be ‘clever’. And by clever I mean include some kind of play on words, a witty pun or if you want to hit the jackpot include some kind of hidden imagery. I have to say that I completely disagree with these sentiments. Here’s why…
The FedEx Effect
Let’s take an example and put it into practice. In a way I like to think of the trend of including hidden imagery in the design of a logo as ‘The FedEx Effect’. If you have an interest in logo design you will no doubt already know that there is a hidden arrow created by the negative space between the ‘E’ and the ‘x’. If you didn’t already know that, then this is a very important day in your life. Second only to the day you were born. Once you’ve seen it, you’ll never miss it again.
The current trend seems to be that most designers think they have to incorporate a hidden image or even an almagamation of two images in every single logo design that they create for it to be considered a ‘great’ logo. Personally, I blame logo inspiration websites for this increasingly shared viewpoint.
Batfish Lovers
A great logo (in my opinion) should be strong. Not in the sense that it should comprise bold imagery or even sharp angles or heavy line weights. Strong in the sense that it makes a connection with the viewer. That connection doesn’t have to be emotional, or even have the ‘wow I see the hidden image now!’ factor. The best way to make a strong connection is if the logo design is memorable. That way it will stay ingrained on the minds of the viewer, which is obviously a good thing for any new logo design. For example, combining a bat and a fish is memorable, but probably not for the right reason. If you’re designing for a brand name such as ‘batfish’ then you probably have to look yourself in the mirror and ask yourself am I really designing here? Or am I just illustrate a word or a combination of words? That’s if the logo is even for a real client.
Remember who you are designing for
Don’t get me wrong, hidden imagery and clever puns in logos can be a powerful way to help make them memorable, and if it will definitely help the projection of the brand name then it can be an advantage. I just feel that forcing yourself to find a clever solution every time not only hinders creativity but in a sense it plays into the hands of what is now becoming a trend in itself. And we all know it’s best to stay clear of trends. his trend is not only effecting the idealism of practicing designers or students but clients too. As a result of thousands of ‘clever’ logos being showcased on these logo inspiration websites I often find that I get inquiries such as ‘I want one of those logos that has some cool second image hidden in the negative space’. What follows next is pretty much explaining to the potential client the exact same points that I make in this article. T
Keeping it simple can be clever too
You also might notice that most of the well known logos in the world are not ‘clever’ as such. There’s no hidden burgers in the McDonald’s golden arches and there certainly isn’t a coronated cheeseburger in the Burger King logo. Most of the well known logos we see every single day utilise simple, timeless imagery, which is what I feel makes them far more memorable and powerful than any clever visual trick.
One of the most famous logos in the world is the Nike ‘Swoosh’. That ever familiar simple line drawing with flowing curves that looks great on a pair of sneakers or your favourite sports jersey. Unfortunately, the term ‘swoosh’ is used for perhaps one of the most popular logo design cliche’s in existence. We’ve all seen them. It’s the little arced graphic next to a brand name that is supposed to make it’s owner look ‘hi-tech’ or ‘hip with the kids’. Do a little image search for ‘logo swoosh‘ and you will be shown a bounty-full of delightful little swooshes for your peepholes.
I’ve noticed that there is not just one kind of swoosh. Oh no. They come in all shapes and sizes, and of course can be featured in every colour under the sun, at times often using every hue visible to the human eye. I thought it would be useful to list all of the different species so that you can possibly print them off on a wall chart and tick them off once viewed. A bit like a logo design roadkill map.
Before we delve in to the dark and enchanted world that the swoosh inhibits, let’s first clearly identity the definition of a logo swoosh.
logo swoosh – 1. any of a variety of complete oval or abstract spherical shapes that make you think of the sound ‘swoosh’ once viewed by the naked human eye. They can be found anywhere and at any time, often found to breed during the new year or at the end of a tax year, often resulting from a surplus budget. They breed fast. Like the wind and are extremely contagious. Once a business owner spots an owner of a logo swoosh, they instantly desire one for themselves. This is often referred to as ‘swoosh envy’. They also make any business look really really crap instantly.
Let’s start some swoosh spotting.
The Apocalypse
It’s name says it all. According to folk law, just one glimpse at an apocalyptic swoosh can turn any designers heart to stone. Unfortunately, corporate big-wigs bloody love them, and do not understand just how powerful they really are. They are the most common of the swooshes and can often be found grazing near shallow streams and social media experts. They can also live to be very old. It was reported that a Californian accountant kept an Apocolyptic swoosh as a pet for 84 years, completely unaware of it’s dark secret. If you see one, don’t look directly at it & seek high ground immediately.
The Chalkboard
Not the most common of logo design swooshes but it is extremely dangerous. Originally thought to be endangered, Chalkboard swoosh numbers are steadily rising in densely popular areas of the rainforest, in particular in East Surrey. They are known to be kept as pets by Internet Telecommunications Operators (whatever one of those is). They will make you want to claw your eyes out and are named due to their distinctive claw like form as if someone has just ran their fingernails down a chalkboard.
The Foul Ball
Having been one of the most dominant species throughout the recent three decades, foul ball swoosh numbers have continued to flourish. They are extremely common pets with life coaches and dentists due to their easy going nature and ability to integrate with young children. However, their bulbous noses are often a focal point for bullying among the other species of swoosh.
The Catfight
The catfight is in fact a ‘swaggle’ (the collective term for a pack of swooshes) of apocalyptic swooshes. They hunt together and never venture far away from it’s owner, who believe that they bring luck and prosperity. They are extremely destructive and get their name from looking like a cartoon cat fight from a distance.
The Shocker
The shocker gets its name from the distinct markings on its back and is again popular amongst the ‘tech crowd’ who seem to be stuck in the 90’s. Shockers have the ability to expand their body mass without altering it’s weight. It does this whenever it senses danger from predators, who are mainly start-up businesses or intelligent entrepreneurs.
The Cheshire Cat
Another swoosh of the feline family, the Cheshire Cat is nocturnal and feeds on small insects and staplers. The first species of swoosh ever discovered by John McSheffrey in 1842 was indeed a Cheshire Cat. This led to many being forced to appear in advertising campaigns for many large sports manufacturers. They now have a workers union as a result.
The Lesser-Spotted Dribbling Swoosh
You’ll be lucky to find one of these rare beauties. Legend has it that the lesser-spotted dribbling swoosh lurks at night around basketball courts and are very timid creatures. They are often mistaken for apocalyptic swooshes but can be distinguished due to the slightly different textures on their skin and their ability to change colour depending on the recent trend. There are said to be only a few kept in captivity resulting in an increase of hunters, who will go to any lengths to seek their shiny coats as a prize souvenir of game.
WARNING: Beware of all species logo swoosh. They will bite you and it’s owner.
