How To DIY Logo Design For Your Home Business

If you’re starting a home business, you’re definitely not alone. Statistics from the Small Business Administration indicate that somewhere around fifty percent of small businesses are actually based out of the home.

This is good news — and bad news — for a new business owner. It’s heartening because there are so many resources available out there to help you on your journey. It’s also a little worrisome, simply because there may be a lot of competition in your market.

So what can you do if that’s the case?

Designing an eye catching logo is one of the best ways to give you a leg up. Logos are one of the main pieces of branding for any business, and typically the most remembered.

Eye catching and memorable are just two aspects of any good logo, of course.

Let’s take a look at some tips to help you design a logo that will pull its weight for your new home business.

Sketch It Out

Logo design is not a one-and-done kind of deal. Like a lot of ideas, your logo will take shape only after several variations have been tried.

Almost every how to for DIY logo design includes a “sketch it” step. Take some time and sketch out some rough ideas of elements you would like to include in your logo.

These can be elements that are directly related to your home business, that are inspired by your story or your product, or that are linked to your name or background. This is the preliminary, so really, anything goes.

If you think of something, try it. You never know what design will catch your eye the most.

Show Your Personality

A lot of businesses run out of a home are sole proprietorships, small companies with really only one person working there. In terms of making a personal connection with your potential customers, that actually gives you something of an advantage over larger companies: you have the personal touch built right in.

All companies have a back story. All brands have a personality. Let your logo showcase yours.

Are you a fun, lighthearted brand? A hip, edgy brand? A comfortable, inviting brand?

The tone of your logo will do a lot to set the tone of your brand as a whole. So don’t be afraid to get personal!

Know Your Color Psychology

Color choice is a bigger deal than it seems. Though it might just appear to be a question of personal preference, the colors you choose for your logo can actually send a certain message to everyone who sees it.

The details of color psychology are fascinating in themselves, but just as a quick example, take
the color red. Red is a dynamic color, and evokes a strong response. It’s known for influencing
action, but can also make the viewer feel stressed.

If you have a small business making personalized exercise clothing, red might be a great choice because it could invoke action.

If your business is massage therapy, on the other hand, red probably isn’t going to set the right tone you want to promote.

It isn’t just the colors as a whole, either. How certain colors are perceived can change depending on demographic — men or women, older or younger, single or married, personal interests and culture.

As I said, a lot of details can go into the psychology of color, so it’s a good idea to look into it further before making final decisions on your palette.

Use Legible Type

If you’re going to include the company name or a monogram in your logo, making sure that the typeface is user friendly is a must.

Since your logo is going to show up as rather small in most places, try adjusting your font of choice to lower point settings to make sure that it is still readable.

If it isn’t, back to the drawing board on choosing a font! Don’t sacrifice the legibility for personal choice.

Keep It Simple

For a memorable logo, it’s best not to include too many elements. Once you’ve assembled your logo, try to remove an element or two and see if it still works. Too few are better than too many.

As an example, take color again. Considering the logos of the world’s top brands indicates that 95% of them use only two colors, while only 5% use more than two.

Remember too that your logo may have to be printed without any colors at all in some marketing materials. So make sure that it still looks right in grayscale.

Use Online Tools

Not everyone is automatically a pro at putting together graphic design pieces. In fact, the odds are that this is your first logo — unless your home business is as a graphic designer, of course.

On top of all the tips above, there are a plethora of sites online to help with graphic design. They range from crowdsourcing sites to sites that are specifically for designing logos. DIY websites can help with the technical end of your logo design.

However long it takes to design your logo, no matter how many variations you go through, don’t give up until it looks right for your home business. Remember, your logo will often be the first contact for potential clients — and for your home business to be successful, your DIY logo design has to hit it out of the park.

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