[PPMA Pulse]

In today’s brand-centric world, logos are everywhere. Actually, they are quite impossible to escape — from the cup of coffee you purchased this morning to the pen on your desk right now to the tube of toothpaste you’ll use tonight. And that’s not to mention the logos placed in advertisements on television, in newspapers and magazines, on the web and on billboards, storefronts and signs. So if logos are already saturating the marketplace, is it really that important for your company to have one? (Yes!) And if you already have one, how can you best use it to stand out from the competition and to help grow your business?

Consider any well-known brand and you can probably also picture their logo: McDonald’s golden arches, the Nike "swoosh," the Target bullseye. In fact, you may be hard-pressed to think of a successful company or brand that doesn’t have a logo associated with it. That is because logos are a tried-and-true tool in the marketing toolbox. A unique and well-designed logo should be an integral part of any comprehensive marketing program.

Why is a Logo Valuable? It is often said that if a brand is a company’s soul, its logo is its voice. After all, a logo is used to help a brand or company establish an identity and create a lasting, memorable impression with audiences. Logos are also valuable because their visual nature helps them to be easier to remember and recall in the minds of consumers than a company name or slogan.

Logos are often used to help a company unify, or in some cases, differentiate various brands, products or services sold under one company name. For example, FedEx uses the same basic logo with "Fed" in purple, but changes the color of the "Ex" to denote its various business units. The "Ex" is green for FedEx Ground, and orange for FedEx Express, while the corporate logo uses a grey "Ex." (Incidentally, Rolling Stone magazine ranked the FedEx logo as one of the eight best logos of the past 35 years in its May 15, 2003, 35th Anniversary "American Icon" issue, alongside Apple, Coca-Cola, Nike, IBM, Starbucks, McDonald’s and Playboy).

Because logos are so commonly used among businesses, consumers expect to see them. A logo is a sign of professionalism and suggests experience to customers. Like a well-built website or accreditation from a third-party organ-ization, a logo demonstrates that a company is an established business and not a fly-by-night operation.

A Good Logo? A well-designed and effective logo is not as easy to come by as it may seem. There is more to creating a good logo than finding a relevant image and pairing it with your company name. For one, a good logo should reflect the nature and personality of the business it represents. It should be designed with the mission and nature of the company in mind, and should also be unique and distinct. It should stand out from the competition and be memorable in the minds of your customers. A good logo should be simple. Too much color, design or text can clutter the space and distract from the message of the brand.

On that note, a good logo should also be easily adaptable. It should be able to be printed in color as well as in black and white without losing its meaning or effectiveness. It should be able to be scalable to fit on business cards, letterhead, branded merchandise and on billboards.

You never know how or where your logo may be used in the future, so it is important that it is designed to be adaptable to any needs.

A logo should also use color wisely, as colors have meaning and can affect mood and choice. You may notice that financial and banking industries often use colors such as blue, green, black and gold, which are seen as trustworthy and dependable colors. Fast food industries, on the other hand, tend to use bright reds, yellows and oranges, which are believed to stimulate appetite and encourage action. Consider colors and their meanings carefully when designing a logo for your company.

One of the most important aspects of a logo is its quality. A logo should be designed in high-resolution so that it is crisp and clear, with smooth curves and text. Having jagged edges, unreadable text or blurry images can hurt the quality of the logo and is seen as unprofessional.

A good logo should also stand the test of time. It should not be tied to a popular fad or style that is likely to look dated in a few years. Many companies use their logo for 10 to 20 years or more before investing in a redesign. And if a logo has proven effective and resonates with customers, companies often choose to make only small tweaks to modernize a familiar logo.

Take, for example, the well-known black and red YMCA logo that was used for more than 40 years by the non-profit organization. In 2010, the YMCA unveiled a major rebranding effort, which incorporates a new, more colorful and youthful-looking logo. But despite the major changes to the design, the new logo retains many of the elements of the old familiar logo including the basic shape. This has helped the YMCA with a smooth transition to their new brand and public acceptance and approval of the new look.

On the other hand, the clothing store Gap recently unveiled a logo redesign that was immediately panned by consumers, critics and the media alike. The new logo featured the word "Gap" in black lettering with a seemingly unnecessary and meaningless blue square behind the "p." According to DailyFinance.com, criticism on Gap’s Facebook page called the new logo a "catastrophe," looking "like a child made it." Gap responded by dropping the new logo in favor of the original after just one week.

How Do I Get a Logo? If you’re ready to incorporate a logo into your marketing plan — or revamp your existing logo — you may be wondering where to start. The most common way to get a logo for a brand or business is to hire a graphic designer. A professional designer will take the time to learn about the product or company the logo will represent and design many logo options for the client to select from. In most cases, the client will be able to work with the designer to provide feedback for revisions until they produce a logo they are satisfied with. Paying a professional graphic designer is typically the most costly way to develop a logo, but it is also the most likely to yield professional, creative and effective results.

However, developing a logo does not have to be an expensive endeavor. Seeking out graphic design students at local art schools to design a logo can be a great alternative to hiring a professional. In fact, the Nike "swoosh" logo — arguably one of the most well-known and successful logos of all time — was created by a graphic design student in 1971 for $35 (the equivalent of $184 today). Students are usually willing to work for low cost or for free as they gain experience and build connections.

Another alternative for designing a logo is to utilize websites like 99Designs.com that allow a client to host their own "design contest." The client submits background information and design criteria and then designers can submit their concepts. The client selects their favorite submission and pays for only that one logo. This allows the client to see many concepts from different designers, and the price for the winning logo is typically a fraction of the cost of hiring a professional.

Another way to get a custom logo is to design it yourself. This method can be extremely challenging, time consuming and frustrating if you have a limited background in design software. However design websites, such as LogoYes.com, can guide customers through the process of creating their own, unique logo for a fee.

What do I do with my logo? Once your company has acquired a logo, start using it! Introduce it into all of your marketing materials, from your company website to advertisements, direct mail, newsletters, educational information, employee business cards, yard signs and employee uniforms. Brand your company vehicles with the company logo to advertise the business while on the road and to neighbors of your current clients. Put your logo on pens, notepads or magnets to give to customers and potential customers. Consider sponsoring an event in the community like a Little League team or parade, and brand it with your logo.

The uses of a well-designed logo are endless, and the decision to invest in a creative, custom-designed logo will serve you well. Your company will be able to use its logo to showcase its professionalism, distinguish itself from the competition and ultimately grow your business for years to come.

The author is executive director of the Professional Pest Management Alliance. She can be reached at mhenriksen@giemedia.com.