Logo design feedback...

[JoePublic]

Hi all,

First time posting... just looking for some feedback on a logo concept I created for a new brand name I came up with.

The brand name is Clique Radar, and I wanted an extremely simple little logo/icon type design, that could work with or without the whole brand name within the design.

I've come up with the following and would love to hear any feedback. I don't personally know how to make this into a vector graphic, but have a friend that could probably do that for me once I've finalised the design, so... here it is as a .png that I created in Photoshop...



Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Del.

 

[Paul Murray]

I'd look at how it will work without the gradient effect in solid colour (black and white) only – essentially it will be a C with a dot in the centre, which means you'll lose the radar concept. How could you convey 'radar' in solid colour only?

As for a vector version, you could simple recreate it in Illustrator using the same gradient type.

 

[JoePublic]

Hi Paul,

Thanks for the feedback.

You're right, it would be completely disconnected from the 'radar' element of the name without the gradient, but... I can't think of many screens on which the gradient effect wouldn't show, so... is that important?

A quick Google image search for the term radar shows tons of examples of icons, many being just a simple line drawing without any gradient, but then... they only convey 'radar'. Putting the radar in the letter C was my way of trying to make sure the icon alluded to something more than just radar.

I'm not a designer, but have often had to come up with logos for stuff to do with my work, and usually got something reasonably quick, but this one is doing my head in trying to settle on a final version.

I'll keep working on it.

Appreciate your input.

Thanks,

Del.

 

[Paul Murray]

I can't think of many screens on which the gradient effect wouldn't show, so... is that important?

A solid/single colour logo is best for photocopying/faxing due to the degradation of quality. Chances are you may not have to worry about this yourself, but it's good practice to ensure a logo works in any format or situation. What if in future you wanted to have your logo displayed as a 3D sign on a building or in a reception lobby? You'd need a solid version for that.

This version hints at the idea of a radar screen, but does it in a single colour;



Although this example below does use a gradient effect, it can be displayed in a solid colour and still retain its silhouette.

 

[JoePublic]

Thanks again, Paul.

I did actually find that second example you used above, and liked that. Have been playing with similar concepts.

Have also been thinking about simply using a radar screen icon, and dispensing with any attempt to incorporate the letter C into it.

At first, I thought the word radar would lead me to some great ideas for branding, but in fact... with there being so many variations of radar type icons already out there... I'm struggling to come up with a concept that sets my design apart. A Google image search for radar, and especially if you select 'icons' from the suggested results... there seems to be thousands of them.

So, still thinking.

Going back to the gradient though... I can think of very few occasions where I might need to think about how the logo/icon would look when photocopied or faxed. For signage... maybe that might be a consideration at some point down the line, but again... would be a secondary consideration, I think. Plenty of examples of full colour signage types, including moulded 3D signage. Hell... if I get that far, maybe I could put a light in it and have it actually sweep like a radar screen.

Again... really appreciate your feedback and pointers.

I know there's tons of sources online to hire someone to do a logo design (some terrible, but a few good, it would seem). But... I'm stubborn about this sort of stuff, and I'm determined to give it a damn good try myself first. Much more satisfaction if I can nail it myself.

Thanks,

Del.

 

[@GCarlD]

Going back to the gradient though... I can think of very few occasions where I might need to think about how the logo/icon would look when photocopied or faxed. For signage... maybe that might be a consideration at some point down the line, but again... would be a secondary consideration, I think. Plenty of examples of full colour signage types, including moulded 3D signage. Hell... if I get that far, maybe I could put a light in it and have it actually sweep like a radar screen.

What about for invoices? How many clients would bother printing your invoice in colour and waste their colour ink?

 

[JoePublic]

Hi Carl,

Fair point. Of course, I'd argue that the single small 'C' logo being the only thing of colour on a piece of paperwork would represent a very small colour ink use, but more importantly... how often do you think there's a need to actually print a document these days?

I have a nice printer that I bought 3 years ago, and I can count on one hand the number of times I've needed to print an actual document. It's barely been used for anything other than printing the odd photo here and there, or printing stuff for the kids... in B&W... so they can then colour it in.

The business I'm planning this for is a mobile apps business, and while I'll obviously get some printed stationery done... there won't be a lot of it.

Of course, it may all be moot... I'm busy working on an alternate design that doesn't have a gradient in it, and simply represents a radar screen, rather than trying to incorporate anything that represents the wording.

Was playing with the idea of changing the 'blips' on a radar screen to hearts to try and represent users 'liking' the app, but... think it makes it look more like some kind of dating app, so have scratched that idea. When scaled down to small icon size, it's hard to even distinguish that they were hearts, anyway.

Thanks for your input though. I do appreciate any and all feedback. Especially feedback that tells me why an idea won't work.

Del.

 

[JoePublic]

OK, so... life got in the way and I had to put this aside for a while, and just got back to it today.

So, as I'm now pressed for time to get this done, I've went for something super simple (at least, I think so). Would love to have some feedback as to whether I've went too simple and wasted an opportunity for a really cool logo.

Examples below on both a white and black background...



I think it looks quite nice on a dark background, but not quite so much on a light background.

Interested to hear what others think.

Thanks,

Del.

 

[JoePublic]

Oh and... alternate positioning of the radar icon...



Del.

 

[JoePublic]

Couple more variations... should anyone feel like giving me some feedback.



Any feedback appreciated.

Thanks,

Del.

 

[Paul Murray]

I still don't see a single colour version?

 

[JoePublic]

You mean... how it would look if someone printed off an invoice or something in black and white, as mentioned earlier?

If so...



Is this what you mean?

Del.

 

[Paul Murray]

I meant just one single colour. I was just wondering if/how you'd differentiate the red spots from the green circles when they're a single colour.

 

[JoePublic]

Maybe make the dots... circles???

Quick n dirty examples...


That said... I've got to be honest... I'm still struggling to imagine more than a handful of circumstances whereby someone would need to use this in a monochrome (or single colour) format.

I get what you're saying... a good design should look good irrespective of what medium it's displayed or printed on, and in full colour as well as single colour. In that respect... you're absolutely right.

But... I'm seeing the need for a single colour version being so few and far between these days... that it's not actually a 'need'.

This example, is for a digital company. No real world shop window or signage... minimal need for biz cards and letterheads... etc.

I honestly cant remember the last time I sent a fax (it must be 10yrs+), and it's probabl;y almost as long since I last needed to photocopy something as opposed to scan it..

So... I'm kinda seeing the whole single colour test as, something that's nice when it looks great as a single colour, but... not worth losing any sleep over when a logo simply doesn't look that great in black and white.

So, ignoring the single colour aspect for the moment... do you think it looks like a decent logo in general?

Del.