A finished logo can look deceptively simple. A symbol, a name, a few shapes, maybe a color or two. But even the simplest logos are rarely straightforward to create. For me, a logo starts before I actually design anything.
The first step is understanding the company. I generally start with a conversation with the client about who they are, what they do, who their customers are, and the personality they want the brand to have. I also want to know what preferences they have. Are there colors they gravitate toward? A particular style of typography? Imagery or design elements they want to explore, or definitely want to avoid?
From there, I spend some time looking at the visual landscape around the company. What does the industry tend to look like? What imagery is associated with it? What feels appropriate, and what has already been done over and over? Looking at visual references helps me start building a sense of direction and often sparks associations I may not have considered otherwise.
By the time I sit down to start designing, the page isn’t blank anymore. I have information, references, preferences, and ideas to start pulling from. From there, I brainstorm.
Sometimes a client already has an idea for the imagery they want. But even that leaves an enormous amount of room for interpretation. If a dentist tells me they want a tooth in their logo, what does that tooth look like? Is it abstract or literal? Geometric or organic? Detailed or incredibly simple? Is it a standalone icon, or can it become part of the typography? One idea can lead to dozens of visual directions.
Other times, there isn’t an obvious image at all. That’s when the brainstorming goes deeper. I start thinking about associations with the company, the industry, and what the business actually does. One association leads to another, and eventually those ideas start creating a visual vocabulary to explore.
Then comes the fun part. I play.
For me, that usually happens directly in Illustrator. My artboards become my sketchbook, filling up with type, shapes, symbols, and pieces of ideas. I move things around, combine them, pull them apart, simplify them, try things that don’t work, and occasionally discover something I wasn’t looking for. One idea starts suggesting other ideas.
Eventually, something begins to take shape. From there I start iterating. What happens if the shape is simplified? Can two elements become one? Does the idea work with different typography? Is there a stronger way to create the same association? One direction might generate five variations before I decide which version is worth developing further.
That’s ultimately how I get to the first concepts I present to a client. The final result may be simple, but getting there is a process of experimenting and being open to where those ideas lead.