Another week, another FAQ blog post. To remind you, I have been asking normies - that’s people outside of the design sphere - for their burning questions about design, logos and branding. This is one that I don’t have to directly deal with a lot, it’s often an underlying issue in logo design, especially when presenting it to a client.
Is a simple or more decorative logo better?
The answer, in short, is yes. The slightly longer answer is, well, this entire blog post. It’s not like there is a single correct answer for this, it all has to take into account the needs of the client, which you should have identified using the pre-production we talked about last week.
But I want to split this post up based on two fronts. Because there are (at least) two ways to look at the distinction between “Simple” and “Decorative”. The Conceptual front and the Executional front.
Actually, no, before THAT, we should probably address that last word in the question - Better. What even makes a logo good?!
What Makes a Good Logo?
You could write a book about this. Actually, many people have, and I have read a fair few of them. And whilst everyone has their own separate list of “must have” adjective, here are the ones I have found coming up a lot, and the ones I design by:
Distinct
A logo has to be doing its own thing. You have to avoid the generic markers of your field. If you’re a gardener you should avoid lawn mowers on your logo. Because that’s not distinctive, it’s generic. And you’re not generic, you’re a bloody superstar. Your logo shouldn’t need to hit me on the head with the idea that you know how to cut grass. I consider that the bare minimum for being a gardener. You need to stand out, avoid the same imagery everyone else is using in your field and make something distinct, so that when people see it they think of you and nobody else.
Memorable
And speaking of making people think, you have to leave people thinking about your logo and your brand after they’ve finished looking at it. It’s all well and good having a perfect logo that defines and represents you to a T, but if nobody knows it exists the moment they look away, does it really do anything? The answer, of course, is no. If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it, it isn’t going to generate any brand recognition.
And the way to be memorable is to, well, DO SOMETHING. Be bold, be strong, be intentional. Use strong colors and iconography, make an emotional connection and don’t be generic!
You see how all of these points kind of feed into each other?
Relevant
Your logo needs to be more than just a pretty picture. Every single decision behind your logo needs to be intentional. Remember all that pre-production work I talked about last week? Well, that needs to influence every.
Single.
Decision.
You.
Make.
Think about your brand’s story. Think about the problem you need to solve. Think about how you are doing it differently. Take all those pieces of information and use them to influence your choice of colour, shape and form.
Versatile
And finally, your logo needs to work in every use-case. If your very ornate, traditional-style logo perfectly surmises your business, your ethos and your process, then that is fantastic. But if when you make it your profile picture it looks like a muddy mess, well that just won’t fly. You either need something that works at all scales, or you need variants in colour and simplicity that enable you to clearly and legibly brand yourself in every possible use case. A logo is more than one image, it’s an entire suite of variants on an idea.
So now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about Conceptual Complexity vs Executional Complexity
Conceptual Complexity
Conceptual Complexity, as I use it, refers to how complicated the idea of the logo is. And by that I mean how many moving parts are going into it. I am of the belief that a logo should be Conceptually Simple, taking one or two ideas that represent the brand and combining them in a clever and memorable way to create a logo that is distinct and memorable.
Any more than this and you will over-extend the viewer’s cognitive load. They will have to spend too long trying to figure out what exactly the logo is doing, that they will just shut off and not take any of it in. And when we’re in a world where we’re always looking at screens and ads and all-sorts of gubbins like that, we’re already at our limit most of the time. So the least cognitive load the viewer has to use in decoding your logo, the better.
Executional Complexity
So you have a concept that’s simple, has one or two fantastic ideas, but now you need to actually make it. And here’s where the line between right and wrong gets way less clear. Because I have a specialty and affinity for the more minimalist logos. A simple symbol and some banging text, that’s my jam. I have my limits, looking at you Cracker Barrel (no, it wasn’t too woke, it was just bad. In fact, it reeked of right-wing corporate genericism). But generally speaking, I like my logos on the more simple side.
And with that does come an issue: justification. Because to some people, it looks like I do very little work on my logos, because they’re so simple to replicate. But with every line, every shape and every form intentionally placed, I can explain and sell every part of my process to my client, and they will get on board with it, they will become a fan of it, and they will love it.
That isn’t to say a more complex logo isn’t a bad thing. I mean, companies like Coca-Cola have been doing complex logos and doing them well for a long time. It’s all about what you want to express with the form. You don’t pick a style just because you like it, you pick it for a reason. Coca-Cola is giving tradition and time-proven recipes. Whereas Pepsi, a more simple logo, is giving constant evolution and refinement. A complex logo can look traditional, regal and rustic. And if that’s what you’re going for, then that’s what you should do. But just make sure you have a simplified version for profile pictures and the like. You gotta make sure you have the full suite, not just the one logo
All in all, no one is better than the other, it’s all about what you want to be expressing, what vibe you want to be giving. That should be your starting point, not just what you like. Complicated, isn’t it? If you need someone else to deal with all of this, you know where to find me.
