Logo Design Process for Just Creative Design’s Award Winning Logo
Written by Jacob Cass on Thursday, April 24, 2008 – 7:29 pm
In this article I will talk about how I came to the name for my freelancing business ‘Just Creative Design’ and also the logo design process that I used to design the award winning logo that you see above.
The process I used was somewhat disjointed and a very long one at that… mainly because I was designing for myself and I had no idea what ‘brand’ I was after but this is it. Enjoy.
Do you need to brush up on your logo design skills? You may want to know how to design a logo or you may want to know the logo design process of top graphic designers. You can find even more logo design resources here.
What will be my business name?
Believe it or not but this was one of the hardest parts of the process. Before I had JCD I was freelancing under the name of ‘JackCass Productions’ - this was when I was 15. This was a clever pun of my name Jacob and Cass. I get called ‘Jack’ and ‘Jake’ quite a bit for my nickname instead of Jacob and when you combine the nickname Jack and my last name Cass… well you get JackCass or jackass if you will.
I actually got about very mixed feelings about this name JackCass Productions. About 70% of people loved it, and were actually quite envious of the name and then about 30% of people would say why would you want to be called that in a professional business? There were pros and cons for both however in the end I chose not to continue using this name for the long term and I think I made the right choice… But in saying that I still have the domain jackcass.com which I use for a personal side blog - that never gets updated.
Ok, so now I had the problem of choosing whether to brand myself as my name ‘Jacob Cass’ or another name. Obviously I went with the latter however I still bought my domain name jacobcass.com. But now what to choose for my business name? I decided I wanted something unique, I wanted the word design in the title but I also wanted it to include my initials in the name - ego I know.
I had a million ideas, as you do… Jucy, Jaycii, JayZee, JayCee, Jaci, Jaysee, JayCee, JaySee, JaiSee, Juju, Juca, Joco, Jluc, Jaco, JC, JLBC and I won’t bore you with the hundred more that I had.
Sketches
I couldn’t come down to a name I liked so I just played around with my initials to make a logo and you can see the sketches below of trying to get J and C to work together. There were six A3 pages so I had to take a photo of it… it is 2mb if you want to look at it full size. And I am no Picasso so shhh.
From these sketches I had the idea of trying to make the initials JCD into a pencil and after a bit of experimenting I got it to work. Need to know how to be creative?
Throughout the whole process I was up in air about the name of the business so I played with the names JackCass, Jacob Cass and Just Creative Design.
Illustrator
After getting the initial idea I had some fun playing around in Illustrator with different typefaces, sizes, porportions etc which you can see in the picture to see what typefaces worked, what line widths and combinations worked best together and just some other design ideas.
More play with the pencil idea…
The Final Two Concepts
I then finally came down to two styles, one which was the led pencil style and one which is below.
At this time I received feedback from peers and from forums and many people told me that there was so many logos that incorporated the Fibonnaci Squirl. After a little research I found this was true and this meant that my logo would not be unique. So I went with the led pencil idea that I thought was working quite well so I continued with that. It was here that I tried to get the best size for the pencil to show off the JCD initials as well as making sure it looked like a pencil.
Font Change
I ended up choosing the third size down from the top however something was not quite sitting with me and I narrowed it down to the font. I changed it to the font I used in the other example which was the free font Delicious and that solved all my problems - I was happy with the JCD initial, pencil and the font. It was a great black and white logo.
Colour
This was where I played a lot with colour however I narrowed it down to the blue or the pink that I originally had in mind and then I chose out of these four colour combinations. I felt pink had more energy and was not so corporate and this was the decision I made. Pink black and white were my colours and my brand.
Award Winning Final Logo
Above you can see the finished logo and I couldn’t be happier with the feedback I have received from everyone on this logo. At least once a week I get someone complimenting it which gives me a warm giddy feeling inside. Oh and the fact that it incorporates my initials into it 
In fact I entered this logo into the Logo Design Love Awards and it won the readers appreciation award (as voted by you so thank you!) and then on top of that we came 15th out of 100+ blogs in the overall Blog Logo Design Competition.
Adrian Hanft , co-founder of Be A Design Group had this to say about my logo when it won the award.
So often logos fall into cliché. This is usually a danger to avoid, but if you can put a new spin on an overused idea then you actually benefit from people’s awareness of the idea. You can turn a negative reaction into a positive one, and that has impact. The idea of using a pencil and sketching to represent creativity could be cliché, but this logo overcomes it. The JCD are just imperceptible enough to let the viewer feel rewarded for finding them. Same with the pencil. The typography is understated and it matches the humble positioning of “just creative.” They aren’t trying to be too clever, too flashy, or too self-important. They’re just creative.
Final Logo with Evil Comics Sans MS
And just for kicks, what if my logo used Comic Sans? Evil, Evil, Evil.
Well there we have it boys and girls, the logo design process I used to create the logo in my blog header. I hope you enjoyed it. Comments are always appreciated.
A Comparative Study of Logo Design between the 70s and 90s.
Written by Jacob Cass on Friday, April 18, 2008 – 6:24 pm
This was an essay I wrote one year ago for a University class. I do recommend printing it as it is 2000 words long. Click here for a printable version. Read more »
Just Creative Design logo nominated for Logo Design Love Award
Written by Jacob Cass on Sunday, March 9, 2008 – 12:17 pm
If you think our logo is worthy to win the Logo Design Love Award, please vote for us - just leave a comment on the post over here saying ” #1 - Just Creative Design! ”
A little background info about the awards
The aim of the logo design love awards is to give some well deserved exposure to lesser-known graphic designers, and to uncover the most effective blog logos amongst today’s popular blogs.
For full information on how the awards and judging works please see the original post.
Thanks to David Airey who is the man managing the awards and also to the judges who are kindly donating their time.
The Logo Design Process of TOP graphic designers
Written by Jacob Cass on Friday, February 1, 2008 – 1:48 pm
Want to know the secrets of how top graphic designers create their logos?
This article will reveal exactly how 75 top designers of todays modern age create their logos - a way previously untold or explored - the way they don’t want you to know about. It will show the design process that these designers go through to get to their final logo design. I also use this process on all of my logo designs.
This is a summary of the secret logo design process that 75 top designers told to Leslie Cabarga in his book The Secret Life of Logos: Behind The Scenes With Top Designers.
Their Design Process:
- The Brief
- Research
- Visual Research
- Sketching & Conceptualising
- Reflection
- Positioning
- Presentations
- Celebration
1. The Brief
Nearly all designers agree that the initial accumulation of information from the client is the most important step, either by a face to face interview or a questionnaire. This is where you must establish the design brief. Designer, John Homs says “You really need to understand your client very thoroughly before you get started. Logo Design is never just shooting in the dark. It’s just the opposite.”
If you haven’t got a client yet you may be interested in how to get your first job. Or if you need help on writing a design brief check out how do you write a graphic design brief?
2. Research
After molding the design brief, getting to know your client’s businesses is the next crucial step in making a logo successful. Research includes general reading on the industry itself, sometimes on its history, and on its competitors. If budgets allow, external research can be carried out.
3. Visual Research
This is research not into the clients business, but into the actual logo style. This is where we seek out a look, a style, an approach or attitude, usually to attain a period or style that we are unfamiliar with, or to refresh ourselves with what is new or successful. Eg. Find logos of similar business’ and critique them. This is where you look for inspiration. Designer Wendy Stamberger said “I look more for techniques and to ask myself why a certain logo looks corporate, or what makes a really good health care logo… or for example why do I like this logo and dislike that one?” Designers should do this to gain a better understanding of the industry and competition.
Note: Some designers actually refuse the use of visual research, preferring to use their own mental sourcebook, however others say that doing so, is limiting your design solution. What do you think?
4. Sketching & Conceptualising
Developing the logo design concept(s) is where creativity comes into play, this is where the designer must create the logo by using the design brief and the research conducted. Some designers use a napkin to sketch, some use a sketchbook and some use the computer as paper, this is all a matter of personal choice, however using a computer first up is not recommended what so ever.
When conceptualizing, some designers are mainly concerned with the graphic style and image of a piece while others try to convey deep meaning or some sort of visual puzzle (such as the arrow in the FedEx logo). These types of logos have a bigger impact on the viewer and when a designer creates one, they know it straight away. It will be unique and will add a dimension to the experience and to the whole identity. For more information on conceptualizing check out the how to design a logo or the ultimate guide to logo design or if you need help on typography, check out the top 5 typography resources.
5. Reflection
Taking breaks is as important as the physical research and the design brief. It is so easy to get stuck in a creative cul-de-sac (how to be creative) and get tired of a project and this is why logo designers take breaks. By resting, your ideas mature and develop in the back of your head. When you go back to your project, you have renewed enthusiasm, insight and opportunity. This is also a good stage to get feedback from others.
6. Positioning
This is where the designers choose to position themselves. They either position themselves like contractors and take orders according to their clients wishes (ie. Don’t advise their clients of design matters) OR they position themselves like a business and build themselves a long term relationship (ie. Guide clients to a more appropriate solution much alike how a lawyer does.) Designers have to choose how they wish to work.
7. Presentation
This is where the designer must present their work to the client. They can choose whether to show the client a huge variety of logo design concepts (if it is hard to gauge a clients taste) OR they could choose to showcase just a few select logo designs. This is another debatable issue worthy of an article. What is your opinion?
8. Celebration
In a survey conducted to the 75 top designers, when the job is finally finished and approved, 31% of designers celebrate by drinking beer, 12% head for chocolate, 22% head off to bed to catch up on sleep and the other 35% can’t celebrate because they must start on the next logo design. What do you do?
Summary
Below is a summary of the whole design process for quick review. You may even find it useful to print the whole article - if so, make sure you print the smart way.
- Design Brief: Conduct Questionnaire or Interview with client to get the design brief.
- Research: Conduct research focused on the industry itself, on its history, and on its competitors.
- Reference: Conduct research into logo designs that have been successful and current styles and trends that are related to the design brief.
- Sketching & Conceptualising: Develop the logo design concept(s) around the brief and research. Use creativity. Know how to design a logo.
- Reflection: Take breaks throughout the design process. This lets your ideas mature and for you to get renewed enthusiasm. Receive feedback.
- Positioning: Position yourself as a contractor or build a long lasting relationship. ie. Client orders you what to do OR You guide client to the best solution.
- Presentation: Choose to present only a select few logos to the client or a whole collection.
- Celebration: Drink beer, eat chocolate, sleep, start on next logo design. Or a combination.
Moral
When given a brief, every designer interprets in their own way and if an assignment is given to 100 different designers, it would return 100 different logos, few of which would resemble each other. Though we all endlessly conjecture what makes a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ logo, one must remember in the end, the ultimate arbiter of logo design greatness may only be the satisfied, paying client.
The secret moral to this story, therefore, is to work hard, but not be too hard on your first concepts as the process itself, is the key to ultimate success.
If you liked this article be sure to subscribe to Just Creative Design so you don’t miss out on the next one!
My Guest Article on David Airey.com - 5 Vital Tips For Logo Design
Written by Jacob Cass on Wednesday, January 9, 2008 – 11:46 am
I have written a guest article: 5 Vital Tips For Logo Design on the ever so popular graphic design blog owned by David Airey, an aspiring graphic designer and blogger from Edinburgh. Check It Out
Leave comments on here or David’s blog, either way I am happy for some feedback.
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