The 17 Key Essentials to hiring a Dallas Logo Design Company

How do you know if a logo design has what it takes to be successful? Glad you asked. Below we’ve complied a 17 Key Essentials list to help you discern if a logo concept has what it takes to best represent your business. Moreover, to assure you’re hiring the right Dallas logo design company.

1. Customer-focus

Will the logo appeal to your target customers; both current and future?
This is probably the biggest hurdle for most people to overcome. You are not your customer. Your “likes” are not necessarily theirs. So, it’s important to answer critical questions: Who are they? Does it speak to their interests or needs? Is it accessible to them? How universal is the concept? Could it create confusion or be difficult to understand? Was it designed for internal, rather than external needs?

2. Adaptability

Can the logo be applied in a variety of technical applications?

Meaning, will it work in black-and-white (or screen printing, or embossing, or sand-blasting) as well as it does in color? Can it scale up effectively to billboard size? How about down to the side of a promotional pen?

If it’s difficult to adapt as-is to the full diversity of applications, are there logical ways to make special-usage adaptations of the logo that would work and still be consistent with the original? Is there a horizontal version (for web banners), a stacked version (for signage), or can one optimized version truly accommodate both?

Effective up-front planning and application guidelines will reduce the likelihood that the “official” logo gets diluted by being misapplied, modified, or eliminated from the breadth of implementation you need for your business.

3. Distinctiveness

Does the logo offer a strong and unique impression?
Logos are about visibility in the clutter of the marketplace and being distinctly different from our competitors. If we’re solely following a “me too” trend, we’ve missed the mark. That doesn’t mean that the logo has to be a stretch or game-changer, or be unlike anything already existing in the world, but it does need some level of distinctiveness.

We deal in a pattern language with logo symbolism, form, typography, and color where it’s nearly impossible to be totally original, though we constantly try to develop new takes on, and interpretations of, meaningful ideas. It’s more important to be different within your competitors industry, category, or geographic region than the brand universe at large.

4. Relevancy

Does it allude to our industry, a need, or a problem we can solve?
Does it reveal something about the nature of our company, service, or product? Is it descriptive? This doesn’t mean it has to be literal. In fact, in most cases you want to avoid being overly literal. But can it be seen in the context of our industry? Our client base? Our value proposition? Your answer to these should be yes. If you’re hesitant about any of these factors, e-evaluate the logo to make improvements.

5. Depth of Meaning

Does it encourage different interpretation and levels of engagement?
This is something that isn’t always included in criteria lists, but which I look for in my own work and admire in others’. You could argue that it’s more of an ideal target than a “must have.” The ultimate goal is for the branding agencies designing the logo to have a common, clear, and unifying interpretation, but also additional layers of meaning or symbolism that emerge over time as people experience the brand or see repetition of the logo.

By not being too literal and taking a more abstract and imaginative path with simplicity can frequently help in bringing additional interpretation or meaning based on the viewer. This can be helpful not only by engaging a viewer’s brain, but also by allowing them to insert something of themselves and their experiences into the scenario.

6. Credibility

Does it communicate your quality, expertise, and trustworthiness?
People have automatic expectations and assumptions of certain types of businesses. You need to project something that’s credible.

Chasing something that’s too trendy or fanciful may hurt your perception of reliability or credibility. Remember that much of brand perception is about trust. If this logo is someone’s first introduction to your company, does it inspire the trust you want? Credibility and relevancy vary quite a bit by industry. What might be totally acceptable for a hair salon might not play well for a bank, no matter how creative or nontraditional the bank’s clientele.

This doesn’t mean you can’t stretch people’s stereotypes of your industry a bit, in fact that can be a very useful tool for distinguishing your brand.

7. Simplicity

Is the concept of the logo appropriately distilled, clean, and high-impact? Too tricky or too detailed and you risk losing your audience before they even get the message. Or they could associate your logo, and thus your brand, with being fussy or complicated.

Simplicity is one of the hardest things to achieve and requires the most work, which is the inverse of what most clients expect. It’s usually helpful to employ a subtractive technique. If you like the concept, can the same idea be expressed with even fewer lines, items, etc.? The key: Is something a stylistic embellishment or is it essential to communicating the idea?

8. Scalable 


When a top Dallas logo design company creates a simplistic logo design, it can be easily enlarged and shrunken. A complex design will lose details when reduced, causing visibility problems in a number of applications.

9. Convertible Across All Media

At Factory Creative, we can attest that a simple logo design is easier to publish across different media, including print, web, stamps, embroidery, signs, transfers, promotional gifts, etc.

10. Timelessness

Does your logo have a long shelf life?
A good logo developed by the best logo design companies should have 10+ years of staying power; and many can last decades. The point is to have your new logo last as long as possible to maximize your investment.

Being timely means to have that shelf life. It shouldn’t be so trendy as to look outdated in a couple of years. The idea is to create something timeless and inclusive enough that you can absorb minor shifts and delay a strategic overhaul until it’s truly necessitated by either outside or inside forces.

Things change so fast in today’s business environment that it’s likely that some business aspect will change significantly in terms of your market, customer, or product long before the 10-year mark. This change may happen even quicker if you’re in consumer or retail industries, which means you may need to adapt or redesign your logo and brand identity to be in sync on a more frequent basis.

11. Memorability

Did the logo create a lasting impression?
After all, the intent is for someone to be able to re-recognize the logo in the future and to retain some knowledge of the company that they’ve come to associate with that visual cue. There are many different psychological aspects that contribute to memorability like contrast, tension, visual completion, and more.

Anything that engages a viewer’s brain and makes them think about it typically improves recall, as long as the “a-ha” is relatively accessible and relevant. This memorability will likely be a combination of the logo mark, the name, the typography, and the color scheme, rather than one single element.

12. Extendibility

Are there obvious extensions and tie-ins to amplify its reach?
Can you clearly visualize how the logo could build out in digital, motion, social media, experiential, and customer interactions?

Is this a solo brand or part of a larger brand family? Do you have different products that all include or riff off of the main brand name and logo? Does the logo need to morph and adapt to accommodate various names and divisions? Languages? (There are a few other criteria that come into play for multi-cultural logos.)

Can the color palette influence products, interiors, etc.? Can you see that the name and logo and your positioning automatically inspire potential headlines and catch phrases? Word play? Wit? Any of these things are added advantages if they’re appropriate to your audience.

13. Difficult to Counterfeit

When a logo is comprised of only a few colors and details, competitors are less likely to try to copy it. If a logo is complicated, a few details can be changed and then the logo can be used by another brand. These changes can be subtle, thanks to the complexity of the design, and consumers may make decisions that favor your competitor, based on the reputation your brand has built for itself.

Depending on the extent of the changes, copyright infringement may or may not apply. Of course, only the best Dallas logo design companies will know this through years of experience – like Factory Creative.

14. Does the Design Company Truly Understand the Importance of a Company Logo?

Logos act as the face of a company. They are a display of a company’s unique experience and identity, providing essential information about a company. They are a shorthand way of referring to a business in marketing and advertising materials like stationery, business cards, websites, and advertising. Experienced Dallas logo design companies, like Factory Creative, will have deep knowledge of how to incorporate all these critical components into your logo.

15. Hiring a Dallas logo design company with Branding experience is key

Anything that relates to a service, company, product, or person involved in a business is what is called brand identity. It is the message that the customer receives from your business. Having a clear brand can help your business in a variety of ways.

Because today’s consumers can learn about your business through opinions and reviews online, brand identity is more important than ever. Without having this information available, you open yourself up as a business to having a negative or misleading reputation.

Remember, your logo is just one part of your overall brand. Therefore, it is essential that the Dallas logo design companies you are considering hiring have branding agency experience – like Factory Creative. Remember, a firm with branding experience will provide value with services like Brand Strategy, Graphic Design, Brochure Design, Website Design, Package Design, Copywriting, and Digital Marketing all under one roof to support your overall go-to-market strategy.

Brand experience plays a vital role in the appearance of your logo. If your logo designer does not have branding experience, this can make or break your business’ image. Want a deeper dive into this subject? Then checkout Forbes® article on “Why Brand Image Matters More Than You Think”.

16. Distinctive Design Is Key

There are a lot of aspects that go into making a great logo, so hiring the right Dallas logo design company or branding agency is very important. Your logo should be distinctive and immediately recognizable to potential customers. A simple design creates an easy logo to alter for size and color purposes. This can be of key importance when it comes to printing your logo on promotional products. Having a simple logo that is easily adjustable is important.

Logo designs can be seen as the foundation of your brand’s identity. Customers get an idea of what your company is all about the second they see your logo. This can seem like a lot of pressure but chances are you know that a red bullseye represents Target, and an apple clearly represents the tech giant Apple. Having a logo that immediately makes a consumer think of your company increases the chances of them using your services when they are in search of a branding agency.

17. Low Cost Logos – Buyer Beware

No one likes paying too much for logo design. However, quality does come at a cost. Top businesses have great logo designs due to using a top branding agency or logo design company. They may have paid a premium, but they did get a great end result.

We all know that you get what you pay for, so it is good to compare prices to ensure that you are not overpaying. Choosing a logo designer based solely on price is unwise, and may be reflected in the end results .

We suggest background research on the logo design companies or creative agencies you are considering hiring. Do they have a process in which they follow, or are they simply producing logos like fast food? The typical design process will not take under 48 hours to complete. Think about how long your logo will be in use in the marketplace – would you want that to be designed or researched in under 48 hours? There is no ‘typical’ time frame, as every client will have different needs. For small and medium businesses, a rough guide would be around two to four weeks to fully develop.

Ultimately, you’re paying for the level of service. You can undoubtedly hire less experienced design companies who are willing to create for cheap (i.e. less than $1000), but you can’t expect the care and dedication for that amount. To date, the national average cost for a small and medium business logo design ranges between $1500-$2500. This cost will also include some competitive market research, multiple logo variations, and a logo style guide with 1-2 pages in order to develop your overall brand consistent, which can take at least 2-3 weeks to complete if not more.

Need help developing a new logo, or a logo redesign that meet these criteria? Factory Creative is ready to get started on the creative solution you have been searching for.