Are you designing logos for portfolios or clients?
I was recently having a discussion with another designer who claimed that most talented logo designers are naturally gifted. The gist of his thoughts was that some designers simply had an ‘eye’ for creating brilliant logos. In his words, you either had ‘it’ or you didn’t. To give examples of designers who he thought had ‘it’ I was referred to some logos he had seen on a popular logo design gallery.
If a logo design was a competition based on which designer had the coolest portfolio, I may be able to see his point, however that’s simply not the case.
The critical problem with this view is that it looks at logo design in complete isolation, devoid of strategic thinking, with its only purpose to look good.
While a logo should be visually appealing, it also should be designed with thorough understanding of the client and their strategic goals in mind. As graphic designers, it is our job to translate this understanding to the audience through design, not simply draw pretty pictures.
Sometimes I think it is worthwhile taking a step back to remind ourselves who are we designing our logos for.
Design for your client, not your portfolio. The real world is not a Dribbble showcase.
What are your thoughts?
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