Did you read Part One Brand or Logo: Which Came First The Chicken Or The Egg?

The words logo and brand are not interchangeable.

I read a ton of blogs from a variety of service providers such as designers, marketers, branders, and more. A common problem is the misuse of the words brand and logo. Tragically, it misleads new young entrepreneurs and small business owners into thinking branders are designers and designers are brand experts – not necessarily so. It is no wonder small business start-ups do not know where to start when they start looking to begin marketing and who to hire.

A logo with purpose

A logo identifies a business in its simplest form via the use of a symbol, mark or icon. This is one definition and plenty of people have their own opinions about the purpose a logo serves but I believe the key word is “identifies”. How are you identified across all the media and marketing channels when you are not personally there the mediate? A growing business will be giving attention to both the services of a graphic design specialist as well as a brand specialist. There can be cross over providers but beware of the do-it-all strategist especially if they are a small business themselves.

Influencing the perception of your business brand

A brand is the total perception people have about the business (including personal YOU brands) or product you sell. Branding is about what your clients, vendors, competitors and employees think. It is really that simple but also entirely not a simple process to manage. Brand building, caring, and implementing processes, systems, policies, strategy and tools that help guide, shape and encourage the opinions and perceptions in an intentional way is a long term process. Designing a logo is a one time process and then implemented and later revised as the business if it is appropriate.

You can see how defining a logo and brand seem similar

Branding isn’t a logo design and logos are not your ‘brand’. The logo identifies your brand in hopefully a memorable way and your brand efforts help you strive to give your customer the product and experience they are seeking.

The brand and logo work together for the greater good

Integrating a logo, excellent graphic standards and visuals throughout your company customer touch points is the point in which design professionals and branders intersect. This is why both are important and it is equally important to clarify what purpose both serve.

Which comes first the logo or the brand?

So the logo, as the first visual embodiment of the brand, is a way to put your business out there visually and make your business memorable. But if you don’t think about the brand up front, where your business is going you’ll be doing yourself a disservice. A logo can influence the brand experience because it is the foundation of visual business identity. Ultimately though your clients and the people What do you think? Should you hire a logo designer before you know your business and who your customers are? Let me know in the conversation box below.