Types of logos

I create logo design and branding for corporations, including start-ups. I apply the "rules and regulations" that keep the design intact, including logo guidelines for designers and printers to follow. 

Did you know there are many different styles of logo design? 

Wordmark
Probably the most common type of logo design for a company, institution, or product name. It uses distinct typography, no icon. Companies such as Visa, Coca-Cola, Mobil and Google have wordmark logos. 

Pictorial
This type uses an icon or image to showcase the business or brand name. These are mainly used for large corporations that can use the symbol on its own with it still being easily recognized. The bullseye of Target and the Macintosh apple in the Apple logo are pictorial logos.

Combination Mark (Text and Symbol)
Combination marks have the company's name along with a visual icon. The design process requires more time and thought to create an effective image. Lawyers would say a combination mark is easier to trademark than a symbol-only logo since the text is incorporated into the image, so it makes it easier to distinguish from a simple icon. Examples of these are Pizza Hut and Burger King.
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Emblem 
An emblem logo is made up of a font inside an icon or symbol such as a crest or badge. Their appearance is more traditional and formal, sometimes meant to represent higher ideas. Many schools, government agencies and auto companies use them. Examples are Starbucks and Ford Motor Co.
   
Logo formats
Forget about jpg and png for a high quality logo. Ideally, a logo should be developed as a vector graphic first (often through a program called Illustrator) and then other file types such as jpgs, pngs and tifs can be created from the original vector file. Jpgs and pngs can be used on the web, and tifs are for Indesign or Word. 

​What is a vector graphic, you ask?
Vector graphics are created in Illustrator program and consist of shapes. Each piece of the artwork can be specifically chosen and then changed separately. You can change the colour, the size, add more elements, etc. So when a vector graphic is quite large, the file size doesn't get huge. (If you want to make a jpeg larger in size, say to use on a poster, you'll lose image quality and make the file size large and cumbersome. Vector graphics are scalable... meaning when you increase their size, the file quality stays the same.)
 
Basics for your logo design:

• For brand-new businesses, a wordmark-style logo may be the best way to go (less costly and more simple) 
• ​Avoid small detail and too many elements in the logo
• Keep the use of the logo consistent through all marketing collateral
• Have protection space around the logo so nothing infringes on it​. Do not place on a busy background or it will tend to get "lost"
• A logo should really not be smaller than 2 inches wide (for normal usage) and ensure the small detail is readable at that size