Secrets of a Strong Logo

A good logo can establish credibility, signal innovation, inspire action and serve as a rallying cry that unites people to your cause. At L&S, we have a lot of branding projects under our belt for some of the region’s largest companies and organizations. In all of these projects, big and small, we believe the strongest logos are rooted in five key factors:

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1. Alignment

A logo needs to stand for something, being closely aligned with an organization’s key mission, values, differentiators and vision. This not only ensures the logo has a big impact, but that all efforts stemming from it do as well.

With Monument Health, we designed a logo to match the health system’s new name that featured diamonds, each representing a different priority for the brand. The logo is strong, steady and modern, aligning with Monument Health’s dedication to permanence and progress.

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2. Distinction

A good logo is distinct, ownable and instantly identified at a glance. It stands out and is remembered to leave an impact.

For Zoologee, a brand that creates plush toys and animals, we developed a logo that's vibrant, playful and distinct. By leaning into brand's unique personality of wonder and whimsy, we set it apart from a zoo of cuddly competitors.

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3. Clarity

Logos need to be noticed at a distance and seen clearly in their simplest, smallest form. From a billboard all the way down to a ballpoint pen. At L&S, we vet logos for clarity, ensuring they’re not only seen but also understood at a glance.

For Sioux Falls’ new high school and middle school, we created a logo package that included several logo versions to ensure clear reproduction in every instance.

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4. Extendibility

Strong logos have legs. Not literally, but you know what we mean. From marketing campaigns to signage, apparel and even pins, a logo should have an accompanying design system delivered with it, so all marketing and branding efforts are cohesive and derived from that same foundation.

The Dakota State University rebrand was one of our biggest in recent history, and we took special care to ensure the new DSU logo was extendable across admissions campaigns, athletics, campus signage, foundation efforts and more. An extensive brand guide helped communicate the vision behind the logo and gave the client tools for imagery, graphics and more to keep the brand fresh.

5. Effectiveness

At the end of the day, a great logo isn’t just about design – it’s about results. Does the logo drive the right perception? Does it increase awareness? Does it connect with audiences as intended? At L&S, our designers are uniquely business-minded to consider the results each logo design yields, along with its creativity.

With Custer State Park, a refreshed logo was accompanied by a new website and digital marketing campaign to increase leads by more than 1,500%.

Here’s the whole process in roughly 35-ish steps:

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• Research/consumer insights
• Strategic brief and kick-off
• Find inspiration (we love Instagram and Dribbble for idea starters)
• Sketching – it’s important to put pen to paper before hitting the computer
• More sketching
• Incubation – because sometimes you just need a break
• More sketching and inspiration
• First drafts
• Internal review
• Kill some stuff/process of elimination
• Second draft
• Vetting concepts and legal review

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• Revisions (and sometimes more sketching)
• More revisions
• Present concepts to client
• Final concepts
• Color palette (we start logos in black and white first)
• Presentation
• Revisions
• Last logo standing is revealed
• Final legal vetting
• Additional assets developed (patterns, type treatment, etc.)
• Brand guide
• File creation and hand-off
• Rollout campaign