While we recommend that you contract with the same designer or design team while creating your brand identity materials as possible, we know that this scenario is not always possible.
Whenever you work with a designer other than the original who created your logo, stationery and marketing materials, we suggest a few practices that will prove invaluable for ensuring a consistent look and feel across all of your marketing communications.
At a minimum, make sure that you have information on:
? The Pantone Matching System (PMS) colors used in the designs. These will come in the form of a number. For example, PMS #280 is a deep blue color.
? Fonts. Ask your designer what font is used in your logo, and what secondary and tertiary fonts are used in your stationery and other marketing materials. Having this information will save a future designer many font matching headaches.
? The type of paper on which your materials are printed. In order to duplicate and keep consistent with the look and feel of your materials in future print runs, you'll always want to have your items printed on the same type of paper.
? The printer who printed your materials. Knowing whether your materials were printed by a digital printer or a press printer can help to ensure that they are reproduced at the same quality in the future. In the case of press printing, this can save you money on additional films as well.
To make for an even smoother transition, negotiate for the original files for your designs. This can be a delicate matter, as some graphic designers do not sell the rights in the original files to their clients. If you cannot get the entire assembled files, we recommend that you negotiate for a minimum of the following pieces:
? An original file of your logo. This is typically known as a vector graphic version, which means that, if the appropriate software is available (Adobe Illustrator or Macromedia Freehand are the most common), you can scale the image up and down without losing image quality. If your logo was not created as a vector graphic (i.e., if it was created in Photoshop), then you need the largest, highest resolution file available. See our article on Logo File Formats for more information on which type of formats of your logo you should have on-hand.
? A file containing any specialized secondary graphic brand elements. Some designers will give you files containing special headers, backgrounds, illustrations, etc., so they are available for any future projects. Loss or lack of these elements keeps a new designer from knowing what original effects were used to create the design.
This information will ensure that your materials have graphics that are consistent across the board, and will save time on future projects.
About the Author
Erin Ferree, Founder and Lead Designer of elf design, is a brand identity and graphic design expert. She has been helping small businesses grow with bold, clean and effective logo and marketing material designs for over a decade. elf design offers the comprehensive graphic and web design services of a large agency, with the one- on-one, personalized attention of an independent design specialist. Erin works closely in partnership with her clients to create designs that are visible, credible and memorable ? and that tell their unique business stories in a clear and consistent way. For more information about elf design, please visit:
Logo design at http://www.elf-design.com
Branding is one hot topic, although it is wildly misunderstood.... Read More
In the world of marketing, branding issues are always an... Read More
Every company has a brand (how people think of them)... Read More
One of the most important things in a business is... Read More
Ask your self this question, In which business are we... Read More
About once a month a few of us at the... Read More
There are a lot of things that contribute towards the... Read More
To stand out in a cluttered world, become a recognized... Read More
Businesses eager to open often give little thought to their... Read More
A corporate logo design should be highly instrumental in building... Read More
Large corporations spend lavish amounts seeking names for their products... Read More
Try to avoid backing up whenever possible. Occasionally some one... Read More
Big and Yellow 'M' reminds you McDonalds... 'DELL' with oblique... Read More
Develop an effective benefit message and you're well on your... Read More
Whether it's your business card, tagline, article title, web site... Read More
Quite often small business owners will ask me to reveal... Read More
Branding has been defined, explained and examined extensively. There are... Read More
Adored, respected and coveted by customers and organisations alike, corporate... Read More
What's in a brand name? Everything! Think of these brands:... Read More
Branding your comapny should be the first thing a company... Read More
I was asked today by a group of students; What... Read More
A successfully positioned business sometimes doesn't win a new client.... Read More
...or Is My Brand Working?To measure the impact and effectiveness... Read More
Logos can be described as visual icons that provide a... Read More
Last issue, I talked about increasing your Brand Love-- meaning... Read More
While we recommend that you contract with the same designer... Read More
What's Your Brand?A brand is a product/company personality that helps... Read More
A branding company's website purpose is to design websites that... Read More
One of the critical drivers of business success is having... Read More
My business logo and color scheme started one lovely spring... Read More
A rough guide to corporate identityThe tabloids report the millions... Read More
Here's a little story about what not to do as... Read More
So... how have you been building your brand lately?Now, I'm... Read More
Visual elements are a major part of your business's brand... Read More
Many businesses of today are often driven to compete striclty... Read More
Sometimes the best inspiration comes from hearing about the deconstruction... Read More
I was asked today by a group of students; What... Read More
Marketing potential of any product is based on recognition and... Read More
Well not everyone is aware that McDonalds also owns several... Read More
A corporate logo design should be highly instrumental in building... Read More
Become your customers top-of-mind choice.Some of these snapshots of real... Read More
Last issue, I talked about increasing your Brand Love-- meaning... Read More
Visual processing is the most important way for gathering information... Read More
Look at your company logo. Does it fade into the... Read More
Branding is more than product recognition or a simple logo.... Read More
Have you ever thought about branding your name? Does the... Read More
The task of creating an indelible impact on the memory... Read More
Here's a little story about what not to do as... Read More
That cross-trainer you're wearing -- one look at the distinctive... Read More
Developing brand strategy is extremely critical. The most important asset... Read More
So... how have you been building your brand lately?Now, I'm... Read More
Branding is very important to a business, whether it is... Read More
Mascots are the unique dolls or puppets that help identify... Read More
"Can you hear me now?"You'd be hard pressed to find... Read More
Branding Services is a tactic that marketing executives and managers... Read More
One of the prime motivating factors in the purchase decision... Read More
Back to the era of the Hawaiian monarchy, the origin... Read More
Have you ever watched one of those home makeover shows?... Read More
IntroductionGlobalisation is referred to as a set of profound material... Read More
Many CEOs and marketing directors find their time wasted evaluating... Read More
Everyone wants his company logo to be the best but... Read More
One of fiction's finest marketing minds, The Cheshire Cat, once... Read More
Brand equity can be defined in many different ways. I... Read More
The Federal Trade Commission has an obligation to the general... Read More
Pick up almost any book or report on Mailorder Selling... Read More
"Just do it." "We try harder." "The Ultimate Driving Machine."... Read More
Branding |