[SAM]:
Marketing a Practice podcast is part of the Practice of the Practice Podcast Network, a network of podcasts seeking to help you market and grow your business and yourself. To hear other podcasts like Beta Male Revolution, Empowered and Unapologetic, Imperfect Thriving, or Faith in Practice, go to practiceofthepractice.com/network.

Welcome to the Marketing a Practice podcast with me, Sam Carvalho, where you will discover everything you need to know about marketing and branding your business. To find out more about how I can help you brand your business, visit www.practiceofthepractice.com/branding. And if you’d like to see some examples of my design work, be sure to follow me on Instagram @samanthacarvalhodesign.

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[SAM]:
Hi there. Thank you so much for joining me today on the Marketing a Practice podcast. Today I wanted to speak about why a logo is important. So we’ve spoken a bit about logos previously in my episodes. But I really wanted to hone in today on why a logo is important, on why you should be investing in a high quality logo early on, and on what kind of impact it has on your branding and on your company overall.

So when you’re considering factors that go into building a business, creating a logo might not seem like a top priority. I know that this is sometimes something that gets overlooked when people are starting a company and they don’t really see why they need to invest in a logo. However, having a logo is an integral part of making your brand successful, right up there with maintaining high quality service and positive referrals. So something I’ve mentioned quite often on this podcast is I know that for people who aren’t inherently creative and who are, you know, focused more on the business side of things, they may focus more on maintaining high quality service, on getting referrals, on actually running the business, more than things like setting up branding or marketing materials, things like that. But ultimately, even though these aren’t necessarily going to – how can I say – add to the functioning of your business in the very beginning, it is going to set you up for a successful, long term running of your business, if that makes sense. So here are a few reasons why a logo is important for your business.

Number one is it grabs attention and creates a first impression. So as we know attention spans are super short. These days, companies have about two seconds to convince potential customers that their products are worth any consideration. Enter your logo. A good logo can quickly grab viewers’ attention and communicate a company’s core values in an interesting way. That short attention span which effectively causes clients to judge your business by its appearance, can work to your advantage if you have a well designed and well thought-out logo to represent your company. So if you think about people who are scrolling these days, or who are paging through something, or even rushing past your office, you literally have two seconds to capture their attention and tell them as much as you can about your business. And what better way to do that than through your logo.

A logo is a company’s first introduction to clients. If designed well, it can pique the interest of the public and invite them to learn more about the company. If not, you’ve just alienated a potential customer base. I know that might sound a bit dramatic, but it’s true. This first impression is your way to immediately communicate ownership of the niche you dominate. Your logo introduces your company as an authoritative in your professional space from the get-go. So whether you are creatively inclined or not, a professional logo results in that immediate feeling of credibility, authoritativeness, trust, it immediately kind of gives you the impression that this is a company who knows what it’s about and who is going to deliver an efficient service.

The second reason why a logo is important is it is the foundation of your brand identity. So we’ve spoken about this a lot in previous episodes but when you are building your branding, when you’re setting up a brand style guide, when you’re thinking about what you want your branding to look like, what you want people to feel when they look at your brand, all of that starts with your logo. Successful branding is about telling a story that will influence customers’ emotions. And while it’s true that logo design is only a part of a company’s brand, it serves as the foundation for the entire narrative on which the brand is built. Things like colors, tones, fonts, all of this is determined by the story you’re trying to tell. And your logo sets the stage for the story. These elements will later translate from your logo onto all of your branding materials – things like letterheads, business cards, landing pages, etc – creating a concrete, marketable brand identity. But it all starts with the logo.

Number three on why a logo is important for your business is that it’s memorable. Think of it this way, your logo leads the horse, which is your audience, to water, which is your company. Logos are a point of identification. They’re the symbol that customers use to recognize your brand. Ideally, you want people to instantly connect the sight of your logo with the memory of what your company does, and more importantly, how it makes them feel. And this is, again, why you want to have a logo from the very beginning, because it’s going to take a while for your logo to become memorable. And it’s going to take a while for people to connect it with your company. So the sooner you get started putting your logo out there having it on all your marketing material, the sooner people are going to be able to begin making that association.

A good logo is a visual, aesthetically pleasing element that triggers a positive recall about your brand, that the name of your company alone might not. People may forget your name but remember your logo. Think about how – speaking for myself here, too – we so often forget people’s names but remember their faces. It’s known that we have a better memory for capturing imagery than we do for capturing data or [unclear]. I’m not sure if I said that correctly, but you know what I’m getting at. So, that’s another reason to have a logo is because a logo, that imagery, is going to be far more memorable than just your business name.

Another reason why a logo is important for your company is because it separates you from competition. So this could be simply because you have a logo and your competitors don’t, or because you’ve dared to be different with your logo because your company logo tells consumers why your business is unique. Sure, there may be twenty other counseling practices in your city, but yours is the only one who is committed to fill in the blank. So what is it about your counseling practice that makes you different from all the others in your surrounding areas? Or even online? Because nowadays, you’re competing with online counseling practices. What is it that makes you unique? And how can you represent that in your logo? Because ultimately, if somebody is looking for a counseling practice, whether it be in your vicinity or online, the first thing that they’re going to come into contact with is your logo. So how is that going to communicate to them, that you are the one that they should choose, that you’re the one that is different to all the others?

A well-designed logo can communicate everything from the company’s background, whether you want to appear professional, or relaxed, or fun, to their mission. What is your mission? Is it to be efficient? Is it to be innovative? Through the right icon or proper font. So these are things that you may take for granted. And that’s why I so try to instill that you need to put a lot of thought into your logo, even down to the font. What is the font communicating? Is it communicating that you are a professional counseling practice? Or is it communicating that you serve kids, so it has more of a fun feel to it? Everything in your logo can essentially communicate something to a target audience. Your logo is the forum to both convey your values and show clients why you’re not like your competitors.

So number five, why it is important to have a logo for your company is because it fosters brand loyalty. And this is something we mentioned previously where we said, get a logo as soon as possible so that people can begin associating it with your brand and so that it can begin forging a memory. Consumers crave consistency. So as your brand grows, your logo is going to become more familiar to a wider range of consumers. And this familiarity creates the perception that you’re trustworthy and accessible. So take note of perception. It’s all about creating the right perception and that begins with your logo design. Think about it, when you’re out shopping for work out gear and suddenly spot tracksuit pants with the Nike swoosh, you’re instantly ready to buy. Why? Because with Nike apparel you know you’re in safe hands. Nike is a brand you trust. Trust is built on a well-designed logo, and brand loyalty is quick to follow. Once they like you, your customers are going to seek you out again and again and your logo is the thing they’ll look for first.

So the last reason as to why a logo is important for your company, is because your audience expects it. So these days, everybody has a logo, whether you are a startup, whether you only have ten likes on Facebook, everybody has a logo. Your logo is the first thing that your audience will look for when they see any communications for your brand. It should be front and center of all your marketing materials. Things like your business cards, flyers, online ads, social posts, everything needs to have your logo on it. And that’s why it’s also good to have a few variations of your logo. So you want your logo in all black, you want your logo in all white, and you want your logo in all color. And you want to make sure that you have your logo on a transparent background, in PNG format, so that no matter what you’re putting it on, no matter what colors you may be pasting your logo on, or what imagery, it can show. You don’t just want to have a color version because that’s going to possibly clash with some other colors that may be on your marketing material, or you’re not going to see it if you place it on an image. So you want to make sure that you have an all black version and an all white version as well. If you don’t have a well-designed logo, then you’re missing an opportunity to make your business stick in the minds of your audience.

So again, guys, it’s so important to have a logo and a well-designed one at that. Just to cover what we’ve covered today, reasons why you want to have a logo for your company is because, number one, it grabs attention and creates first impression. Number two, it’s the foundation of your brand identity. Number three, it’s memorable. Number four, it separates you from competition. Number five, it fosters brand loyalty. And number six, your audience expects it. In the next episode, I’m kind of going to follow on from this one and we’re going to talk about signs that you might need a new logo. So in this episode, we’ve spoken about why a logo is important. And in the next episode, we’re going to speak about what may indicate that you need a new logo. So if you’re interested in that, I’ll see you in the next episode.

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[SAM]:
Thanks for listening to the Marketing a Practice podcast. If you need help with branding your business, whether it be a new logo, rebrand, or you simply want to have a print flyer designed, head on over to www.practiceofthepractice.com/branding. And if you’d like to see some examples of my design work, be sure to follow me on Instagram @samanthacarvalhodesign. Finally, please subscribe, rate, and review this podcast on iTunes if you like what you’ve heard. Talk to you soon.

This podcast is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is given with the understanding that neither the host, the publisher, or the guests are rendering legal, accounting, clinical, or any other professional information. If you want a professional, you should find one.