Why you should hire a professional Logo Designer?

Find out why commissioning your logo design to an expert graphic can make your project soar

The importance of being a logo designer

A professionally designed logo is perhaps the first things that a business or a freelance should consider investing in,  A logo isn't just a picture; it represents your brand's ideals. Ultimately, it's what your client identifies with your work, and what really sets you apart from competitors. Bland, amateurish logos that fail to engage an audience can make a starting difference between a successful project and a grim disappointment.

Just consider our everyday world and how we're literally surrounded by brands, online and in real life. What ticks in our brains when we choose one of those brands over all the others? We do that because something in that particular product or service has caught our attention in a big way. And while some specific features or a cool packaging may tip the odds, what first leaves us "thunderstruck" is almost always the logo.

Logo design can't be improvised, and here's why

Especially nowadays you may think that a logo can easily be improvised without the services of a professional graphic like Cri8ive. After all, there are tons of graphic tools out there. Many people think you only need an Artificial Intelligence or some "tinkering" in Canva to get somewhere.

This isn't entirely accurate. In this article we already debated why you shouldn't be using AI for graphic, or any other creative outlet. On the other hand, Canva's user-friendly interface and drag and drop features might make you think that creating a logo is easy, painless, even fun; that all you have to do is arrange a pleasing font and some choice images.

Creativity isn't enough; a professional logo requires study, hard work and painstaking attention to details

Unfortunately, this kind of creation is quick, easy, free of charge... but also hopelessly amateurish and sloppy. And don't make the mistake of thinking that your end client won't notice, or that they'll grant you some leniency. Remember, no matter what your niche is, you're bound to have at least aome degree of competition - if not from the get go, surely on the long run. Why a client should spend money over a shabby looking product or service when they can easily find more professional and convincing options out there?    

Who is a Logo Designer and what's their purpose

In order to understand why professional logo design  is so important, you must first understand the purpose and skills of the person behind it. A Logo Designer is no ordinary, "one-shoe-fits-all" graphic. Logo Design involves specific competences ranging from visual arts to typography and calligraphy, all of whose contribute to make a logo stand out.

Creating a logo means not just thnking about what it'll look like but also how you, the owner, can best take advantage of it. The context and the printed support all play a role in this stage of the project. For example, think of an iridescent logo that works very well on its own, but is meant to be printed on some kind of shimmery fabrics; the logo still works, but is far less visually striking and doesn't make as much an impression.

Who is really a Logo Designer and what's their purpose?

A professional logo designer must be able to develop fully-functional and high-performing solutions. In order to do so, they must also have an in depth knowledge of typographic characters and thoroughly master the fine-tunes of kerning. You can't think of using a font "as it is", simply adjusting its size and colors as you'd do in Canva; a good logo that makes not!

But there's more; a designer works mostly on vectorial files, an image type that allows the to interact thoroughly with the final appearance of every letter - and of every detail of the finished logo. Unlike the more commonly used bitmap format, with vectors a professional can adapt, bend and alter any element - its shape, size, color - in any which way. Of course, artistic freedom should never come at the cost of readability and clarity.

Logo Design - why so expensive?

A frequent complain when it comes to logo design is about costs.

"Why I should pay so much for a logo?" "Graphic designers are just scammers, With AI I can make my own logo for free!" "I'll save money if I just make my own logo on Canva." Perhaps you have heard some of these statements before. It's a logical question! What determines the costs of a logo, anyway?

Let's start right off with the obvious. When you hire a creator you're paying the time they'll spend on creating your logo. A designer won't whisk up the perfect logo out of their top hat on a snap of fingers; it takes hours of pre-visualization, concepts and planning before the creator even gets to the tablet. Yet more hours they spend working on the first of many drafts that will be tested and submitted to you, the client, for approval. 

Find out what affects the costs of logo design, and why

Besides, a designer working at the top of his or her ability can't rely on limited platforms like Canva, which may be useful at most for some quick-and-easy last-minute fix. (Of course, there are graphics who are pro-AI and don't have qualms about using it for work. I'm not judging them here, but - as Cri8ive - I have never made it a secret what my stance on the matter is). Professional softwares and graphic suites are costly both in terms of initial purchase and subsequent subscription fees; dedicated technological resources, such as computers and graphic tablets specific for professionals, are also more expensive than the average laptop.

Lastly, there is fiscality. (NOTE: This part is especially going to be specifically relevant for Italian designers. However, the same overall principles also apply and remain valid internationally.) A designer in Italy will be almost always a freelance with a registered VAT, which requires both a subscription and an annual fee; the same goes for graphic studios and media agencies, who work for the most part with freelances. These costs will influence the hourly rates of the designer - as will the expenses sustained in training and refreshing courses.