Is One Logo Enough? Why Some Top Designers Present Just One Option When Branding a Business

Let's start by making one thing clear: we love working with our clients to bring their brands to life. Whether we're approached to redesign an existing brand or to develop an identity for a new company, we welcome the opportunity to exercise our creative muscles. We want the finished result to be something everyone feels proud to display.

But when it comes to logo design, some argue that consensus has no place in the creative process.

Should logo design involve multiple options and multiple revisions?

When graphic designer Paul Rand was hired to design a logo for Steve Jobs' "NeXt" project, he demanded $100,000 up front and promised to deliver one logo only. Jobs would have the option to accept that logo as-is or forfeit the money he paid for the design.

That sounds shocking, doesn't it? How much faith would you have to have in a designer to part with $100,000 with no promise that you would even like the final product?

We're not quite ready to start asking for that kind of money in exchange for logo design (we actually really like working with small, local businesses), but we do think this approach makes a lot of sense.

Trust Your Designer

When you hire someone to design a logo, you don't pick someone randomly and hope they happen to be skilled at art and branding. You pick a company based on their portfolio, their previous designs, and how well they seem to understand your business concept.

At that point, you should have some confidence in the designer's ability to come up with a brand image that reflects who you are and what you do. We don't spend hours on discovery just to ignore what we've learned!

Value & Quantity Aren't the Same

Everyone is familiar with the saying, "You get what you pay for." Some clients may feel as though they aren't getting their money's worth if they don't receive 5 or 10 different designs to review. However, when it comes to value, you have more to gain from allowing your designers to focus all of their energy on building one truly awesome concept.

Behind the scenes, we're brainstorming all kinds of ideas and collaborating to come up with one really brilliant way to show off what your company brings to the table. Allowing us to zero in on that one great idea gives you the most value for your time and money.

Confidence Counts

As Graham Smith points out, it takes some serious confidence to tell your clients to "love it or leave it." We like you guys. We want you to hire us to help with all aspects of your branding and marketing. We want you to be happy with our work and recommend us to your friends.

But we do have decades of experience in design and branding, and we'd also like to have your trust. Are you ready to create with us, one logo at a time?

Tell us how you really feel in the comments. We can take it.