3 Types Of Logos Every Brand Should Have

The logo for your business is an essential part of your branding, but did you know that there are actually three types of logos every brand should have?

A well designed brand should be flexible and your logos should work perfectly in almost any scenario.

When I create a custom brand design for my client, they receive a library of logo files. The files include the three types of logos I’ve created all in various colors (white, black, color) and file formats (EPS, JPG, PNG).

If you’re a graphic designer or if you are creating your own branding, you’ll want to make sure you have these three types of logos. Not only will all of your designs look more professional, but you’ll spend less time trying to get your designs to look right.

I’m going to explain each type of logo and show you an example based off of one of my clients, The Total Table.

1. Primary Logo

Your primary logo is your original logo design and the one you use the most often. In many cases if you have a brand tagline, you’ll want to include that in your primary logo design.

2. Alternate Logos

Your branding should include alternate logo designs which can be used for certain instances. Generally, I like to create a horizontal and a stacked alternate logo.

This horizontal logo I created (below) for my client The Total Table. For this horizontal design I centered the text and brought both words up onto one line.

Another example of an alternate logo design is a stacked logo or a condensed logo. In the design below I made all of the elements fit close together so it was as narrow as possible. This will allow my client to use her logo in a small space.

3. Submark

Many clients ask me, what is a submark and how do I use it? The best way to explain what a submark is, is to think of it as a signature. A submark should not be used in place of your logo, but as an accent to your design.

Examples of where and when to use a submark would be on the flip side of your business card, in the footer of your website, in the bottom corner of a flyer, as a watermark over an image, the possibilities are endless!

You only need one submark design, but in most cases I create more than that for my custom branding clients – I just love creating submark designs!

You submark design can be a circular stamp or a monogram. The fun thing about your submark is that it can look completely different from your logo.

Conclusion

Every brand needs to have three types of logos: primary logo, alternate logo(s) and a submark. When you have a variety of logo styles to use in your marketing, your designs look more professional and you spend less time trying to make your designs work with a logo that doesn’t fit.

You can also create a branding board to see all of your logos in one place. Grab my Canva Branding Board templates for ready-to-use designs, just plug in your own branding and create your own branding board!

Here are all of the logo types for The Total Table put together in a branding board. My client absolutely loved the outcome!

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What do you think of this article? Do you have any questions for me? Ask me in the comments box below!