If you’ve been following these articles, you know that by the end of today’s offering, you’ll have the knowledge you’ll need to design your restaurant logo. You can do this without spending big money on professional designers, but you have to learn the must-have characteristics that go into the creation of a logo that identifies your establishment, and just as importantly, you’ll want a logo that helps sell.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re opening a new restaurant or trying to freshen the design of your restaurant’s existing logo. In this or any enterprise, there are no unimportant details that can be overlooked.
Every part of your restaurant should help sell it to the public. And that apparently insignificant logo may not seem worth a lot of attention, but it’s just as important as any other aspect of your restaurant.
I’d like you to make yourself comfortable and take a little time to read about restaurant logo design. It’s not just a drawing.
Your logo is the visual identity of your business and before long, old customers and new customers as well will become emotionally connected with your logo. It goes along with your restaurant sign, your menu, your website and social media as well.
You cannot afford to underestimate the importance and value of a good logo.
A French restaurant named Le Merle Blanc, has for a logo a little white bird wearing a chef’s toque. It’s not only a memorable logo, but when people learn that merle is French for blackbird, and the logo features a white blackbird, the meaning is clear: A white blackbird is a one-of-a-kind. Very rare.
McDonald’s is known the world over for its Golden Arches. A local Hofbräu’s logo is a fat, happy mustachioed waiter wearing a formal red jacket and a long white apron. He’s carrying a huge sandwich in one hand and in the other, a huge mug of foaming beer. People love both him and the friendly dining experience as well.
In the food and beverage area, your success will be based not only on the food you serve but on everything connected with your establishment. Lighting, interior colors, overall décor; in short, atmosphere.
Now I’m going to show you how to design your restaurant logo.
3 Ways to Design Your Restaurant Logo
Basically, there are three good ways to create a good logo for your restaurant.
1. Online logo designers
If you have to have a logo fast and have neither the time nor the inclination to attempt a design yourself, not to worry. You can certainly find one of the thousands of logo generators on the Internet.
In most cases, you’ll be permitted to play around with logos and create one that pleases you. Only when you decide to use one, will you pay.
You might pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $30 to $50 for that sort of service.
Logomaker or Designmantic and try designing your own logo using their templates. If you do get something you like, you don’t have to wait weeks while a designer works up some logos for you.
You can download your logo the moment you pay for it.
On the plus side you get:
- ✓ Fast turnaround
- ✓ It’s cost-effective
- ✓ It’s easy to use
On the negative side you get:
- ✘ You can have no custom solutions to your problems
- ✘ The stock logos may lack personality and come in more-or-less a variety of stock formats
- ✘ You may find it difficult to get one perfectly adjusted to fit what you had in mind
- ✘ In some cases, the logos may lack the technical features necessary to allow you to have them printed or reproduced appropriately
- ✘ If you’re unlucky, there’s always the risk of being accused of stealing someone else’s logo design
- ✘ The standard stock logos, even when you’re allowed to make limited changes, may still lack the characteristics, the personality to make them as memorable as you had hoped
So, the bottom line here is:
You may want to try logo generators to give yourself an idea of just what sort of logo you want for your restaurant. As long as it costs you nothing to look and perhaps play around with some of them, you’re under no obligation to order. In the meantime, these may give you some ideas to discuss with a professional logo designer.
2. Hire a professional graphic designer on 99Designs
The best way for you to go is to take advantage of the services of a freelance professional designer.
Why? you may ask. Well, 99Design is composed of designers who study your concept and listen to you. Then they create a logo in line with that.
The platform is quite easy-to-use. You’ll have your logo in just 3 steps.
- At 99Design, you give the designers your input and open a contest. Their site makes it easy and simple for you to describe the design challenge and set your budget at the same time.
- You’ll get in return, dozens of restaurant logo designs. After these professional designers present their ideas, you provide feedback. You can pick your favorite.
- About a week later, you’ll choose your favorite final logo design. A nice feature too, is that you may ask for unlimited edits.
For a minimum of $299.00, you’d receive many extraordinary proposals for logos, all specially tailored to your business. These come from a number of professional designers.
Most restaurant owners with some experience, prefer 99Designs.
Once you’ve chosen the logo you like the most, you may still request changes until the designers have it perfect.
All you have to do is to open a contest. You describe your restaurant and offer any suggestions you may have. They’ll create a set of logos consistent with your brand identity. These experienced designers are guaranteed to make your jaw drop with their clever designs.
Having your logo designed by 99Designs offers many other advantages:
- ✓ World-class logo designers
- ✓ Hand-crafted designs
- ✓ You don’t have to try to build a logo by yourself
- ✓ You get custom logo design
- ✓ You get dozens of ideas from different designers
- ✓ You’re entitled to unlimited revisions
- ✓ 99Designs goes even one step further. If you’re not completely satisfied, you can have 100% of your money returned if requested within 60 days
- ✓ You’ll be given ready-to-go files and total freedom to use them in any way you choose
- ✓ You’ll be the complete owner of the copyright to your logo design
If there are any downsides, you might consider that it takes an entire week to get your logo.
- ✘ Your logo may be a bit more expensive than some other logo builders
So the bottom line here?
Even though online stock logo makers cost less, in the long run, while 99Designs may cost a bit more, it’s definitely the way to get a really professional logo to enhance your restaurant’s image.
And don’t forget that you have 60 days to decide whether or not you’re satisfied with your logo. If not, you’ll receive a complete 100% refund. The real bottom line? You only pay if you’re completely satisfied.
3. Hire a Designer on Fiverr
You may be thinking: “Is a passerby likely to see my logo and think, ‘Wow, I’ve just got to try this interesting place!'”. Perhaps not, but experienced restaurateurs know and understand the value of a great logo.
As above, you may hire a designer on like Fiverr. It is a marketplace where services begin at $5. You can get a beautiful restaurant logo for as little as $20.00.
👉 The drawback here is that they don’t really know a thing about your restaurant brand, and they’re not likely to want to learn more. After all, how far would you go to earn $20?
Another item to consider is that most of these are not professional designers but rather students or simply geeks trying to make a little extra money.
These designers create standard logos based on aesthetic factors without thinking about your concept or your brand. In general, this sort of logo may be all right for a small online business, a blog or an unassuming little boutique, but…
On the other hand, you may find it useful to allow one of these designers create a logo for you at $20 or so. You should pay for it, but you don’t have to use it as-is. It just may be useful, however, show it to a professional graphic designer to give him/her an idea of what you’re talking about.
Pros:
- ✓ Low cost
- ✓ Fast turnaround (3-4 days on average)
Cons:
- ✘ Few professional designers
- ✘ Risk of a copyright infringement is always a possibility
- ✘ No custom designs
- ✘ No original designs
- ✘ There’s no money-back guarantee
Bottom line?
You might order a gig on Fiverr just to get an idea of how your logo might look. The prices are low but so is the overall quality.
What you need to know about restaurant logos
I can’t tell you everything about building an effective logo for your particular restaurant. That might easily fill a book. But I can, at least, provide you with some ground rules that may enable you to commission your log with greater awareness of just what you want, and should expect from the right logo design.
Generally speaking, logos consist of 3 key elements:
- Wordmark, or logotype. Usually, this would be the name of your business
- Brandmark. This is a design element that provides visual recognition. This may have come down from the dim past. In times when only priestly scholars and a few others could read or write, business owners had their own logos on the sign above the door. This might be a white horse, or sometimes two elements were joined to create a logo. A fox and two hounds, etc.
- The tagline.
Sometimes, the Wordmark or logotype, that is, the business name, is not included in the design. An example might be Nike which only uses the well-known symbol. However, in other cases, the mark and the name of the business can be displayed as one. For instance: Google.
A good tagline should be a catchphrase that conveys the essence of your brand. For example, McDonald’s cries out: “I’m lovin’ it!”. Papa John says: “Better ingredients. Better pizza.”
My suggestion is not just to take the billionaire Nike as an example. Rather, try to get a logotype together with a brand mark and tagline. With these three components in place, you should have an unbeatable combination for an impressive effect.
A great restaurant logo design:
Here’s a list of important considerations for a great restaurant logo design. This entails 5 characteristics:
1.✓ Scalable
When designing a logo, one of the most important elements you should remember is scalability. Even if you’re a very creative person and believe you can do it all yourself, you should always consider scalability.
If your log doesn’t scale well, it’s over! A great logo can easily be resized without losing any of its necessary components. Your logo may look great in its actual size but if scaled down for a small ad, it may be only a blur that no one will recognize or be able to read.
Your logo must have the same level of expressiveness and clarity on a business card as on a highway billboard.
2.✓ Long lifespan
Your logo should appear to be ageless. It must be “cool” and relevant not only today but ten years from today. A guest, just by seeing your logo should have no idea of when it was created or how old it is.
The problem is that this may be one of the most daunting challenges you’ll face when designing a logo. However, this is an essential step and you simply cannot neglect it.
3.✓ Memorability
There’s another important rule to remember and follow if you hope to create a logo that isn’t mediocre. You want it to be as recognizable and memorable as possible. For this to happen, you have to have a design that’s quite simple.
Too many elements incorporated into your design can only lead to confusion. Just consider, for a moment, logos such as Nike, Mercedes, Coca-Cola et al.
All the above are examples of simple design that is timeless and easily recognizable. After all, you know the important thing is for customers to remember your logo, and by extension, your restaurant.
4.✓ Originality
As with any project, it’s important to look for some originality. You want to make sure your logo is original and creative so that it will stand out and as mentioned above, be memorable.
If you can’t do this on your own, you simply have to work with a designer to get the most creative and original logo possible. Copying others is never a wise way to go.
5.✓ Clean and clear
A clean and clear logo is guaranteed to make the most significant impact on the public. A design that’s overly elaborate doesn’t transmit anything to the customer. That’s why the best logo is the simplest logo.
Therefore, it’s extremely important not to overload your design by adding too many elements. Doing so only confuses your message. In fact, clean and clear should be your Leitmotiv in every aspect of your restaurant.
This means not only your logo but your menu, your overall restaurant layout and in addition, every aspect of your establishment.
I hope this article helps give you all the necessary information to help you understand the importance of a good logo and how to create one that works. However, if there’s anything you don’t understand, or if you have questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to drop me a comment below. Cheers!
