Creating Your Logo With American Inspiration

Your American-inspired logo is the most essential brand asset you have. Creating one for yourself can be daunting, especially if you are unfamiliar with designing, let alone under pressure to have one created yesterday. After reading this, you may be able to breathe that little easier as you familiarize yourself with some helpful recommendations from us at Freepik.

Logo breakdown

Before we begin Americanizing your logo we need to understand the elements used to build a logo.

• Pictorial mark or Logo icon
• Brand name
• Tagline

However, it is important to note that you are not forced to use all three to make your logo. We even have names for different types of logos based on what they include.

Monogram is the term to describe a logo made of letters that are simplified into abbreviations to make for quick and direct recognition. (IBM, H&M, HBO, and NASA)

Wordmark is a term that represents a logo using the full word of the brand for clear representation. (Kellogg´s, Coca Cola, Sony, and Google)

Pictorial Mark is a term for logos using a stand-alone logo icon. It is a big statement to use a pictorial mark alone and only advise highly recognized businesses to do so. (Twitter, Apple, Shell, and Instagram)

Combination Mark is a term used for combining logo elements to form a combined logo. These are designed for high impact and have the power to deliver more insight into consumers and can even include a tagline. (Burger King, Puma, Doritos, and Paramount)

How do I get an idea for my logo?

In America, everything is supersized and American logos are no exception. Bold, powerful, one-punch designs with a proud sense of tradition. They are easily distinguishable and mirror American values based on freedom and liberty. These not-so-subtle truths may be the reason why you are seeking out some American inspiration for your logo design. A good place to start is to take a look at successful American brands and their logos to steer you on the correct path. Ask yourself questions. Do you want a more traditional design? Or are you more inclined to follow current trends? Do you want a bit of both?

Traditional

Hairdressers, breweries, bars, and restaurants tend to be the types of businesses that are pulled in towards tradition as they have been around, well, forever or like to think they have. Keeping it familiar can portray a sense of reliability to your clients, providing such a promise can help bring customers back which is a great business strategy! Traditionally speaking, American logos like to use iconic patriotic symbols. There are many to pick from and they can be used very effectively in the creation of your American-inspired logo. Just to name a few: bald-eagle, the american flag with stars, and stripes, liberty bell, or even a grizzly bear! If, for example, we see a logo with an eagle, it is very likely that the product is genuinely American.

The devil is in the detail when it comes to the competitive edge of traditional American designs. With this complexity, it is good practice to think of your design in layers from the bottom up. Ask yourself, what will carry your logo? Countless American logos take inspiration from traditional hanging signs from the high street or a coat of arms. If we think in this way, we start with a back-plate to give its overall shape and appearance, then add the elements on top.

Current Design trends

To keep up with competitors you may also want to keep up with design trends. It can be a balancing act to strive for a traditional American look and stay within the confines of what is cool and what is not. This is more of a styling strategy and has nothing to do with the elements you choose for your logo. For instance, it might be fashionable to make use of line drawing, effects, or a particular set of colors that correspond with the current mood of the consumer. It’s good practice to look at the big companies like Burger King, rebranding themselves as they too keep up with current trends. Design trends are in place to keep brands innovative and to steer away from consumer fatigue. To put it simply, we all get bored of seeing the same thing!

Typography

The font or typography you use for your logo will determine the personality of your design. American logos tend to have a pulse whether they are sans serif, serif, or calligraphy. It all depends on what you´re trying to represent. Fast food restaurants are iconic for their customized typography, spilling out all its flavors before you have even taken a bite. This is really what we are trying to achieve here, a taste of things to come.

How do I create an icon for my logo?

Pictures speak a thousand words and icons are no exception. They imprint into your subconscious like a bookmark and can help consumers remind themselves of your existence! Less is more has been the trend up until now, a more complex design might better suit your business. You might be selling a service and so the icon should express the values or inspiration for this service, Twitter is a good example of this. On the other hand, it might be a product you are selling, and makes absolute sense to incorporate your product into the logo. Logo icons are made using industry-standard software like Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, or free software such as Gimp. However, if you don’t have the skills or the time, Freepik can help with providing copyright-free logo designs for you to use as you wish, click here to start looking.

The finishing line

The end is in sight. You have your overall look, typography, and logo icon. This is the time when you need to be critical and make adjustments until it is absolutely perfect. Your logo should resonate with you and you should be proud of what you have created. If you don’t have that tingly feeling then take a few steps back and correct it. Imagine having a tattoo done and days later, not only are you not happy with it but all your friends are pointing and laughing. We do not want this. If time is on your side it is good practice for designers to create variations of the logo to look at side by side in comparison and if necessary seek feedback from other professionals.

Now you have all the tools to help you on your way to creating a knock-out Americanized logo to help spread freedom and liberty to all who see it!