The question is how much you should pay just for a logo? Answering this question is not very difficult when you know which factors to consider. A normal person has a difficult time knowing how much he should pay someone for designing a logo. Some people think $500 is a reasonable amount, while others will consider this very expensive.

A company that charges you $1000 for a logo may have more experience and knowledge in logo and graphic design. They will (hopefully) spend more time on making your logo a perfect emblem. On the other hand, another designer or company may charge you only $25 for the same specifications but they will most likely only put a fraction of the effort into it. Therefore, cost is hard to nail down. There are actually 4 key factors you should be aware of when it comes to logo design.

Price

This factor is often considered first while going for a logo design. It is fine if you go for a cheap logo design, but think before how much importance a logo can have for your business. Your logo is going to be placed on mediums like stationary, website, promotional material and so on. These marketing collaterals not only introduce your customers to your business, it builds an image about your company through the impression of your logo. Therefore, spending a very low amount may not be reasonable, but spending thousands of dollars also doesn’t make much sense. The better option is to spend in between $100 to $500. You will probably use your logo for at least 10 years, and if you divide cost with the number of months, it only comes out to a few dollars per month. By having these thoughts in mind it is clear that price should not be considered as the major factor among other important aspects.

Level of Service

Service level should be considered on top while selecting a logo design company. It usually depends on the package your selecting. The more you pay the more service options you will get. The service level of a company can be determined by the number of designers who will design your logo, the number of revisions (requests for changes), and the number of initial concepts provided at first round. In addition, money back guarantees are also an important element that should be considered if you don’t like the design or if they don’t deliver your work on time.

Quality of Design

Design quality is one other major factor that determines the worth of your logo. If you are ok with paying $1000, it means you also want to make sure and get the value of your money back in the shape of a great design. To assure the quality of design, you should check out the design portfolio of the company, the testimonials written by the customers, and the experience and knowledge they have about logo design.

Company’s Location

Location of a company provides a great deal of advantages to the business owner(s). If you hire a designer who is located outside your country – for example China or India, it would be nearly impossible for you to take legal action against him/her if you come under the case of trademark infringement.

In short, considering price, hiring a logo designer, and getting the final formats all play an important role in determining how much you will pay for a custom logo design. Besides design, your logo is that element which give your company an identity. It really doesn’t matter how much you pay – if your logo doesn’t attract your target market, all the money you just spent is pretty much wasted. Hence, spend a considerable amount of time searching for a suitable logo design company before hiring one. You’ll be glad you did!

This original article, written exclusively for Blogging Experiment, is from Ben Johnson of Logoinn, custom logo design services based in the UK. Ben was nice enough to not only send this article but a couple ideas for a logo for Blogging Experiment. We’re working on a complete redesign of the site, so it was nice to see someone actually provide relevant content about logo design PLUS provide a personal touch by sending in a couple of ideas for this site. I’ve included the mockups below, so you can see a sample of their work. Coupon Code: Ben has also been nice enough to provide Blogging Experiment readers with a 15% discount by using promo code: MKT-01 at checkout should you decide to hire them to create YOUR custom logo. A big thanks to Ben for the great article and promotion code!

Clickbank In 1999

This first design dates back to 1999, and definitely has a “Pre-2K” look to it. Notice how plain and simple it is. Having not known then what they would ultimately become, it would be very easy to write this site off as just another web startup. And yes, they did use the phrase “mountains of cash.”
 

Clickbank In 2000

In 2000, they did a very slight redesign that at least added a clear distinction between merchants and affiliates (the two segments they were appealing to).
 

Clickbank In 2001

2001 marked a noticeable improvement in design and the look that would go on to represent Clickbank.com for the next 6 years. Notice the much better use of real estate in explaining what their product is and who could use it. They were still missing a clear Signup button though.
 

Clickbank.com In 2007

Making a huge improvement (and 6 years in the making), Clickbank released this design in 2007 as the previous look was much too dated. With a clear description of their business in the middle of the top fold, Clickbank accurately described itself as the, “Internet’s leading retailer of digital products.” With the simple headings and clear call to action this was a very usable redesign. My main concern with this look, although it was light years ahead of the previous one, rested in the fact that it still felt too bland and corporate.
 

Clickbank.com In 2009

So here we are in 2009, and the world’s abuzz with things like Twitter, Blogs, YouTube, and Facebook, and Clickbank thought it time to show off a new look…a home run if you ask me!

The red, yellow, green, white, and faded red contrast well together, and I love the use of the footer. They’ve incorporated a blog to their suite of new social media and the homepage even keeps a running counter showing the over $1 Billion paid out to merchants and affiliates (all without ever having a late payment) over the past 10 years.

With the redesign also came the release of a much requested feature: encrypted affiliate links. It’s been proven time and time again, that many people are suspicious of clicking links when they know it’s an affiliate link. While there are several quick and easy ways you can do this on your own (like creating a simple php redirect, an html page with the link, or any number of other things), Clickbank now allows you to simply enter your Clickbank ID and the Vendor ID, then they encrypt it for you. Taking this Hoplink Shield a step further, they allow you to decode the link by simply entering the encoded version, then hitting Decode. Here’s what it looks like.
 

The Take-Away

Since our site caters to those looking to make money online with a blog or website, it’s important to take a way a few things from the Clickbank design model.

1. In The Beginning, Worry About The Product – If I’ve said it once, I’ll say it a thousand times more: Focus on content first, design second. While usability is important, if there’s nothing for your visitors to “use” then all you have is a pretty, expensive design. When the content is good, when the product is good, when whatever service you’re providing on your blog or website is in fact GOOD, people will continue to use it, come back, and tell their friends even if the design is crappy.
2. As The Business Evolves, So Should Your Design – Through the years, Clickbank’s core business has stayed the same, they’ve just gotten better at it (and bigger). Along the way, they’ve made design changes that have coordinated with those improvements, be they technology or functionality. As your site and online business grows, be mindful of the ways you can tweak your design so it evolves with your business. Keeping your look fresh and current – but not trendy – shows your customers and visitors that you are actively engaged in your craft.

For more information on Clickbank, be sure to visit their site and read about their unique business model. They are the marketplace for digital product owners (merchants) to list their products for sellers (affiliates) to promote. Promoting Clickbank products is how I got my start in Internet Marketing so many years ago, and it continues to be an integral part of my online businesses to this day.