Week 3: Barb's Branding Journey - Logo Suite Roadblocks

About the episode:

What happens when your designer sends you a logo you’re not in love with? How do you keep feedback constructive to move forward? Well, you’re going to hear all of it as we are in week 3 of Barb’s branding journey. This week I present the logo suite concept to Barb and we discuss finalizing it and what it needs to get to the finish line. We also discuss how we finished the color palette and what’s next after the logo suite and looking beyond to the marketing collateral. I hope you’re loving this series!

LOGO SKETCHING

LOGO PROOF 1

Takeaways:

RuthAnn typically provides only one logo suite concept and this is for multiple reasons, the main ones being so overwhelm doesn't set it and feedback is focused
RuthAnn walks through the logo suite presentation in a Loom video sent to Barb
Barb and RuthAnn talk through what needed to change when ti came to the first logo design
Clear communication and collaboration are key to a successful design project.

What happens when Barb isn’t sold on the first proof? Listen on:

WE ALSO FINALIZED THE COLOR PALETTE. SHE CHOSE:

RuthAnn Rafiq
Hello, good morning Barb, how are you doing?
Barb
I am doing good. How are you?
RuthAnn Rafiq
Doing good. So, um, our listeners may not know, but you are a runner and you do marathons, half marathons, so you were on the road, I think, this last week. Are you still on the road? Okay.
Barb
Nope, I'm back today just getting through emails and slack messages, all the fun stuff. Yeah.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Oh yes, all the fun stuff when you return from something. And did you run a full or a half?
Barb
I did a half this time. It's in Huntington Beach, California. It is something I do every year. It's one of the very few races I actually redo all the time. And I've done, this was my seventh, excuse me. I think it's my sixth half marathon. I did do a marathon once there, but it was, it's just such a great weekend. Like it's out by the ocean. It even rained half the time, but it's the one weekend where I don't feel guilty about not working. So it's fantastic.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Nice.
RuthAnn Rafiq
I love that so much. And I love that it's like a repeat race that you do all the time. Like, I mean, every year probably. I used to run back in the day before I had all these kids and I just love it. It's just so, you know, clears your mind and it's just so relaxing in a weird way, I think.
Barb
Definitely. And I end up coming up with some great ideas. I'm brilliant when I'm running. Like it's just, yeah. So I take all kinds of voice notes and it's just, it's such a, yeah, it's a clear time to think about things and give some thought to things that you don't normally make yourself do sometimes.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes, I agree.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes. Well, I love that you had a great race. We emailed a little bit about it and you said you got your fourth best time. You didn't have any, you know, goals for it, but you got a really great time. So I'm so happy that it was great. And thank you for checking your email. I know that when you're doing races, you really don't want to be thinking about work and stuff. But I did send you a logo suite in the midst of all that. We did a revision also. So I just appreciate you for checking that and getting back to me with feedback. I really appreciate it.
Barb
Mm-hmm.
Barb
Yeah, that was no problem because this is a totally fun project and it's for my business. So I was like, I'm totally happy to do that.
RuthAnn Rafiq
That's true, that's true. It's not like work, work. It's like fun work. So where we left off in our last call was in our last call we solidified the color palette and we were talking about the Logo Suite and I was going to deliver a proof by Friday and so I did deliver the proof and we did go through one revision and I haven't actually heard your feedback on the revision so I would love to hear.
Barb
Yeah.
RuthAnn Rafiq
maybe your initial thoughts on the first design and then what you think about the revision now.
Barb
Great. The first design, I think it was a refreshing look at it because I do feel like my current logo is a little too busy now. I liked it at the time. There's nothing wrong with it by any means, but it did need the refresh. And I think with what information looking back with what information I gave you, it was a really great first draft. The fonts were right on. I was good with that with the whole logo and the colors that you came up with and trying to come up with like a smaller logo like icon type thing and then showing it by itself, but also showing it on a colored background. I think that was super helpful to see what that could look like, like if it's in a header or something like that, or even on like an Instagram background or something. That was super, super cool to see. I think, yeah, I did end up asking for revisions. It didn't quite hit the
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes.
Barb
gave the feedback because the second revision, I think I'm just gonna go ahead and go into it if that's okay, the second revision like hit it right on. I'm totally good with it, I love it to death. And I think it's because I was able to give better, clear direction, I mean, I gave it in words, but I think showing some examples visually and then pointing out what I liked or didn't like about it really helped you come up with something.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes, 100%. Whenever my clients can provide a visual and this is what I like about this, this is what I don't like about this, and saying this is something in this vicinity. So I think in our first call, when we were talking about the Logosuite last week, I was wanting to go pretty abstract. And that was something you were open to, which I was very happy with. Because I feel like you're just trusting me in the process, which I love.
And so I did go very abstract. So in the first design, if you all go look at it, you can on the show notes page, but it's pretty abstract. You can't really tell it's a compass. It's super minimal. And so with this revision, you did send me a lot of compass ideas that you like certain things about some compasses, you like some things about others. And so when I saw that, I was like, okay, so we're definitely wanting something more concrete that looks like a compass and something minimal, not too busy or detailed or, and especially because you want to be able to shrink it down small and still see what it is and you want to blow it up big and still, so you need, you need a good balance of simplicity, but also like some detail, I personally think. And so, this one is, I think it's a great mix of like minimalism, but also it definitely looks like a compass and we did put the compass where the O is in the Word Compass, which I really like actually. And so I'm thrilled that you like this revision.
Barb
Yeah, I think it's great. I think too, when I was open to the abstract just as a point to I don't I guess I don't think I knew exactly what that meant or how abstract it was going to go. And I think that I think just the way that this went, I wouldn't have been able to say what I exactly didn't want until I saw it. So I appreciate to your flexibility and your openness to the feedback because it was very difficult for me to say.
I'm not really a fan of it, but it's really close. You never know how quite to say it without being all like, especially if you're people pleasey like me and I'm like, oh my gosh, I don't want to hurt her feelings.
RuthAnn Rafiq
No, and...
And most of my clients are, they're such lovely, wonderful people and they're like, oh, you know, it's nice but and I'm like, please, like I, I do not take offense. I just think this is your project. Like I, I am invested, but I mean, obviously you are the one who's running the show. So to me, I want to be, I want you to be as open and honest as possible. And I totally understand whenever clients do come back with revisions, like, Oh, I'm not sure.
And then they're like trying to provide feedback. Sometimes it can feel like, you know, sometimes there is a little bit of like, ooh, I hope we nail this on the next time or something like that. But I was happy that, you know, you gave such good feedback with examples, which is super helpful to me. And it just really showed me like the direction we wanted to go in, which was a little bit more grounded in the realism look rather than abstract. And yeah, I'm really happy with how it looks.
And I think it's great because we have that. In the last week's episode, I think I mentioned, I provide a logo suite, which means you have like a vertical, more of a vertical option, you have a horizontal option, and then you have a sub mark, which is like a little sticker design, a little circle type design. And so I feel like it works really well in all three. And I'm really happy with it. I'm so glad we had really good communication throughout it all and that we nailed it on the second try.
Barb
Yeah, me too. I love it.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Good. So the next step is to do the marketing collateral. And so we talked about it last, I think it was in our first call. Let me actually go back to my notes about it. We said, I think it's in this section.
Okay, we, um, oh wait.
Did I put it in a different section?
RuthAnn Rafiq
I know I wrote it down somewhere. Oh, here it is. So we said we were going to do some Instagram graphics. So we're gonna do two portrait posts, two Instagram portrait posts, and then we're gonna do two story posts. And then I think, which was the other one we were gonna do?
Barb
like a lead magnet or checklist download. Oh, I needed to give you one, didn't I?
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes, I was gonna ask you about that. Do you have that on hand? You can send to me. This is an opt-in design. This is gonna be for an opt-in. Is that right?
Barb
Correct, yes. I'm gonna take one of my existing ones and I think I still needed to send that over to you.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yes, which is perfect. Yeah, just send me what's existing because then I already have copy and everything I need. And so you could just send that over and then I'll design it within our new branding. And I am gonna design it in Canva. You shared your Canva with me and so I'm gonna do that in Canva. So you'll be able to edit it whenever you need. And so that's gonna be there for you. So if you can send that to me today, that would be great. So then Instagram, you're doing two.
Barb
Yep, absolutely.
RuthAnn Rafiq
And I also wanted to ask you about your photos. You did share that link with me for your brand photos and I'm not able to download them though. I think went the last time, it asked for something. And so it was probably a pin. So I think I was able to take it like a screenshot, which is how I did that for that computer mock-up I sent in the color palette presentation. But yes, I think it might've been a pin or something. So if you can, I would love to download some of those photos for the...
RuthAnn Rafiq
Opt-in but also for the website mock-up a little later that we're gonna do so if you wanted to share that with me that would be great
RuthAnn Rafiq
Yeah, and so I think, yeah, that basically does it for this call. I'm so thrilled that you love the logo, that you're ready to go in this direction. I'm also very, very thrilled about it. So I just think that's the best when both the client and the designer are very happy with it moving forward. And yeah, so we'll move on to the marketing collateral next and you'll send me that opt-in design. And so I'll be sending you a proof probably by Friday again, so you have the weekend.
And then we will move on from there. After we do the marketing collateral, we'll do the brand style guide, and then I'm gonna share how to use the files and stuff. So we're getting pretty close to the end, which is so exciting, and things are really coming together. So I think that's it for now, but if you have any questions in the meantime, please reach out, and I will send you that proof for the marketing collateral by Friday.
Barb
All right, that sounds good. Thanks so much, Ruthann.
RuthAnn Rafiq
Awesome. Thank you, Barb.