3 Reasons a cheap logo will cost your business

Let’s face facts that in an age where we expect everything to happen in an instant the idea of developing a logo and brand over time can sound frustrating. Here are 3 Reasons a cheap logo will cost your business and why you should take the time to develop a powerful and unique logo as part of a brand you can be proud of.

#1. – Speed is of the essence

When you hire a freelancer to produce a logo for $5 and I know a lot of businesses that have. The process for that new logo is pushed onto a conveyor belt of orders that just need to be completed as quickly as possible. If we now work out what that freelancer needs to earn for a minimum wage they should be aiming for 3-4 logos per hour. Roughly translated this is less than 20 minutes dedicated to your businesses identity.

Does 20 minutes sound long enough to create a valuable brand with a vision for success? To create a truly powerful, valuable and unique logo a designer should be spending considerable time finding out what the company is trying to convey, then finding a way to communicate this in a small and simple way. If a designer doesn’t have time to do this you end up with something generic and badly executed. Don’t you want to be proud of your business?

#2. – A brand with no value

How do you differentiate your business from the competition? Branding will establish a memorable and bespoke identity. Your logo is the cornerstone of your brand and is central to marketing strategy and being able to set your business head and shoulders above others.

Customers buy from brands they recognise and trust. If they remember the logo they’ll remember the company. If you can help your clients build familiarity you will in turn build a sense of trust that should increase the likelihood of them buying from you again in the future. The formulaic approach to designing a cheap logo means they will fall short of conveying the right message and will fail to make an impact.

#3. – It’ll get copied or already is copy

Generic, mass-produced logos aren’t only ineffective, there’s the risk of being so similar to another company’s that you could face legal problems.

The similarity could be a coincidence (more than likely when stock elements are used) or it could be that the same designer who’s under crazy time constraints to earn a living just deliberately copied it. Either way there’s a real chance that if another brand sees that logo and realises it looks too similar to theirs, they could sue for violation of a trademark or copyright and take legal action against you to recover any incurred expenses and damages.

It’s often very hard to tell if you’re getting a plagiarized logo from one of these sites. If you can’t guarantee it’s originality you are using that logo on borrowed time. The $5 you initially paid for the logo could turn into thousands in legal costs.

Invest in a logo that will create a real impact, and who knows, your business might even be responsible for creating the next iconic brand.