5 free branding instruments for what you are promoting
If you want your business to be successful, you need to closely monitor your branding strategy. And that strategy starts with a free brand logo.
A strong brand creates immediate recognition in the market, especially with your customers.
It also creates loyalty and shows that you share your customers' values. If you do this correctly, both your customers and your competitors will remember you forever.
If you haven't yet defined and built your brand, this guide will show you where to start.
One of the best ways to make a positive and lasting (visual) impression on your brand is to create a unique brand logo.
It can be expensive to get your brand logo done professionally.
Check out 99Design's research. They found that a professionally designed logo can cost anywhere from $ 400 to over $ 2500, with quality depending on actual cost.
Sounds expensive, doesn't it?
You can make it your business to redesign your logo from scratch by investing time in learning graphic design.
I could even show you where to find some free fonts to use.
Or I could show you how to create a free branding logo for your business with minimal effort.
As you can see, the days when you only had to hire one graphic designer to create your logo are over. They usually came with a high price.
Now you can use online resources to design and create your own branding logo for free.
And you can literally do it in minutes.
Some of these companies even let you download your logo without investing any money.
In this article, I'm going to walk you through five ways you can create a free branding logo for your business in minutes.
1. Free logo design
Free Logo Design is a free brand logo maker that allows you to create your own brand logo and integrate it into your business.
You can do this in a few simple steps:
- Select an existing logo template.
- Use Notepad to move and scale your text or picture.
- Download your logo.
- Display your logo anywhere.
First of all, you need to go to the homepage and enter your company name as shown.
You should immediately notice that Free Logo Design gives you a variety of design options as you type.
These pictures are too general. You want to be more specific.
So choose a category from the drop-down menu and hit "Start".
For the "new" Kissmetrics brand logo, I choose "Business & Consulting".
Once you've clicked "Get Started", you'll be taken to the design page, which displays automatically generated logo templates from existing images on a pop-up platform.
You will see a few that include your company name.
In the “Business & Consulting” category, the software generated 90 designs with a maximum of 15 per page.
For the next step, go through all of the designs and find a logo that you think will be:
- Look good
- Define your brand
- Remember your customers
- Fit in with your branding strategy
When you are satisfied with your decision, select the logo you want and click "Add".
This will take you to the logo editor, where you may find that text and graphics are overlapping or messing up.
Each part of the graphic is a single element, but the text is grouped as one.
This is your default logo.
You could leave it as it is, but honestly it won't look great.
In this case I want to move the text under the graphic and center it.
Select the text and drag it into place.
Once the text is aligned and looks easy on the eye, I select all of the items and go back to the center of the screen.
To do this, click and drag the cursor over the elements that you want to move.
This creates a selection box of all the elements that you can move (or rotate if necessary). A property box showing each item individually is also displayed.
If you need to edit these items, you can do so from the Actions toolbar.
The colors of an element can be edited, moved, mirrored and rotated.
You can also edit the color, alignment / curve, and font style of the text if you are not entirely satisfied with it.
Or you can add an additional logo, symbol, shape or more text using the options on the right.
Add an extra element if needed or edit the logo color.
Sometimes you may spend hours tweaking your design.
The aim of the "new" Kissmetrics brand logo is to create a finished logo design in just a few minutes.
And that's all that is needed. I am happy with the design.
Now that the design is done, it's time to download your new brand logo. You can do this simply by clicking "Save" in the top right corner of the screen.
Free Logo Design will then prepare your logo for download. Once you're done, you can:
Click on "Download" and enter your name and email address.
The finished logo will now be sent to you free of charge.
Although the free PNG file is low in resolution, it is great for website use and email signature use.
The high-resolution download is also inexpensive. Currently, this costs $ 39 for a PDF, EPS, and vector SVG file.
This is a bargain compared to the prices I mentioned earlier for a professional design, and it's very affordable for a bootstrapping start-up.
Whether or not you're a bootstrapping startup, realizing the importance of your brand can play an important role in the success of your business.
If you equip your company with a new brand logo, you are one step closer to this success.
2. Logo macr
Another free resource with a hands-on approach is Logomakr.
With Logomakr you can instantly create a brand logo for your company.
Most of these free online logo makers use similar concepts when designing and editing. You use existing templates on an easy-to-use design platform.
How to create your design with Logomakr:
Go to their homepage and you will be greeted with an instructional video. This will quickly run through the simple process of using their platform to design a logo.
You will also receive the following design notes:
- Make your logo clean and simple.
- Make sure your logo is 100% original.
- Make sure you can copyright your own logo.
- Make sure the logo matches the style of your industry.
- Make sure your final logo images are in vector format.
With your concept in mind, you need to choose a graphic for your logo.
Next, find the millions or more graphics in the Logomakr database using the search bar at the top left of your screen.
For my design, I search for "kiss".
The database should then provide hundreds of freely usable images to choose from (for that particular search term).
Scroll through the results and select the image you want to use.
You will then be returned to the edit page, where you have several options for editing your design.
You can add text, shapes, color, scale, move or change your graphic color.
In this example I will enlarge the graphic. That way, it will be more noticeable.
Next, you need to add your company name. With the "add text" function, I add "kiss metrics".
Once you've added the text, you will see two drop-down menus at the top of the screen.
One is for the font category and the other is for the font style.
Select the font style or category that you think will have the best visual impact on your design.
You can play around with the text and the scales of the elements (text, image or shape) so that they are proportional to each other.
When you're happy, consider what colors you will use in the final design and how that relates to the overall color scheme of your branding strategy.
At Kissmetrics, I like the color blue.
You can change the color in three steps:
- Select the items you want to change.
- In the Tools Area, click Change Color.
- Choose the color you want in the top right corner.
You can then save a copy and download it. To do this, click “Save Logo” in the top right corner of the screen.
This then brings you to your final options depending on the use of the logo.
To opt for the free version, you need to download and credit Logomakr.
For this design, I click on "Download and agree to credit".
To download a higher resolution image than the one provided for free, you will need to pay a premium. In this case, it's $ 19.
With the high resolution image you can use it on banners, corporate clothing and for printing purposes.
If you've followed the simple steps outlined above, you should now have a free branded logo to use as many times as you want.
You can do all of this in less than 5 minutes.
3. Canva
Next on the list of software that offers free downloads is Canva.
If you are not familiar with Canva, it is a simple design software that is hugely popular with graphic designers and bloggers for creating high quality images such as infographics and featured images.
Its popularity stems from its simple drag-and-drop design tools and a huge collection of photos, graphics, and fonts.
With the easy-to-use platform, you can create your brand logo in five simple steps:
Go to Canvas Online Logo Maker and create an account.
When you're done, click Start Designing a Custom Logo.
The first thing you want to do is select "Items" in the toolbar and choose a category. For this design I am using an image from "Symbols".
A library of multiple symbols is displayed. Scroll through them until you find an image that you can use. Then select it.
Some elements have the word "free" next to them. These are freely usable graphics that you can use in your logo design.
After you've created the main graphic for your logo, select the element and change the color.
Remember: always keep your branding topic in mind. So I'll be using blue again.
Next, you'll want to add your company name by selecting the Text tool on the toolbar. Similar to "Elements", you have a library of templates to choose from.
Scroll through to find text that fits your brand using the free templates.
Find your favorite and click on it. I will be using "Blue Wood".
You will notice that the text is centered over the logo element. Click on it and drag it to where you want it.
Move both the text and element so that they are aligned with the center of the design template.
Once you're satisfied, it's time to edit the text.
Click on and select the small text above "Blue Wood". Delete this text.
Click and select the text "Blue Wood" and replace it with your company name "kissmetrics".
Then edit the color and size of the text by selecting the text and using the text toolbar at the top of the screen.
You also have the option to change the font style using the drop-down menu.
Your logo should now be ready for download. Click the Download button at the top right of the screen.
You will get different types of files to download.
The available file types are JPG, PNG, PDF Standard, and PDF Print. For the Kissmetrics logo, I choose the PDF standard.
Once downloaded, you can view your new brand logo in a PDF reader.
Canva does not yet support exporting logos in a vector format.
For higher resolution graphics, make your logo as large as possible and download the printable PDF version.
Do not worry; A PNG file is a great way to add your logo to your website.
Another quick, easy, and free way to create a branding logo for your business.
4. GraphicSprings
GraphicSprings is software that allows you to design and create a logo on your platform for free.
To start your design, go to the logo design page and enter your company name.
Next, add an image from the database by selecting “Select Graphic” from the side toolbar on the left of the screen.
An investigation bar will appear below your last selection with a list of categories.
If you know the graphic you want to add, type it into the search bar.
GraphicSprings includes an "Internet" category which is pretty apt. So I'm going to use them.
Click the category you want and a database of pictures or graphics will appear.
(Just like the previous software).
Can you already see a common theme?
This simple concept works on any platform and eliminates the need to reinvent the wheel.
Browse through the results and choose an image to use.
After selecting a graphic, the software creates your design and takes you to the edit page. Once there, you will be asked to select the items to edit.
Click on the text to edit it. Here you can change the font style, font size and format. You can also add some cool effects like stroke, shadow or glow.
For the sake of simplicity, I'll leave it as it is.
The editing options are also basic. You have the option to change the color and add some effects.
Canva breaks the graphic down into different elements (similar to Free Logo Design) so you can edit each piece individually.
I stick to the color theme blue, but keep the two-tone effect.
Next, select each element and change the colors accordingly.
When you're done editing and you're happy with the design, click "Download Logo" in the lower right corner of the editing page.
This will take you to the payment page where you can purchase the high resolution image for just $ 19.99.
To access the vector files, which can be edited after purchase, you'll need to pay for the standard package, which is $ 39.99.
This option allows you to make changes to your logo in the aftermarket at any time.
5. Designimo
Designimo must also be paid for once the design is ready. However, you can use the design tools for free to create the artwork for your logo.
They used to offer a free low resolution download, now they only produce high resolution images.
Designimo is similar to Free Logo Design and GraphicSprings in that you type your company name in the search bar and select a category that suits your needs.
Multiple graphics are then automatically generated using a huge database of existing designs.
Again, the degree of editing is simple, but the results are solid.
It also follows the simple process that Free Logo Design uses:
- Choose
- To edit
- Download
- display
A short video tutorial on using the platform can be found here.
To make sure your design goes as smoothly as possible, I'll be walking you through the process below.
First, go to the homepage, add your company name and click "Create Logo Now".
Then select a category from the drop-down menu ranging from "Alphabetical Text" to "Travel & Hotel".
In this example, I'll use the Alphabetic Text category.
Designimo offers you numerous individual designs for each category.
While the other categories use existing graphics made up of symbols, the “alphabetical text” generates logos in the shape of the selected letter (hence the name).
They are also filed alphabetically.
For the Kissmetrics logo, I select the letter "K" and go through the results. Each letter has multiple pages of designs. So navigate through this.
When you find the one you want to continue with, select the graphic.
You then land on the editing page, which is equipped with basic design and editing tools. With the tools available, you can:
- Increase / decrease element size
- Rotate graphic left / right
- Rotate vertically / horizontally
- Change the text size and style accordingly
- Apply opacity to an element (i.e. make it translucent)
- Simply click and drag to move items
I'm a little creative for this alphabetical logo and I'm using the symbol shaped as a "K" to start the company name "Kissmetrics".
By deleting the "k" from the text, I now have a completely different and unique looking logo.
If necessary, edit the text size or font style.
The default font is fine so I'll leave it unchanged.
Next, change the colors according to your theme.
If you are happy with the design, your new brand logo should now be available for download. Click Download Now or Save For Future (if you want to come back and work on it).
First, you'll need to register your details and sign up for an account to download your image.
You will then be directed to an order confirmation page to confirm and proceed with the checkout process.
Pay and download.
The cost of a high resolution image, including PNG, JPG, and EPS vector files, is $ 29.95.
While not free, the branded logo that you can create and download using this software is high quality graphic for a relatively low price.
Conclusion
When it comes to starting a new business, the tasks on your to-do list, as well as the cost of setting up, can all be overwhelming.
However, creating a brand logo for your company doesn't have to be required.
Branding should be the core of your company's marketing strategy.
Your brand should tell a story, and part of that story is your logo.
Being an expert in graphic design or outsourcing to a professional was once the norm (and still is for many brands).
But now the internet is full of innovative people with new ideas and free software that can help new businesses lower their startup costs.
With easy-to-use tools, it is possible to create a free brand logo for your company in minutes.
These platforms also prevent options from paralyzing you.
Before that, you might have been up all night studying designing videos on YouTube.
Now you don't have to.
These platforms do most of the design for you and even provide you with some short tutorials. All you need to bring is a good idea and an eye for a visually appealing design.
With the color and theme of your brand in mind, choose the software that is easiest for you and start creating a free brand logo today.
Which free branding software would you recommend in terms of ease of use, design results, or cost?