The hype around Yahoo’s month-long roll out of its new corporate ID is gathering pace, viewers can see a different logo every day for 30 days allowing them to comment on the developments.

This development may have you wondering if your company is ready for a new design, too. Afterall a logo is your business’s public face. If it doesn’t represent your business at its core, it’s time for a change.

“Over the past year, there’s been a renewed sense of purpose and progress at Yahoo!, and we want everything we do to reflect this spirit of innovation. While the company is rapidly evolving, our logo — the essence of our brand — should too.” Commented Kathy Savitt, Chief Marketing Officer

View the daily logos here:
http://yahoo.tumblr.com/post/57582020969/kicking-off-30-days-of-change

There are several indicators that a small business needs a new logo. Here are five signs that it’s time to work on a new design:

1. Your logo doesn’t adapt well to modern media.?
If your logo was designed years ago for your storefront, it might not work well on a website or on social media platforms. It may have looked great on a sign or in a Yellow Pages ad, but businesses today need to promote themselves in a lot of new ways. It is important that your logo works across several mediums.
You should ask yourself these questions: Can the logo be sized up or down and still be readable? Does it look good in black and white? Can you derive an icon from it? Does it make an appealing button for a mobile app? If the answer to any of these questions is no, it may be time for a new logo design.

2.Your logo doesn’t represent your current business.?
Over time, your business is likely to have evolved. It’s not uncommon for entrepreneurs to start out with one product or service, then grow and diversify into something quite different. If your logo doesn’t reflect what you currently offer, it’s time for to rebrand.
Your logo shouldn’t be about where your business was in the past. It should be inspirational and capture the essence of your business today, as well as where you’re heading in the future.

3. Your logo was a do-it-yourself project.?
If yourself, a friend, or a family member created your business logo, then it may be time for a professional to step in.

Companies, such as Apple, have become very successful, due in part, to their emphasis on design. As a result of this our world has increased its expectations of design. If you aren’t receiving compliments on your logo, it probably needs to be redesigned.
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4. Your logo isn’t as appealing as your competition’s.
Always look at your competitions’ logo designs. If their logo looks more appealing, it may indicate that yours needs an update or to be changed completely. If you are not sure about their logo, then compare your social media following to your competitors. If they have more fans and followers, it may be time for a new design.

5. Your logo is too complex. ?The growing trend in logos has been towards simplification in design. Gradients and drop shadows used to be popular in logos especially back in the 1980’s but these techniques are starting to look dated. Also these will be difficult to translate across some mediums.

Instead, choose a simple logo design that utilizes nor more than three colours. One indicator that your logo is simple and effective, is if it can be used in a transparent form as a background and still be recognizable.

Never underestimate the impact of good logo design, its your brand, give your customers something that is memorable and that they will easily recognise the next time they see it. 99% of all first impressions of any company or organisation are decided upon when someone see’s your logo for the first time. It’s important that you get it right.

Dean Williams

Dean Williams is a design and marketing blogger working for Print-Print Limited, promoting business and building brands through quality print marketing. If you’re interested in small business promotion then please get in touch hello@print-print.co.uk