Welcome to Qlixite answers where we ask the box to go beyond it. We take common questions that business owners have and give you easy, straightforward answers you can actually use!
Today’s we’re asking the box a branding question about logo design.
Do I need a logo?
The truth is, despite the old adage, people DO judge a book by it’s cover. Your logo is the “cover” to your business. It’s the first thing a potential customer sees (whether it’s on your business card, a website or storefront signage). A logo promotes your professionalism and instills trust to your customer that you are a legitimate business.
Can a logo be just text?
Yes! Many companies have been very successful with a text-based logo. Be aware that certain fonts will convey different messages about your brand.
For example:
• A block font can express a clean, modern or assertive presence
• A decorative or serif font can express creativity, humor or elegance
Avoid using overly common fonts that can appear less professional.
What kind of graphics should a logo have?
Many business use a shape or graphic to establish a visual identity. Think of companies like Starbucks, Twitter and Apple. Their graphics are not necessarily complex but the images are distinct – in most cases a customer can identify the company without seeing the name . A word of warning, if you choose a generic image, be aware that other businesses could have your graphic too which will make branding more difficult.
What about color?
A good rule of thumb when creating your logo is to see if it passes a few color tests …
#1 Black and White – Reviewing how your logo looks in black and white can catch a variety of problems right away and will ensure that your logo can be easily transferred onto items like ink pens or shirts.
#2 Flat Color – This helps you look at how the colors are laid out without adding the details of shading. Reducing your logo to flat colors can allow you to pick up areas that are unclear or cluttered.
#3 Background – Inevitably, there will be a time when your logo needs to be displayed on a light or dark background. Try it out now! If you want to make sure your logo is only viewed on one kind of background, you may have to incorporate a shape, like a box or circle to make it easily transferable onto any color.
Do I need a graphic designer to make a logo?
Of course not! However, it’s important to note that a professional graphic designer knows how to convert your brand into a variety of print-ready formats including vector files and web optimized graphics. This is not as easy to do if you create your logo in a program like MS Word.
One final point…
Whether your logo is simple or complex – it should be memorable. It should stand out from your competition in the same way that your business stands out. Be sure to show your logo design to friends, family and current clients to get feedback. You’d hate to be memorable for the wrong reasons like these guys who ranked in the tip 10 worst logos online.
As always, let’s end with our high five review... a logo design should…
• Include text in a font style that matches your company
• Include a unique graphic or shape
• Pass color tests to ensure it can be used easily
• Be convertible to multiple formats that are print and web ready for future use
• Be memorable and get positive feedback from your customer base
We hope this video helps you to better understand logo design and how it can impact your business….
Stay updated as we add new videos on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or see how we can make your business life easier at Qlixite.com
Showing posts with label question. Show all posts
Showing posts with label question. Show all posts
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Monday, August 13, 2012
Easy Business Answers: What is Search Engine Optimization?
Welcome to Qlixite answers where we ask the box to go beyond it. We take common questions that business owners have and give you easy, straightforward answers you can actually use!
Today’s we’re asking the box an internet question about Search Engine Optimization.
So exactly, what is SEO?Search engine optimization (often termed SEO) refers to the techniques you can use to get your site found on internet search engines. Search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing are independent sites so in order to get that page-one ranking that we all aspire to, we need to understand what they want.
Essentially – there are two parts to optimizing your site – Off page and on page.
What is off page optimization?
This is often referred to as link building. Search engines look at what other websites link to you to gauge your validity. If you can get affiliates, vendors, membership groups and listings to put a link on their website that leads to you – it helps your rank! You can also link back to them so you both win. Social Media business profiles are a great way to get more links as well.
What is on page optimization?
On page optimization involves creating a website with structure and content that is search engine friendly.
Search engines gather information through spiders, which are automated programs that randomly visit websites and report back to the search engine. Anything that can be done to make it easy for the spiders to find all of your site’s relevant information is part of on page optimization.
What makes a website search engine friendly?Search engines examine several parts of your site including…
Meta Data – this can be complicated and confusing but essentially, search engines want each page to have a unique title, description and keywords. These are built into the structure (html code) of your website so seek help from a SEO professional if you’re unsure how to make changes.
They also look at the Quantity and Age of Content on your site. Search engines look at the text on your page – not the graphics or cool design. They give a higher ranking to quality content that is current or updated regularly.
Search engine spiders look at tons of websites so it will help them recognize all of the good stuff on your site if you have a site map. This is simply a hierarchal list of your pages but it is invaluable for increasing your SEO.
Looks like the spider is back to point out that when creating a search engine friendly site you want to minimize your use of javascript and flash. While flash websites can look great and show fancy animation, most search engines cannot read the information embedded in the flash file.
As always, lets end with our high five review... if search engines designed the perfect site it would include
1. Links from reputable websites
2. A Title, meta description and keywords unique to every page
3. Quality content that is current or updated regularly
4. A complete sitemap
5. Limited flash javascript
Stay updated as we add new videos on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or see how we can make your business life easier at Qlixite.com
Today’s we’re asking the box an internet question about Search Engine Optimization.
So exactly, what is SEO?Search engine optimization (often termed SEO) refers to the techniques you can use to get your site found on internet search engines. Search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing are independent sites so in order to get that page-one ranking that we all aspire to, we need to understand what they want.
Essentially – there are two parts to optimizing your site – Off page and on page.
What is off page optimization?
This is often referred to as link building. Search engines look at what other websites link to you to gauge your validity. If you can get affiliates, vendors, membership groups and listings to put a link on their website that leads to you – it helps your rank! You can also link back to them so you both win. Social Media business profiles are a great way to get more links as well.
What is on page optimization?
On page optimization involves creating a website with structure and content that is search engine friendly.
Search engines gather information through spiders, which are automated programs that randomly visit websites and report back to the search engine. Anything that can be done to make it easy for the spiders to find all of your site’s relevant information is part of on page optimization.
What makes a website search engine friendly?Search engines examine several parts of your site including…
Meta Data – this can be complicated and confusing but essentially, search engines want each page to have a unique title, description and keywords. These are built into the structure (html code) of your website so seek help from a SEO professional if you’re unsure how to make changes.
They also look at the Quantity and Age of Content on your site. Search engines look at the text on your page – not the graphics or cool design. They give a higher ranking to quality content that is current or updated regularly.
Search engine spiders look at tons of websites so it will help them recognize all of the good stuff on your site if you have a site map. This is simply a hierarchal list of your pages but it is invaluable for increasing your SEO.
Looks like the spider is back to point out that when creating a search engine friendly site you want to minimize your use of javascript and flash. While flash websites can look great and show fancy animation, most search engines cannot read the information embedded in the flash file.
As always, lets end with our high five review... if search engines designed the perfect site it would include
1. Links from reputable websites
2. A Title, meta description and keywords unique to every page
3. Quality content that is current or updated regularly
4. A complete sitemap
5. Limited flash javascript
We hope this video helps you to better understand search engine optimization and how it can help grow your business.
Stay updated as we add new videos on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or see how we can make your business life easier at Qlixite.com
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