Whether you are designing your own logo or paying to have it designed for you, the following five pointers are sure to help to take you in the right direction.

KEY 1. Your logo should represent your company in a unique but honest way.
If you are in the security business, it just doesn't make sense to have a logo that somehow makes references to furniture or vegetables. Likewise, you want to be sure that your logo is not too similar to those of your close competitors.
When designing your logo, you want to be sure that it conveys something about your business: both what you do, and what makes you well-suited to do it. You are unique and so is your business.

Marketing should be about capitalizing on what makes you different, those elements that make your business better than your competitors. A well-designed logo will serve to set you apart, and give your customer a sense of who you are.

KEY 2. Your logo should be simple, avoiding unnecessary detail.
Many companies have found that their logo is most easily recognized when it's kept simple. A few bold lines will prove to be more recognizable than many more fine lines. By keeping your letters in a strong font, they will be more easily read.
And the added advantage of using a simple logo? It will put you closer to a logo that works as well in a small format as it does in an extra-large one.

KEY 3. Your logo should work as well in black and white as it does in color.
If your logo is designed to work well in black and white, it will invariably work well in other single color printing. By examining your logo in black and white, you'll have an idea whether or not you have kept only necessary details.

The added advantage of checking your logo in black and white? Single color printing is less expensive than traditional four-color printing for logos. And, you will also be able to change the color some depending on the product you will be printing your logo on – lighter logos for dark projects, dark logos for lighter ones.

KEY 4. Your logo should work well in a variety of sizes.
Your logo will represent you in a number of different mediums. Whether your logo will be used on business cards, letterhead or a billboard, you'll still want it to look fantastic. Be sure to look at your logo in as many sizes as possible to make sure that it will work – even if you don't intend to use it on a billboard, wouldn't you feel better knowing that you could?

KEY 5. Your logo should be aesthetically balanced.
Your logo should be designed in such a way that no one element takes away from any of the other components. Symmetry, color placement, and shape all have an impact on the way that the viewer sees the logo. Just as a balanced photograph or painting looks better when the proportions are well-balanced, so will your logo.

By following these simple pointers, your logo will serve you and your marketing campaigns well.