Case Study: Key Logistix Branding
The Story
Mike had just retired from decades of working in the shipping and carrying industry, where he worked in just about every role possible. But he didn’t want to just drop all of that experience to enjoy a leisurely retirement. He wanted to start his own company with it.
After his years of working in the industry, he knew exactly what he valued and how he could provide value to others. He also knew that his new company would need to communicate these things visually, through design. That is, of course, where I came on board to help out.
The Process
The process began with the sharing of information and asking of questions. Any successful project requires an understanding between both client and designer about what needs to be designed and what it needs to convey about the brand. Once we were both satisfied with the brief, I got to work in my sketchbook.
A sketchbook is a great place to start in just about any creative project. It’s a quick and efficient way to produce, iterate, and collect a large library of ideas with reduced creative inhibition. During the sketching phase, I carried my little Field Notes notebook around everywhere and sketched out fresh ideas as I had them. A board on Pinterest dedicated to the project helped me experiment with alternative treatments and ideas as well. After I was satisfied with the ideas I had on paper, I moved forward onto the computer screen, where I would eventually build the final logo.
Mike and I knew that the logo should be clean and convey his experience, but further factors were left to the design process to uncover. I chose three of the strongest sketches that satisfied the initial brief while offering slightly different directions each. After some time with them, Mike chose one that connected with his brand the most.
From Paper to Pixels
The process of translating a sketched idea to a final, crisp, and scalable logo can be a tricky one. The step is necessary, however, for faithful translation of the logo in both digital and print settings. When sketching, you typically use more gestural lines and organic shapes, even if your aim is for rigid ones. This gives a sketch a certain lively, dynamic quality that, while rough, can convey the intended result successfully. However, a sketch falls short when it comes to legibility, scalability, and conveying a sense of professionalism, among other qualities.
The faithful translation of the sketch to a crisp, well-balanced final logo becomes an integral next step. Balance is the key. With a practiced eye and careful hand, you can preserve the sketch’s original merits while turning it into a final, usable logo that encompasses all of the values of the brand.
Finishing Touches
The logo mark alone is one piece of the branding puzzle. But it needs to live within the brand’s environment. This consists of messaging, brand colors, peripheral visual elements, imagery, and the treatment of those elements.
After the logo mark was complete, I provided color options to Mike, based on our brief, as well as examples of peripheral design elements and usage. Through much deliberation and refinement, we came to the navy and grey combination that all of Key Logistix brand elements now use. Photography, peripheral elements such as the three stripes and a checker pattern, and typography were all defined during this final phase as well.
All the work of designing Key Logistix branding has laid a solid foundation for a myriad of business needs after, including the website, print materials, business stationery kit, garments, and more.