Top Branding & Logo Design Agencies

By utilizing a top branding company to determine a solid brand identity, you’ll set the stage for every marketing initiative to come by staying true to your company ideals. Since 91 percent of consumers are more likely to purchase from an authentic brand, maintaining this personality throughout every marketing campaign and platform is paramount.

A brand identity isn’t just for your consumers’ benefit -- it’s for your company’s, too! Branding defines every aspect of your company, making it easy for businesses to determine the partnerships that their demographic might identify with, the language that permeates, and even the visuals that better content marketing campaigns, for example.

Enlisting a branding agency to develop the perfect logo may inform a stronger overall social media strategy. A brand’s visual identity spans far beyond a logo design -- it incorporates a color palette, typography and a standard for images and copy. These design elements will influence a specific Instagram aesthetic or determine the appropriate imagery for Twitter that suits your core values.

In fact, a brand can also signify the relationship between a brand and its clients or consumers -- a gap that social media bridges. Thus, defining what that contact looks like with the assistance of a team of branding experts will only improve that relationship.

Although a website design and logo design may seem like two different projects, they actually go hand-in-hand. The best logo design and branding agencies know this, and are able to work with website designers to integrate the logo and brand into a new or existing website, resulting in increased conversions.

Proper branding on a website doesn’t just ensure the digital destination is recognizable -- it also cultivates a strong user experience. Often times, logos serve as a navigational North Star, enabling visitors to quickly locate the homepage, no matter how deep they journey into a website.

A strong and recognizable brand identity will serve as a foundation for all future projects. Before every product launch, potential partnership or big business decision, ask yourself (or your team), “Is this on-brand?””

By answering “yes,” you’re ensuring a consistent brand identity across every platform and medium. And because 90 percent of consumers expect a similar brand experience across every channel, this consistency is the key to captivating new users and transforming them into returning customers.

Who will be working on our branding project?

As with all outsourced projects, you aren’t just hiring a branding agency -- you’re hiring a team of top design experts and essentially handing them the keys to your business. Therefore, it is imperative that you don’t just vet the logo design agency itself, but screen each employee that will be on working on your project.

Once you have an understanding of their personal experience, expertise, and the amount of time they will be dedicated to your project, you’ll have a stronger idea of what you can expect if you sign that agency.

• Which team members will be working on our branding project?
• What is their specialty and experience?
• How much of their time will be dedicated to our project?
• What successful projects have they worked on and what was their role?
• What unsuccessful projects have they worked on and what did they learn?

What business, marketing or other items will be affected by the branding?

Because branding stretches far beyond just a logo design, there are often many areas of a business that are drastically affected by a redesign -- in fact, most internal and external departments are.

From office communication and core values to email marketing, social media and web design, a top branding and logo design agency should have a plan in place for rolling out the new visuals to each corner of the company. The below questions will help determine that.

• What platforms, mediums, marketing campaigns or designs will be affected by the design project?
• How do you plan on ensuring every area has a cohesive new identity? Do you have a discovery and tracking system in place?
• Will you be rolling out the new design all at once, or introducing it slowly?
• Do you have a campaign or initiative in place to introduce the new logo design or brand identity?

What is your strategic and creative process?

Enlisting a best logo design or branding agency forges a long-term partnership -- and, as with any professional union, you need to make sure that that your two processes can blend together to create positive collaboration reach your business goals.

Plus, creative agencies still need organization and structure in place to keep the ball rolling. Ask the following questions to gain a stronger grasp of how exactly the agency and your individual team works together, communicates with you, and marries a beautiful design with a functional brand-building end-result.

• What is your creative process?
• What is your logistical process?
• How will you create a timeline and keep the project on track?
• Who will be my point of contact?
• What process is in place for inter-departmental collaboration?
• How often can we expect meetings, drafts, updates, and deliverables?

How much will your branding services cost?

Unfortunately, there’s not exactly a simple answer for how much branding services cost, but the below questions will help you understand how much your project will set you back. Although price-per-service is, in some regards, the least important aspect of a design project, you still need to ensure you are staying within your budget while finding the best branding and design agency that provides the attention and assistance to give your business a strong return on investment. 

• Do you charge per project or per hour?
• Who and what exactly will I be paying for with that fee?
• Do you have extra fees for meetings, additional strategy assistance, more drafts, etc.?
• What return on investment can we expect from the rebranding?
• How will you determine, measure and report on our goals?

Although, as we mentioned, it is important to know what you’re looking for in an agency, an objective and an identity design, you don’t need to be married to it. Once you sign on the dotted line and hire a design consultancy, you’ll need to trust them with big decisions that directly affect your company. So, ask plenty of questions!

These questions should run the gamut. See what their definition of branding is, or ask their honest opinion of your company, brand identity or current designs. Then, inquire how they plan to fully understand and develop your identity and translate that to designs. A top agency will be honest with you while offering suggestions that will also reach the goals you're striving towards, so don’t be afraid to put them through their paces for as long as it takes for you to feel comfortable or cross them off your shortlist.

You know the saying: Talk is cheap. While many big branding agencies will be completely forthcoming, not everyone will -- so don’t just take them at their word. Look at both the agency's professional portfolio and client list as well as the possible team members who will be working with your company to gain better insight into the actual designs they can create, campaigns they can execute and results the can deliver.

What’s more, don’t be put off by a campaign that performed underwhelmingly. Instead, ask the experts what they learned from that project and what they would do differently if they could do it again to see if they heeded this setback as a great learning opportunity for future clients. After all, as Oprah Winfrey said, “Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.”

Chances are, once you hire a branding or logo design agency, you’ll be working with them closely for an extended period of time. Therefore, it’s in your best interests to learn how they work, where they find inspiration, and how often they plan to loop you into the conversation, too.

Many agencies will be flexible with their clients' wants and needs -- some are laid back and completely trust the firm, while others want to see every draft and possible strategy. Be totally upfront with a potential design agency regarding your expectations in terms of creation, strategy and execution. The best branding agencies will work with you to create a structured timeline and communication schedule that you feel comfortable with.

At the end of the day, when you enlist a great branding agency, you’re paying for design solutions and a strong return on investment -- not something as simple as a quick single symbol. Although it may be hard to look past a high upfront cost, you need to understand the business growth possibilities before you sign a contract.

For example, a more expensive agency may result in a drastically higher ROI than a lesser firm with a lower price structure. While one may be better for your budget in the immediate future, the other could breed long-term positive results. Do your homework, ask in-depth questions, understanding the pricing tiers and ensure you have a strong grasp of each employee's expertise and work history to make the most informed decision that will grow your company quickly.

Today, most businesses are focused on digital assets. However, when it comes to company logo design and branding, the best agencies will focus on how the assets appear offline as well as online. There is a strong likelihood that the logo will need to be used in offline collateral at one point or another. While a logo designed specifically for web use may look great on a digital screen, it might not translate well to a piece of physical collateral. The most experienced designers will ensure that any logo they create makes a strong impression across every form of media, and provide variations of the logo that can be used in different contexts.

The best logo design agency for your company will have a specific process they use when it comes to custom logo design and branding. While every agency can – and will – have a different process for this type of design, it’s critical that there be a proven method for success already in place. From concept brainstorming, to rounds of design and editing feedback, the logo design process can be taxing, but a rigorous process is essential to finding the right design to symbolize your company, products, or services.

It can be difficult for companies to verbalize precisely what they’re looking for in their logo and branding, but all top logo design companies will work with the client to clearly understand their vision and act confidently in translating that vision to a final design. Logo design projects often entail many iterations, and the best agencies possess a willingness to return to the drawing board and collaborate with the client until the logo reflects the goals and beliefs of the brand. Open communication and the ability to be responsive to client feedback is one of the key traits to look for when searching for a new agency partner.

The best branding and logo design agencies understand the need for creative minds and creative thinking when it comes to branding conception. In many ways, a logo is the face of your brand, as it represents your company directly to your audience and the world. The best logos are simultaneously complex and simple. Though this may seem like a contradiction in terms, it simply means that while visually a logo shouldn’t appear overwhelming or chaotic, the symbolism behind the icon should be complex and nuanced. Each piece of the design should represent a core tenet of the brand. The best logo designers tap into a creative mindset to fulfill this essential part of the branding process.