The vast majority of business owners are well aware of just how crucial their logo is to their branding and business. While most of them have no problem with coming up with granular ideas for their branding, creating a logo that communicates the brand’s identity is another story.
This is when logo design outsourcing can come into play. Still, if you are new to outsourcing, you can legitimately feel intimidated, especially if you are seeking to entrust someone with such a significant task as designing your logo.
As such, it’s quintessential to have a comprehensive understanding of how to outsource logo design to get your branding off the ground and reach your target audience. To help you with that, we’ve compiled this guide.
Table of Contents
The Benefits of Logo Design Outsourcing
There are several things companies can gain from outsourcing their logo design needs, such as:
- A professional logo design can drive purchases: According to Statista’s report from 2023, 56% of the asked GenZers and 52% of millennials bought a product at least once solemnly based on its logo alone.
- Cost-effectiveness: Outsourcing your logo design means that you don’t have to hire, train, and pay people for a one-time project, even if brands are encouraged to refresh their logos from time to time.
- Improved brand consistency: A good logo across all platforms and marketing campaigns may contribute from 10% to 20% growth in revenue.
- New creative input: Dedicated designers and agencies work with a broad spectrum of clients, and they can give you new and creative insights that may improve your base ideas.
- Qualified experts: Outsourcing agencies employ experienced and creative designers with the right creative and technical skills.
- Faster results: Given the expertise of these professionals, drafts and final deliverables will also come quicker.
How To Outsource Logo Design in Seven Easy Steps
Essentially, seasoned logo design companies aim to help entrepreneurs and business owners create a demanding brand presence through a striking visual identity. Apart from expertise, the company you’re looking for should have a proven track record of creating memorable logos that are able to communicate a brand’s message and identity in a memorable way.
1. Define Your Logo Design Requirements
Before you even start looking for adequate logo design outsourcing options, you should have a clear idea about at least the following:
- Your brand identity: You should already be familiar with your target audience and your brand's personality and values, which the logo should reflect.
- Outlining specific elements: Even if you don’t have a clear vision regarding the final shape and design, having a general idea of what you’d like to see would go a long way, be it classic, minimalist, or modern.
- Consider specifics and practicality: Think about any special images or symbols that you want to include in your logo and consider how that will look across all your marketing materials, business cards, websites, and so on.
2. Determine a Budget
The next step should be establishing a budget for your new design. The average cost of a logo design, according to estimates from December 2023, can be anywhere from $80 to $2600 on average, with the median sitting at $1216.
To determine a sensible budget, you should do two things:
- Ask yourself how much you’re willing to spend, depending on the nature of your business
- Research to see what design companies and experts are charging generally
Lastly, remember to be flexible with your budget, as the scope of the project may change during the creative process, which can change the price as well.
3. Research Designers and Agencies
After you’ve settled on the basics, there are a few ways you can go about logo design outsourcing. Regardless, things will boil down either to working with an expert designer specialist or a dedicated agency. Which would be the better route to take?
If you're only looking for logo design or even redesign services and nothing else, a seasoned designer with a proven track record and an outstanding portfolio will handle the job with ease and will probably come up with a great design.
On the other hand, working with an agency can be just as rewarding, especially if you are also considering other services as well. Design and digital marketing agencies can help you strengthen your online brand presence in a holistic manner, ensuring consistency across all your branding material. Simply put, they’re an ideal option if you are new to the digital sphere.
4. Review Portfolios and Qualifications
After creating a shortlist of possible agencies or designers, consider looking deeper into what they offer:
- Examine their portfolios: Check out their past projects and whether their style aligns with your brand’s visual identity and aesthetic.
- Look for technical expertise and creativity: See whether their designs are well-executed and whether their ideas are up to date with the latest trends.
- Verify experience and qualifications: Feel free to reach out to your potential partners and ask them about their experience, background, and certifications.
- Look for testimonials and reviews: Search the internet for client testimonials or online reviews to get a better idea of the potential partner’s expertise, communication style, company culture, and meticulousness.
Platforms like DesignRush are your one-stop shop for all these details, serving as a guide to finding the best professionals, categorized by their areas of expertise.
5. Request Proposals
After reaching out to your potential partners and shortening your list, arrange an initial call with them where you present your ideas and ask them for a quote and proposal at the end.
When requesting the proposal, tell your potential partners about your brand and company background and briefly talk about your business growth strategy. List your short- and long-term objectives for the given project, along with a budget estimate.
Lastly, don’t forget to discuss vendor requirements, mention the estimated timeframe you’d expect for receiving the specific deliverables, and list the available resources you can provide for your potential partners. For example, the latter may include your brand guidelines, and any available marketing materials.
6. Have a Detailed Discussion With the Logo Designer(s)
After carefully reviewing all the proposals and narrowing down your list even more, organize another meeting with the remaining agencies on your list.
The interview should be to-the-point, discussing the details of the project. Ask about the design company’s planned strategy to create your new logo. Ask about the resources they plan on using for the project and ask them to tell you a bit about the team that will be handling it.
Then, inquire about the frequency of potential progress reports and meetings while pointing out possible collaborative efforts with your in-house team if applicable. Lastly, determine the start date.
7. Draft a Contract
After all of that, it's time to draft a contract after opting for a designer or agency. In this unfinalized document, aim to define every detail of the partnership, such as project requirements, the timeline of the deliverables, revision policies, budget, trademarking, and payment terms. Lastly, you should include all the necessary legal aspects of the partnership.
Conclusion
Outsourcing logo design projects ensures that your most important branding asset will be in good hands while you focus on running and improving your business.
You need to conduct thorough research to enlist the right agency or designer. Asking fellow business owners about their logo-creation process is always a good idea. Check out potential partners, carefully examine their qualifications and portfolios, and opt for an expert within your predefined budget.
All in all, it’s important to have a vision of how you would want your logo to look and to find an expert who can clearly understand your needs and turn them into a reality.
FAQ
Where is the best place to outsource logo design?
Typically, businesses will entrust either dedicated design agencies, digital marketing agencies, or freelance designers to create or reimagine their logos for them.
Each of these options has its own advantages and possible drawbacks. Freelance designers often offer more competitive prices and a more focused approach, but agencies are often more reliable and offer an entire team of experts to do the job. Still, the final option should boil down to your needs, specific project requirements, and budget.
How much do freelancers charge for logo design?
While every project is different, there are a lot of variables involved in freelancer hourly rates. For example, some designers on Upwork offer lower rates, starting from $25, while the other end of the spectrum may reach $75 per hour. That said, the average would be around $50.
Also, a typical branding/logo project will take approximately 10-15 hours, which translates to $500-$750 per logo.
How much do companies charge for logo design?
Agencies may charge hourly or flat fees depending on the project’s requirements. Dedicated design companies stand out because they often offer top-to-bottom packages that address every aspect of a business's brand and visual identity.
These packages usually cost upward of $2500, but you’ll likely be getting a full-service team of experienced designers.
