Or in this case... Your online shop!
As you know one of the things I enjoy doing is designing logo's and banner & avatar sets for online shops. I just wanted to have some info about what makes a good logo or shop banner. When people go to your shop on Etsy or one of the other online selling sites, your shop banner is one of the first things people are going to see! Even if you don't have a logo for your business you need to have a good shop banner and avatars. They are some of the key factors that help to convey a professional image.
First thing to understand is the logo. What is a logo? A logo is not just your shop name written across a photo of one of the items you sell. A logo is a graphic that will help your business to be instantly recognizable to customers and clients. It will set you apart from others in your field. You want your logo to be original, simple and clean if its going to withstand the test of time.
If your in the market for a new logo, keep in mind that a good logo designer is going to work with you to make a design the suits you and your business, even if you don't know what that is! Your logo should NOT be pixelated and the designer should be able to move, alter, change, add without any issue.
As far as banners go, you can repeat some of the points of a good logo right into your banner set! You want your banner to represent your store, carry your logo well, if you have one, and be crisp clear and uncluttered! Your banner should be more then one or two graphics copied, and flipped over, so there's one on each side.
If your wondering if your banner may need updating, here are some things to ask yourself. Is my shop name clear and easy to read? Is the banner clear and clean looking, or does it feel cluttered and all over the place? Is there a lot of pattern behind your name and tag line, making it hard to read? Does it represent my shop? me? If using photos, are they clear and easy to see? Are the photos distorted, too fat or tall (this one in particular makes your banner look really bad)?
And with either a logo or a banner make sure the designer is using graphics & photos that are free for commercial use, or that the designer does in fact have the copyrights to use them. Just because a photo or graphic shows up on a web search without a watermark does not mean it free to use! The last thing you want, is to have to replace all your business cards, banners, avatars and other stationary because of copyright issues!
There are plenty of designers out there in lots of price ranges and it can be overwhelming. Make sure when your looking for a designer you check out all the sales they've had, look at the feed back they have, good and bad. Actually go and read them. You could even go and message some of their customers to get more details and feed back! Look at the things they are selling and the things they are buying too! Take your time and don't rush into something because of a good sale! Shop around and find the right designer for you.
