Logo design and brand identity

What you receive

• a primary logo plus horizontal and compact versions;
• a standalone symbol for the website icon, social media avatars and apps;
• single-colour and reversed versions for dark or busy backgrounds;
• a colour palette with HEX and RGB codes for screens and CMYK for print;
• a pair of fonts for headings and body text, with licences checked;
• a concise brand guide: clear space, minimum size, what not to do;
• sample applications: business card, social post, cover image, signage.

How the logo design process works

• Brief: what you do, who your customers are, what sets you apart and what you dislike.
• Market review: how competitors in your city present themselves and where there is room to stand out.
• Sketches: several directions in black and white, so the shape is judged before colour.
• Refinement of the chosen direction: colour, typography and versions.
• Identity and applications: palette, fonts, examples in use.
• Hand-over of files and the brand guide, with a note on which file to use where.

Fonts, special characters and two alphabets

Businesses in Estonia often need their name and tagline in both Latin and Cyrillic script. Many attractive fonts lack õ, š, ž or Cyrillic altogether, and that usually comes to light when the sign is already being printed. The studio chooses fonts where every character you need is drawn in the same style.

Licensing is checked separately: can the font be used on the website, in print and in advertising? Fonts with open licences, such as those in the Google Fonts library, usually settle that question.

Colours for screen and print

The same colour looks different on a phone and on paper, and every screen and printer renders it slightly differently. That is why the palette is delivered in two systems: RGB and HEX for the website and social media, CMYK for the print shop. Text and background combinations are checked for contrast so they stay legible in bright sunlight and for people with weaker eyesight.

Which files you get

Logo rights and trademarks

The economic copyright to the final logo is transferred to you under the contract. Sketches you did not choose remain with the studio.

Registering a trademark is a separate procedure: in Estonia it is handled by the Estonian Patent Office (Patendiamet), and for the whole EU by EUIPO. The studio does not file applications, but before you do, it is worth searching the trademark databases for similar marks in your field.

Common logo mistakes

• fine lines and tiny details that disappear in a favicon or profile picture;
• a colour-only logo with no single-colour version for print or engraving;
• a name that cannot be read from across the street;
• a font without õ, š, ž or Cyrillic, so letters get patched in by hand later;
• only PNG or JPG files, when the printer asks for a vector that does not exist.

What affects the cost of a logo

• a logo only or a full visual identity;
• a brand-new logo or a refresh of an existing one;
• how many applications are needed: business cards, signage, packaging, social media templates;
• a detailed brand guide or a concise one.