If you want your brand to look consistent across different communication platforms, you’ll need multiple versions of your logo.

Having various logo versions ensures your brand identity flexibility - you should be able to use the version that best fits the space and medium. Here are the most common logo variations and how to use them.

What are different logo versions?

An alternative logo version is your primary logo rearranged into a different format. All of the other logo versions are still recognizable and a part of your brand identity, but they adapt to the content and media.

That's why logo versatility is essential. It will be placed in more places as your business grows, and each of these places will have its size and file type requirements.

Vertical Logo

If the space provided is too small for the primary logo, you'll need to use a vertical or stacked version instead. You'll most likely need a vertical or a stacked version for social media avatars and any other applications where the horizontal version would get too small to be legible.

Horizontal Logo

A horizontal logo can be used on your website, invoice template, stationary, or online and in print where the vertical logo is not the best fit.

Tagline/no tagline option

Combined with a logo, a tagline can be the focal point of branding that customers remember. The truth is that a great logo works with and without a tagline. That's why you should have a logo that reflects both options.

The single-color & reversed-out logo

It's best practice to first design logos in a single color; that way, it's easy to see if it's strong enough to stand on its own. A single-color option is simple and instantly readable. It's used in one-color printing for marketing materials and packaging. Every logo suite should include a solid black and reversed-out white version.

Submark

A submark is a different version of a logo used when the primary logo is not the best fit. It is visually similar enough to be associated with your primary logo, but it's simplified in design. Its main purpose is to be used as social media avatars, stamps, and other small applications where the primary logo would be too big to fit.

Brand Mark

An icon or symbol with or without the company or brand name is called a brandmark logo. Brandmark logos are popular across all industries because images are usually more recognizable than words or letters. Those are the icons that mean something to consumers. A brandmark can be an icon or even a character.

Favicon

A favicon is a small icon placed in the tab next to the address bar of your website. Its primary goal is to help visitors find your page easier when they have multiple tabs open. Since they're only 16x16 pixels, favicons work best as simple images or one-to-three characters of text.

Favicons are not logos, even though they sometimes end up being the same. The favicon may need to be an even smaller sized element or part of a company's original logo because of its small size and resolution.

If your logo isn't quite responsive, it is something to consider for your business this year. Think about how having different logo variations could work for you by creating a recognizable and consistent brand presence across all media.

Favicon is a little icon next to the page title

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Author: Zuza Hicks

Zuza Hicks is a brand designer who creates logos, brand identities, and packaging for quietly rebellious brands that want to do things differently.

She combines strategy + research with meaning to help businesses develop into powerful brands through branding and packaging. Follow her on Instagram to see her dog and lots of branding tips.

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