Final Style Guide

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After finalising my logo design, I moved on to creating my style guide. I wanted to look for some inspiration for the guide before jumping into a design, and I came across this example for a brand called Bosphorus. I really like the simplicity of the design, and while this example is much more in depth than the one that I need to create; I feel very inspired by it and I want to try and create something with this kind of simplicity and this much impact. The style guide is a piece of design in itself and so I think that almost as much thought needs to be put into it as with the logo itself, which is very clear to see with this example.

http://identitydesigned.com/bosphorus/

The specification for the style guide was to create one A3 sheet with all of the information included, and so I began by placing the logos into the guide. As well as the main logo, I also decided to include a secondary, simplified logo in the form of just the block of colour, widened out into a square. The idea behind this was that it could be used as a simple little icon for the brand, used at a small scale for things such as letterheads or website icons perhaps. I placed these into the design at quite a large scale, as I wanted to emphasise the strength and power behind the logos. Next, on the other side of the page, I introduced some more information detailing the colour scheme details, and examples of how the logo should be used on white backgrounds compared with dark backgrounds.

So far I had kept this design quite minimal, with very little text included, however I felt that I needed to include more of an explanation behind my design and how I came to the decisions that I did. As a way to include this, and also a way to make the style guide a little more interesting and more immersive, I designed a small panel with all of the detailed information written on. This panel is scaled to the exact same size as the white area on the full page, with the idea being that it would be stuck to the front, covering the white and acting almost as a front page that is turned over to reveal the logos. I think this is an interesting little addition to the guide, and as well as a way to include important information behind the look of the brand, I feel like it is an innovative way to solve a problem and a way to make a more engaging experience, which is a strong way to represent the ideals and values of the Kent Sales Academy brand.

Refined Logo Development

After finalising my colour scheme, the next step was to move into creating what the actual logo would be. Using similar typefaces, but much simpler designs, I started experimenting with different layouts and ideas, looking at different ways that I could incorporate the colour scheme into the design. What I found through doing this was that I preferred the iterations in which the colours were a little more minimal, and where they were used in smaller more subtle spaces. I found that the versions with lots of colour, or large blocks of it, were a bit too overpowering, and whilst I want to go for a bold, strong look to represent the KSA, I felt that some of these were a little too much and actually made for a weaker logo.

Through experimenting with the different designs and discussions with my tutors and peers, I decided to pick the design below to take forward and further tweak and change. I really liked the idea of bold grey type with a small band of colour next to it; I like the subtleness of the design, without it losing any of the impact.

I experimented with using different typefaces and placing the band of colour in different positions on the logo, trying all kinds of variations until I found one that I liked. I decided to use this, more condensed typeface as I felt it had a more modern look. The KSA also specified that they wanted the design to appeal not only to parents and teachers, but also to young people who would potentially be signing up to study; and I feel that this typeface does well to appeal to both. With the band of colour, I decided to experiment with an arrow style shape rather than just three squares of colour, which I much prefer. I think this also carries some meaning behind it for the KSA, as it has connotations to moving forward, and suggests the KSA to be a progressive, and therefore positive place to study, which puts the brand into a positive light with the audience it will reach. I think this is a very strong and bold design, and I think it does well to represent the values of the KSA, through the carefully chosen colour scheme and the developed layout of the design itself.

Colour Theory and Logo Development

After quickly mocking up that first design I wanted to do some research to help create a more in depth piece. I was still hooked on the idea of incorporating the theme of tenacity, resilience and curiosity into the design somehow and so I decided to look into some colour theory behind those words.

After looking through a number of various web pages (the most useful ones linked below) I found that generally tenacity is linked with the colour blue, resilience a the colour purple, and curiosity often with yellows. I found this very interesting, and whilst the colours are all quite bold, I feel like they could potentially work well together and compliment each other to make for a strong and bold design, reflecting the values and philosophies of the Kent Sales Academy.

http://www.arttherapyblog.com/online/color-psychology-psychologica-effects-of-colors/#.WTCPVHeZM6V
https://hubpages.com/education/Psychology-of-Colors
https://hubpages.com/health/The-Meanings-of-Color

After looking into the colour theory, and looking back to my first mock up, I decided to try the colours out together with my design, replacing the original colours with the blue, purple and yellow. Whilst the colours are not quite right, with the yellow getting slightly overpowered and the design not being right, I feel that those colours do work together and could definitely compliment each other in a design that does work well.

Before working on more designs I wanted to make sure I had the colours just as I wanted, and so I started using Adobe Kuler to experiment with different colour schemes, editing the blue, purple and yellow until I had a selection that I liked, and that I felt worked together well enough to fit with my design, and to represent the KSA in a strong enough way.

Kent Sales Academy

As a short term bomb project, we have been approached by someone setting up the Kent Sales Academy, aimed at giving young people the skills and qualifications they need to work and succeed in the sales industry. As a new startup, they have asked for a logo design, with some basic branding in the form of a style guide to accompany it.

When speaking to us about the academy, the one thing I picked up on more than anything else, and that he kept returning to, was that for someone to succeed in sakes they need to have tenacity, resilience, and curiosity. This was something that I found quite interesting and something I definitely wanted to incorporate somehow into my work.

As this was a very quick brief, I started by quickly mocking up a basic idea, just to get something started and to clear my head a bit, allowing for more ideas to stem from that.

I decided to go for a bold, simple typeface that had some sense of confidence and boldness about it, something that a good sales employee would need. I also decided to start with quite a bold colour scheme, utilising three bright colours to fill the type. Now as a design I am really not keen on it, and it is nowhere near a finished piece, but starting on this definitely allowed for more clear space in my head and helped to generate more ideas from it.