4. The legal and ethical do's and don'ts in trademark design

4. The legal and ethical do's and don'ts in trademark design

In order to create a professional, high quality logo/trademark you have to have a clear understanding of the do's and don'ts of professional logo design. 

Do's

• Do your research. Make sure you have the correct knowledge and best understanding of the business you are designing for. Discover things you could utilise from the company to put into your design.
• Make your work origional. Originality in most cases is the very factor that makes a winning logo design. When creating a new logo, it should not remind you of another companies logo, it should not be copied from another source and it should not have copyright or trademark infringement issues.
• Read the design brief. Failing to read and understand a brief given to you can result in absolute disaster and cost you work. Make sure you 100% know what the client is asking for so you don't fail to impress.

Don'ts

• Overdo Graphics. complicated logo designs with, gradients, drop shadows, over lays doesn't always mean you have the upper hand on a winning logo design. The simpler the graphics is, the better chances of the logo being memorable and appealing. Simplicity must always come with thought and creative sensivility. For example, McDonalds, Coca Cola are all simple yet effective.
• Dont use 3rd party stock vectors. Never use clip art in your design. It isn't your own design, and it wont show originality. Doing this can also lead to bad legal issues. You could be sued for copy right or your reputation as a designer will be crushed.
• Dont copy a design concept. Copying another logo concept or basing your design on another designers work is wrong and is also illegal. Stay away from any type of copying to save yourself from legal issues and embarrassment. 

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