Is Your Logo Worth The Price of a Car?

I always have difficulty convincing clients to spend money on logos but good ones do take skill and time to produce and then have to be developed into a consistent visual style across a huge range of items and merchandise.

Many years ago on hearing me whinge about this a client of mine said that he had to sell snails in garlic and I should count myself lucky.  I'm not so sure.  More than two decades on his restaurant is still using the logo I designed so I reckon it was good value.

One of my current favourite design books is Meta Skills by Mart Neumeier.

Here's a link http://www.amazon.co.uk/Metaskills-Five-Talents-Robotic-Age/dp/0321898672

Here's what Marty says about what a logo is worth

"A logo is not a brand. But is it valuable? Probably more than most companies realize. A logo (let's call it a combination of a name and graphic treat­ment) has the ability to compress the purpose, personality, and uniqueness of a brand into an elegant, meaningful symbol. This symbol, if con­ceived well, can be unpacked by customers in ways that are hugely valuable to the company over many years.

How much should the company pay for a logo? About as much as a car, as it turns out. Think about the logo as a company car for brand mean­ing. You can buy a car for $500. It may be an eye­sore, but it'll get you from A to B if you're lucky.

At the other end of the spectrum, you could pay up to $500,000 for a uniquely designed beauty with impeccable engineering. It'll strike awe into the hearts of onlookers, and perform well for a good 25 years or more. Realistically, however, the right symbol for most companies will be in the S20,000 to $75,000 range, depending on their prospects. Is your brand symbol worth the price of a car? What kind?"