The swoosh. The golden arches. The slightly bitten apple. We don’t even have to tell you the names of these companies for you to know what brand we’re talking about. Since we recently wrote about the importance of creating a good self storage company name, now it’s time to come up with some self storage logo ideas. So how do you begin to come up with good company logo ideas? In this blog, we’ll cover the importance of creating a good self storage business logo and even offer up some free logo maker tools.
Importance of a Good Self Storage Logo
Just as a company name carries your brand reputation, a company logo puts an image to it—after all, a picture is worth a thousand words. While a logo may be looked at as just a small graphic element, over time words can get in the way, and your logo may become the single-most definitive way consumers connect with your brand. Ultimately, it will appear on your facility, your website, marketing materials, shirts, and business cards – just about everything associated with your business.
Why else does a logo matter? Unlike a name, logos are typically recognizable at the first glance. Thus wherever it appears, it'll remind prospective customers about your business and your self storage services. Think we’re overemphasizing the importance of a logo? Not at all. There have been multiple studies done on this very topic. Take a look at some of these eye-opening logo statistics from a Study Finds survey:
- 78% believe brand logos are “works of art.”
- 60% avoid companies with weird or unattractive logos.
- 50% are much more likely to use a company whose logo they easily recognize.
- 42% say logos tell them about a company’s personality and quality.
- 36% say logos help them remember the brand in question.
That’s not all. Here are a few more figures for you before we dive into logo creation:
- The human brain can process images 60,000 times faster than words, highlighting the importance of branded logos.
- It takes 10 seconds for people to form an opinion about your logo, so it’s important to create a design that’s effective before you even start branding.
- If you consistently present your brand regardless of the platform, it can increase revenue by up to 23%. This means you’ll want your brand colors, fonts, and logo to look the same on every platform, both on and offline.
Lastly, nearly 95% of the world’s population recognize the Coca-Cola logo. Now, we’re not saying you’ll ever reach that level of popularity, but hey, why not try.
Creating a Self Storage Business Logo That Works
So, what makes a great logo? There are five things to keep in mind. A good self storage company logo should be:
- Unique (but not too unique). You want to stand apart from the competition and especially the self storage REITs, but you still want people to understand what services you offer.
- Easily recognizable, even from a distance. Although a lot of people are researching self storage facilities online or through reviews beforehand, many tenants still choose facilities on a whim, so you want the logo to stand out at street level to passersby.
- Scalable. The design needs to look as good on your facility building or on a billboard as it does on a business card or T-shirt. It should also be equally impactful in both color and black and white.
- Simple and easily understood. Don’t be too obscure when branding a straightforward product or service.
- Representative of your company’s identity. Try to tie into your ideals. Are you focused on customer service and want to highlight a handshake? Or are you the most secure facility in the area, and want to highlight a lock symbol?
Coming Up with Self Storage Logo Ideas
Ready to get started creating your self storage logo? Before we dive in, consider that logos come in four basic forms:
- An abstract symbol, such as the Nike swoosh
- An illustrative symbol that indicates exactly what the company does (say, a vacuum cleaner for a maid service)
- A font-based logo, such as Coca-Cola or Google
- A mascot, such as Ronald McDonald or the Pillsbury Doughboy
8 Tips for Creating Company Logo Ideas
Now, let’s take a look at some design tips that can be applied to all types of logos; designs that are distinctive, authentic, memorable, and enduring so they resonate with your target audience.
Tip 1. Brainstorm Your Self Storage Logo Ideas
It’s idea-generation time. The easiest way to do this? Start with a clean sheet of paper and divide it into three columns. The first column will list adjectives that you think describe your brand, the second will be basic sketches that represent these ideas (they may be abstract or literal), and the third will be colors that you think tie them both together. Here’s a simple example:
Tip 2. Study Other Logos for Inspiration
What else is out there? You can—and should—look outside your industry for inspiration, but ultimately you want to see what the competition is doing through their marketing efforts. You’ll want to especially consider those that are most successful, but you don’t want to copy them (that could even lead to copy infringement). Ask yourself:
- What type of logo are they using? Is it abstract, illustrative, font-based, or a combination?
- If it’s a combination, how are they making the name and the logo work together?
- Is the company name and logo overlapped, stacked, or adjacent?
- What’s memorable about their logo? What colors or graphics are they using to make it stand out? Would you notice it?
- Does their logo communicate something to you about what their company represents?
Finally, it’s fair to ask, does their logo suck? If so, you’re in a great place to pull ahead with your own great logo!
Tip 3. Keep It Simple
Coco Chanel once said, “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off”. This can be applied to logos as well. Don’t get too busy with them. They need to be able to be read from a distance, and they need to be able to be scaled down to fit legibly on a business card or T-shirt. Think about using just a couple of colors, and don’t overdo the fonts no matter how many words you’re using. If it looks messy, then it won’t translate well to all mediums.
Tip 4. Make It Memorable
We get it, a self storage facility is never going to hold the same cache as Nike or Apple. So don’t try. But, do what you can to identify and differentiate your brand from others, capture your audience’s attention, and leave a positive and lasting impression. That’s where the brainstorming from #1 is so important. What can you offer that others can not? When you have decided upon a logo, make sure it’s unique (and not stock that can be easily copied). You still want to keep it simple, but give it a twist. Would Apple’s logo be the same without the bite?
Tip 5. Consider Your Colors
Logo color makes up to 90% of a consumer’s first impression. The color blue is associated with trust, dependability, and strength, and appeals to men and women. 33% of the world’s top 100 brands have logos that include the color blue. Think Twitter, Facebook, and Visa for reference. Red is used to encourage excitement and happiness, which is why Coca-Cola embraces it. And green signifies the environment and universal love, and is a Starbucks staple. Learn more about color meanings here and be sure to consider what your color choice will communicate to customers. But remember, it’s still got to look good in black and white.
Tip 6. Watch Your Fonts
Comic Sans mockery brought the importance of a good font to the forefront of design (just look at these Comic Sans memes). Be sure that the font you choose for any logo matches the identity you want to present. Comic Sans is fine for a line of kids’ toys, but not a reputable internet business—or most businesses, for that matter. On the flip side, a business-focused font is not going to work well for a flier designed to generate excitement about a new promotion. Learn more about using the right design font here.
Tip 7. Approach Trends Cautiously
You want your logo to stand the test of time, so avoid being so trendy that your design looks dated a few years after you’ve created it. Plus, if you follow trends too much, you risk losing your identity completely. Just look at how these popular companies sacrificed logo recognition for trendiness, all falling in line with the latest font trend:
Tip 8: Get Feedback
Once you’ve come up with a list of potential self storage logo ideas, consider gathering the opinions of friends, family, and potential employees and customers, or sending out a branding survey. Of course, if you don’t want them to sway your opinion too much, or allow the name to be decided by committee, or you could wind up with a basic name that appeals to no one.
Branding with Storelocal
There are plenty of websites where you can begin to craft new self storage logo ideas, such as Placeit’s Logo Maker, Looka Logo Maker, and Canva. These free logo tools have helped many start-ups make a name for themselves. Of course, we know that many new self storage owners and operators are looking for a more simple solution. We’ve got you covered!
Storelocal®, the nation’s only membership organization created by independent self storage operators, now offers our Storelocal Brand Program. This unique, voluntary program allows self storage owners and operators to use our branding, but stay completely independent! Providing economies of scale and online visibility, Storelocal allows owners to retain their assets, increase their profit, and maintain their independence. The Storelocal Brand gives owners the online visibility and buying power of a REIT while remaining independent. For more on branding, check the Storelocal Brand Program now!