Wordmark
A wordmark is a logo that is completely type-based. It relies on typography and letterforms, combined with colour and use of space, to produce a recognisable brand. These usually work best with unusual company names that are are fairly short. It is important to choose a font that represents the company, as the font has to work hard to stand out without any images or pretty additions.
A wordmark that I have designed is the logo for Lysithea, an IT company, where in addition to choosing a font, I also edited some of the letterforms to create a real identity and brand image.
Lettermark
A lettermark is a logo created by combining two or more letters, like a monogram. The merged letterforms create the logo without any other design elements to support them, apart from colour/colours chosen, and the way the letterforms have been positioned.
My own logo is a lettermark. I sometimes add my web address to it to provide more clarity about my business, but usually it is a stand-alone logo which is simple and hopefully becoming recognisable!
Pictorial Mark
A pictorial mark is a logo which is an image or icon, without the use of any letters or words. The most recognisable pictorial mark is probably the Apple logo, I’m sure most people recognise the bitten apple as their logo without a thought!
A pictorial mark that I have designed is the logo for the Swift Bar at Lutterworth Golf Club, an image based logo using a swift bird and the shape of a river to represent the River Swift.
Abstract Mark
An abstract mark is a type of pictorial mark (which is a logo without any letters or words), however it differs from a pictorial mark as it’s image isn’t representative of an object. These use geometric shapes, symbols or patterns to reflect the ethos of the company.
Examples of this are the Nike logo and the Pepsi logo. They don’t say the company name or have an obvious link to the business initially, but they are images/shapes that soon become recognisable when they are used for a big brand. They’re used less frequently for small businesses as they’re harder to establish, and probably a little too abstract for most people. I can’t say that I’ve designed one of these, but maybe that would be a good challenge if anyone is in the market for one!!
Combination Mark
A combination mark is made up of any combination of words, letters, images, or mascots; for example an image and text. These can be arranged in any way, either alongside eachother or with text on top of an image, or whatever works best for the design!
This is probably the most popular type of logo with customers I have designed logos for as it’s very versatile. My branding packages include sub logos which means I often separate an image or mascot from the main logo to create a separate image (or sub logo) that can be used on things such as social media posts.
A combination mark that I have designed recently is the logo for Sylvaine Ethical Aesthetics, with the sub logos below to be available to use as separate branding elements.
