“Do I need an author logo?” Writers and authors often ask me this question. Another question usually follows, “After all, isn’t branding all about making a logo?”
As a 20-year branding professional, I can tell you the answer to the last question is a resounding *NO.* However, the answer to your initial question is a wishy-washy *maybe.*
Let’s break both questions down to better understand the concept of branding and why it might be important in your writing career.
What Makes Up a Brand?
When you think of some of the most well-known corporate brands like Coca-Cola®, a logo might pop into your mind first. However, it is only one component of a much larger branding strategy. Branding involves visual elements such as the unique combination of colors, fonts, imagery, and other details such as messaging, mission, and even things like guidance on authentically interacting with the customer.
When a company is well-branded, such as Coca-Cola, it allows us to recall the visual representation and, almost more importantly, helps us remember the way we feel about the company. (For example, Coca-Cola literally redesigned Santa Claus and put him in that red suit, so you will think about having a Coke during the Christmas season! It’s true!)
Brand Analysis Comes First
While Coca-Cola does have a recognizable logo—it alone does not make or break the brand. Before you go design a logo, it’s critical for individuals and companies, when creating a brand, to first analyze four important questions:
- Who Are They? – The company’s mission/message
- What Do They Offer? – What are the product/service and the benefits
- To/For Whom? – Who specifically is the target audience
- How Are They Different? – What makes the company similar and different than the competition
Only after analysis of all those factors can branding (or rebranding) begin. If the research determines a logo would strengthen a brand, then it would, in fact, be created.
What About An Author Logo?
“That’s fine for corporations,” you say, “but what about individual authors? Do authors need logos?”
To build a solid personal logo or brand (an author brand is supporting a person), you should first ask those same four questions, too. Your analysis may determine that no other author in your sphere has a memorable logo, and having one might make it easier to connect with readers more effectively.
Beyond that, my advice for authors is to build a logo for one of two main reasons.
- You want an author logo. Do you desire an icon of your very own? Do you have materials that will showcase your logo, such as a website, business cards, T-shirts, etc. I’ve had my swirling pen logo for nearly two decades, and I still love it. Just be aware that the logo design process may require more money and time than you’re willing to spend. (You do need time to write after all.)
- You plan to independently or self-publish, and you need a logo for the spine of your books. However, one could argue that, in this case, the logo is not for a personal brand but, instead, a corporate brand for a publishing business. (You’d still need an author-focused brand, website, and other collateral for your own books.)
Either way, what an author logo looks like, how it’s used, and the colors it will bring in, need to be developed after those original analysis questions are answered. Why spend time and money creating a blue logo with Helvetica type if it will not appeal to your audience. (I’m looking back at you, Gap.)
Do you still have questions? You’re in luck. I have the book for you! I’ve distilled my experience as a branding expert working with authors into a step-by-step workbook to help people structure their own written author brand plan. If that interests you, hop on over to my Brand the Author (Note the Book) page and learn more.