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Logos

Logo design is critical for more than just your Web site. It will be used on business cards and promotional material, in presentations, in newspaper articles and videos. You want something that remains recognizable even at a distance or at a small size.

Types

There are three types of logos: photo-like or illustrative, graphical or iconic, and text-based. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. For Web use, many photo designs become muddy or hard to comphrehend at small sizes. They also tend to require more complex color use. Stick to iconic or text treatments: Think about the logos of IBM or AT&T.

Animation

Animated logos should be treated with care. They don't print well and can conflict with non-standard browsers. While they can draw attention to your brand at first glance, they then stick around and interfere with the reader's concentration as they try to read the rest of the page. An animated version of a logo can be appropriately used in advertising or other times when it's meant to attract the eye and be the center of attention — think of short station identification animations on television — but for your home page and the bulk of your site, avoid using animated logos.

Placement

Put your logo at the top of the page. On inside pages, keep it as small as possible without making it unreadable. On the Web, screen space is as valuable as oceanfront property: Users rarely scroll down past the first screen of information on a page. Once people know what site they're at, don’t waste space reminding them. If visitors have entered your site at an inside page, however, they will need a logo to tell them where they’ve landed. And they do like to click on the site's logo to get back to the front page, so make sure the logo links back to your index page.

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