A local team photographer recently contacted me about getting some shirts embroidered with his logo. The original file did not include any text and he said I could use whatever font I thought would look good with it. Normally as a creative person I love it when someone asks me to do what I think will look best. In this case, I wanted to know more about the company to see if the logo was branding them in the right way. After checking out their website and an in-depth conversation with the owner, I finally found the information I was looking for and the inspiration for the new design.
Getting a Feel for the Business
The company is called Strawhouse Sports and they do volume photography. What is volume photography? Well, the owner explained that volume photography is the term used for when youth sports teams bring in a photographer to take individual and team photos. These are the momentos we parents cherish and adore, and put up on the fridge for all of eternity.
What Sets Strawhouse Sports Apart from Competitors?
from the usual way of doing things is how they embrace technology, making it easier to order prints online and use a lot of different backgrounds. No more forgetting your check book or not having exact change. The owner coordinates with the organization to set pre-order dates and photo day. The pre-order window is open 7 days before and 3 days after the photo shoot. He takes photos of everyone who shows up and parents can still place an order up to 3 days afterwards.
Two weeks ago I had to borrow a check from a friend because I forgot my check book. I very rarely bring my checkbook out of my house, what about you? The goal is to address all the complaints and issues that parents had with traditional volume photography methods, including the annoying paper forms, the lack of customer service and lack of quality backdrops.
Logo Transformation
Original Logo
The elements of this logo are taken directly from the name of the business. Simply a house to represent “Strawhouse” and sports equipment to represent the “Sports”. This is a very straight forward way to come up with a logo. But I wasn’t seeing anything relating to photography, which is the essence of the business.
After my customer answered a branding questionnaire about logo likes and dislikes (colors, etc.) I was ready to start the transformation. My customer had a font in mind, the original house artwork and a camera icon that he liked. Using these elements and what I had learned from the owner, I pulled together three logo concepts with various color options and outlining.
Different Approach
After looking at the same words in the same font for a while I needed to try something different to give my eyes a break. For the fourth concept I searched through new fonts and found one that really stood out. Based on the font and the logo text we decided to use, the design started to design itself. The Strawhouse Sports logo transformation took an unexpected direction and my customer decided to use this fourth concept.
This powerful, clean lined font is called CodePro and can be found here. Using the aperture for the ‘O’ in Strawhouse tells us that a camera is involved in this business. I know this is obvious, we’re talking about a photography business, but sometimes there isn’t an obvious a connection between a logo and the type of business. Here we use the term ‘team photography’ so that there is no mistaking the business concept. If we had used ‘Sport/Sports Photography’, the logo may have given the impression of live action sports photography for magazines and the sports section of a newspaper.
The text lent itself to a stripe, but not just any old, straight, boring stripe. This stripe represents the winner’s podium. And what better place to stand than on the podium, posing for your photo.
Another important piece of the design is the color orange. Color has many psychological influences whether we are paying attention or not. The orange in the stripe shows energy and grabs attention. Using black and orange together is also a very familiar combination for the Baltimore area. The home town team, the Orioles, uses black and orange in their logo and marketing strategy. It’s so recognizable that all you need to do is mention the two colors together and the word baseball and anyone around the Baltimore area knows exactly what you are talking about without having to use any specific names. This is the power color has on branding a business.
Favicon for Fun – Branding Everywhere
The other design concepts had elements he wanted to use in other ways. We pulled this design out of one of the original three concepts and liked it so much it is now a favicon. (Not sure what a favicon is? Check this out.) Favicons have gained popularity in recent years and seeing a website without one feels like it is naked… every bit of space is an opportunity to brand your business.
Strawhouse Sports needed help refining their message, the first place to start was through their logo. The new logo is now on their website and really stands out with that bright orange!
Strawhouse Sports needed help refining their message, the first place to start was through their logo. The new logo is now on their website and really stands out with that bright orange!
Branding Your New Business
Dogwood Hill Embroidery started out with embroidery and screen printing services over 12 years ago (Dogwood Hill Embroidery is long enough as is, so just take the screen printing part for granted. I have used up a lot of my life just saying my business name and spelling out my email address. Note to self and to other entrepreneurs: next time you create a business name, keep it short and sweet). As our customer’s needs have changed, so has DHE’s service selection. The logo transformation outlined on this page is an affordable option for a new business or a useful option to those who just want to spruce up their current design.
What’s in the Package?
The branding kit outlined above for Strawhouse Sports included:
- 4 Logo Concepts – narrowed down to one final with one round of editing at no charge
- Final Logo – Vector format for future printing (2 color combinations included, for use on dark or light backgrounds)
- Final Logo – Web format (3 files, your choice) (2 color combinations included, for use on dark or light backgrounds)
Want more?
Other more inclusive packages can combine any number of marketing materials to suit your needs. Designs for stationery, business cards, envelopes, stickers, and so on. Get it designed here, get it printed here. Have an idea but don’t know if it’s possible? Just ask Dogwood Hill.
Do you have a logo that needs to be updated or completely redesigned?
Still not convinced that you need ‘branding’?
Contact DHE for more details.