Is your business ready to put its best face forward? Or is your first impression a forgettable one?

I see that light-bulb over your head, and I know what it means. You have a business idea!

Not a hair-brained one that will cause your folks anxiety because you may be shortly packing your bags to move back into their house. No, it’s not so far fetched that it will never take off.

It’s seriously a legitimate idea that you have the skills for – and the cajones ovaries to take it to the next step.

That is…until you get out your polka dotted planner and start to add everything up.

You have to get a business license, a business checking account, business cards, a website, packaging…and still pay the electric bill! So much to do and so many choices.

But first, a logo! You’re excited about all the possibilities, and you can’t wait to see the face of your business come to life. You’ve pinned inspiration boards and dreamed of branded stationery, coffee mugs and iphone cases…

But as you start adding up the money you’re already spending out, you start to think that maybe a logo from Fiverr might work, afterall.

Or maybe you can just take some clipart and put it together in Pic Monkey yourself and call it a day. That would help save some pennies, right? And it would get things moving too, because let’s face it: you need money yesterday.

It may seem that having a logo designed is not the most important step toward world domination, but it should be high on the priority list, because it’s the foundation of your brand and the first thing your customers will see when they meet your business.

Glossing over this step is something we’re all tempted to do. Seriously – all of us! Even me.

My logo for my first business, way back in 2011, was a MESS.

It was horrendous. I took my initials and centered them above the title of my business. That’s it. I didn’t even pay attention to font licensing to see if it was even legal for me to use the fonts that I found.

That’s a little scary now that I look back on it, because it probably wasn’t. Yikes!

So as much as you may either want to run blindly through this step, or skip it altogether to get your business running, I want you to stop. It’s important to give your business a clear identity – one that people can remember and one that tells the story you want it to tell.

I know that you have a million things that are important to do right away, so why does this one thing need to cut in line?

1- Your logo makes you memorable and recognizable.

Let’s do one of those things where I tell you to close your eyes and picture something, so I can help make an illustration.

Think of one of your favorite brands. Close your eyes and try to recall the logo of the brand in your mind.

Do it! I’m not kidding…and no peeking.

Can you see the colors and the symbol? I’m personally picturing Target right about now. You know what I’m seeing, right?

[clickToTweet tweet=”Your logo makes you memorable & recognizable. Don’t forget to make it awesome.” quote=”Your logo makes you memorable & recognizable. Don’t forget to make it awesome.”]

Even though we see a gazillion logos every single day, our favorites stick with us.

We can easily remember what the logo looks like and any time we see it we remember all the good reasons we love the brand.

Like when we see that cute bag our BFF is carrying and we spot the Kate Spade logo. We know what that logo means, and we feel like we’re in a super secret club with all the other cool girls when we recognize it. We may even be inspired by that moment to rush out & grab one for ourselves.

Oh, I know! There’s an iPhone crossbody with my name on it, but Shhh! Don’t tell my hubby.

You see, a business without a memorable and easily recognizable logo will be easily forgotten. And if your business is forgettable…well, your bank account will unfortunately feel that rejection too.

2- Your logo communicates a message that attracts the right people to your brand.

Let’s say that you want to sell leather handcrafted backpacks to an ideal customer who is a 35 year old female who likes the outdoors. She likely won’t be attracted to a logo that’s pink and frilly. One with earthy tones will be more her cuppa tea.

Even though the pink frilly logo might be what you really like, the earthy tone logo will bring in the gal who will buy your thing, so don’t confuse her with a mixed message.

[clickToTweet tweet=”Your logo tells a story that brings the right people to you or it could be sending them away!” quote=”Your logo tells a story that brings the right people to you or it could be sending them away!”]

A confusing message will attract the wrong clients to your business and possibly turn the right clients off before they even get to know the amazing you and the amazing thing you do.

If you need extra help on choosing colors that won’t confuse your ideal clients check out this blog post.

When you clarify your message and have a logo that reflects it well, it will help you attract the right customer from the beginning.

3- Your logo will let others know that you are the real deal!

When you have a well designed logo, people will see you as the professional you are. They will take you seriously and they’ll know that you are legitimate (because you’ve valued yourself and your work enough to represent it well).

An unprofessional logo will send the message that you’re not professional either, so people will inevitably undervalue your work and maybe even walk away.

[clickToTweet tweet=”Your logo can show people that you are the real deal or it can hide your value.” quote=”Your logo can show people that you are the real deal or it can hide your value.”]

What I really want for you is for people to value you and for you to get the right customers for your business from the start.

Having your logo professionally created, or even learning a bit more about logo design before creating your logo yourself, can take your brand identity from being a plain jane words-on-a-page situation – to a message that says you’re a pro!

I understand that it may seem easier to avoid the logo step when you’re just starting out in business. I remember that stack of papers & To-dos and how overwhelming it can be.

But having a logo that is professional, memorable, and one that communicates the right message to your favorite customers? That will set you worlds apart from your competition.

It will set you on a good path from the beginning. A path that doesn’t lead to packing up that Kate Spade bag and moving back into your parent’s house.

That’s why for the next few weeks I’ll be focusing on teaching you even more about logo design. If you’re in the place now where your logo makes you want to run and hide or you don’t even have a logo yet, you are in the right place. Pop your name in the form below and you won’t miss a thing.

Because your logo is the face of your brand, and you need to put your best face forward when you are starting a world empire, right?