You can always tell when a logo project started with a vague email.
The designer sends concepts that feel “fine,” you can’t articulate what’s off, feedback turns into personal taste, and suddenly you’re on revision #6 wondering why a simple logo is taking a month.
A strong brief prevents that. It doesn’t make you “more creative.” It makes you specific in the ways that matter, so the design work moves quickly and lands in a place you can actually approve.
What a logo brief really does (and what it doesn’t)
A logo brief is a decision document. It tells your designer what success looks like, what constraints they need to respect, and how you will judge options when there are multiple good answers.
It’s not a mood board dump. It’s not your life story. It’s also not a guarantee you’ll love the first draft. Design still needs exploration, but your brief should keep that exploration inside the right boundaries so you’re not paying to “find the business” mid-project.
The trade-off is simple: the more clarity you provide up front, the fewer rounds you need later. If you stay vague because you’re busy, you’ll be busy again later- just with more frustration.
How to write a logo brief: start with the business outcome
Before you talk style, name the job the logo needs to do.
Ask yourself: where will people see it first, and what do we need them to believe in the first three seconds?
For a property manager, that might be “competent and responsive.” For a med spa, “clean, premium, safe.” For a contractor, “reliable and established.” The logo isn’t the whole brand, but it is a shortcut to trust.
Write 1-2 sentences that connect the logo to revenue or credibility. For example: “We need a logo that looks established on yard signs and trucks, so homeowners feel confident calling us over bigger names.” That’s useful direction because it points to legibility, simplicity, and a non-trendy tone.
Define the audience like you’re choosing your best customer
“Everyone” is not an audience. Your logo can’t speak to everyone equally, and trying to do that usually produces generic design.
Describe who you want more of. Include practical signals: age range, income bracket, location context, and how they shop. Then add the one detail designers can actually use: what your audience is skeptical about.
If you run a local HVAC business, prospects may be skeptical about hidden fees or no-shows. If you operate a boutique hotel, guests may be skeptical that your photos match reality. Your logo won’t fix those problems, but it can lean into reassurance (stable forms, clear type, confident spacing) instead of hype.
When it depends: if you truly serve two distinct customer types (say, homeowners and commercial facilities), pick the one that drives most profit or long-term growth. You can always adjust supporting brand elements later.
Write a one-paragraph brand snapshot
Give your designer the minimum context needed to make smart decisions without reading a novel.
Include what you do, where you do it, and what makes you different in plain language. Skip buzzwords like “premium solutions.” Say what’s actually different: 24-hour response time, family-owned for 20 years, specialized equipment, niche expertise, or a specific approach.
Then add your brand personality in human terms. If your business were a person, are you the calm expert, the friendly neighbor, the no-nonsense pro, or the modern curator? This matters because a “friendly neighbor” logo and a “calm expert” logo can both be clean- but they won’t be clean in the same way.
Decide what kind of logo you’re actually asking for
Many projects stall because the client is picturing one logo type and the designer is building another.
State what you want at a high level: wordmark (text only), icon plus wordmark, emblem/badge, or monogram. If you don’t know, describe your use cases.
If your logo will live on uniforms, vehicles, signs, and invoices, an icon plus wordmark tends to give flexibility. If you’re building a personal brand (consultant, photographer, realtor), a strong wordmark may outperform an icon because your name is the product.
When it depends: if you expect heavy social usage and tiny placements (profile images), ask for an icon that can stand alone at small sizes.
Give clear style direction without micromanaging
Designers don’t need you to tell them kerning values. They do need boundaries.
Use a short set of opposites to define the lane, like:
- Modern vs. traditional
- Minimal vs. detailed
- Bold vs. refined
- Playful vs. serious
- Industrial vs. organic
Pick one side for each and add a sentence explaining why. “Bold, because we compete on busy roadside signage.” “Refined, because our customers expect luxury.”
Now add one more thing: what you must avoid. If you’ve seen competitors using swooshes, roofs, or generic icons, say so. This prevents the common problem where you reject concepts not because they’re poorly made, but because they feel too familiar.
Color: choose constraints, not a favorite shade
If you already have brand colors, include them (hex codes help, but even “navy and warm gray” is a start). If you don’t, give your designer smart constraints.
Start with the environments your logo must work in: white trucks, dark storefront windows, printed flyers, embroidered hats, website headers. If you do a lot of uniforms and embroidery, you’ll want fewer colors and simpler shapes. If you rely on digital ads and web, you can push color more.
Also be honest about industry expectations. A law firm can be modern, but neon gradients may hurt trust. A kids activity center can be loud, but a sterile black-and-white mark might underperform.
Most importantly: require a version that works in one color. Even if you use color most of the time, one-color functionality is insurance for stamps, invoices, and low-cost print.
Typography preferences: clarity beats trend
You don’t need to name a font. You do need to describe the feeling: clean sans-serif, classic serif, modern geometric, or something more handcrafted.
If you’re in a category where trust and legibility matter (property, trades, health), prioritize readability and structure. If you’re in a category where personality is the differentiator (cafes, boutiques, creative services), you can safely lean into more distinctive type, as long as it remains legible at small sizes.
If there are any words that must be included (LLC, “Est. 2012,” a location line), state that. Also state what is optional. Optional text often becomes a debate later if it wasn’t defined.
Competitive context: show the designer what “same” looks like
Your designer needs to understand the visual landscape you’re entering.
List 3-5 competitors and explain what you like or dislike about their branding. Don’t just say “I like theirs.” Say “Their logo looks credible on trucks, but the icon feels generic.” Or “Their style looks premium, but it’s too cold for our audience.”
If you have examples outside your industry, include them too, but connect the dot. “We like this brand because it feels simple and confident, not because we want to copy it.”
That single sentence protects you and your designer. Inspiration is fine. Cloning is a legal and reputational risk.
Usage: where the logo must perform
This section is where strong briefs separate from wish lists.
List the top places the logo will appear in the next 6-12 months. Be specific: storefront sign, vehicle decals, business cards, flyers, website header, social profile, email signature, packaging labels.
Then note size constraints. If your primary placement is a small social icon or a chest embroidery, say it. It changes everything about line weight, detail, and icon complexity.
If you plan to grow into marketing collateral quickly, it’s worth choosing a system-friendly logo that can scale into consistent layouts. That’s one reason studios like Brandcrafter package identity work alongside cards and flyers- it keeps real-world usage in the design decisions from day one.
Deliverables: name the files and versions you need
If you don’t ask for deliverables, you may get only what looks good in a PDF.
At minimum, your brief should request the professional file set: vector formats (AI, EPS, or SVG) for scaling, plus PNGs for everyday use. Ask for RGB versions for screen and CMYK versions for print.
Also request versions, not just files. Typically that means a full-color logo, a one-color logo, a black version, a white version, and a simplified mark for small sizes if needed. If you’ll place the logo on photos, you’ll want a version designed to sit on busy backgrounds.
If you plan to hand the logo to vendors (sign makers, printers, embroiderers), confirm you’ll receive production-ready files, not just images.
Process rules: feedback, revisions, and approvals
This is the part most clients skip, then regret.
State who the decision maker is. One person should own final approval. You can collect input from the team, but the project needs a single voice at the end, or you’ll get conflicting feedback like “make it bolder” and “make it softer” in the same thread.
Define how feedback will be given. For example: consolidated comments in one email or one doc, with clear priorities. Also define revision rounds. If you want speed, cap the rounds and commit to timely responses. A logo doesn’t drag because designers are slow. It drags because approvals are fuzzy.
A practical standard is 1-2 structured revision rounds after the initial concepts, with 24-72 hour turnaround on your side depending on urgency.
Budget and timeline: be direct, not cagey
Designers can work within many budgets, but the scope changes. If you want multiple concepts, multiple applications, and extensive exploration, that’s a different project than a clean, fast logo for immediate launch.
Share your deadline and why it matters. “We’re opening in six weeks and need signage ordered by X date” is helpful because it sets priorities and prevents last-minute surprises.
If you’re budget-conscious, say so early. It’s better to build a smart, limited scope now (logo plus essential versions) and expand later than to request an agency-level process and then cut corners at the finish line.
A logo brief template you can copy in 10 minutes
If you want a quick way to draft your brief, write it as short answers under these headings: business goal, audience, brand snapshot, logo type, style direction, must-avoid notes, color constraints, typography preference, competitors, usage, deliverables, process rules, timeline, budget range.
Keep it to one page if you can. Two pages is fine if you’re including clear examples and usage notes. Longer than that usually means you’re compensating for uncertainty with volume.
Closing thought
The best logo briefs don’t sound like design jargon. They sound like a business owner who knows what they’re building, who they’re building it for, and what “done” looks like. If you can put that into a page, you’ll get a logo that’s easier to approve and a brand that’s easier to grow.