mrogers
04-26-2007, 08:17 PM
Admin code added by Abby - 8J64919665639213L
Project Summary:
What text should be included in the main part of the logo?
budgetpronto (I’m open on different capitalization – budgetPronto, budgetPRONTO, etc.).
What type of product or service do you offer?budgetpronto is an online budgeting tool. It allows users to plan and track income and expenses over time.
How long have you been in business?
This is a new business.
What do you hope to accomplish with your new identity?
budgetpronto is geared towards families, so I’d like to generate an easy-going sentiment for users. The product deals with users’ finances, so the logo shouldn’t be outrageous. That being said, I don’t want the logo you’d expect see for a 100 year old financial advisement firm. This is an online application, not a desktop application, so its users expect a bit of an edge.
What are your long term goals?I hope to eventually target businesses as well, so the logo must translate well to corporate users. Nothing cheesy or too trendy.
When is the deadline for final entries before choosing a designer?I am not on a strict time table, so let’s say the deadline is May 12.
Audience Profile:
Please describe your existing audience
No existing audience – this is a new product.
Who would you like to add to your audience?
My audience will be more female, but not overwhelmingly (I figure 60% will be female.) For the time, I’m only focusing on English speaking, mostly in the United States. Most will be doing basic research for my line of product, so I need an identity/logo that will stick out from my competitors long enough for the user to come back to my site after checking out all options.
Perception/Tone/Guidelines:
What type of logo would you like?
My app is stylized somewhat like Web 2.0 apps. It isn’t a mashup, but it does incorporate heavy AJAX and user-friendly interfaces. http://www.fontshop.com/fontfeed/archives/the-logos-of-web-20/ has a listing of some Web 2.0 logos. Samples of logos I like:
http://www.zimbra.com/ - I like how the image is integrated with the text. I’m not too hot on the font.
http://www.zopa.com/ - I really like modified fonts – where some of the letters in the text are adjusted.
http://www.pando.com/ - This is my favorite as far as fonts go.
http://www.shoutwire.com/ - I like how clean it is. The mirror effect is a little too trendy for me, but it is done tastefully on this logo. I think I’d rather go with all lowercase text than anything else, but I’m open.
http://www.standpoint.com/ - I don’t like the drop shadow on the image (again, a bit too trendy), but I love how the logo portrays the intent of the site.
http://www.dropsend.com/ - Another good image. Not sure I like the use of a gradient in the text.
http://www.podzinger.com/ - Simple yet memorable, even though there really isn’t an image.
Some logos I don’t care for:
http://www.clipshack.com/ - Way too busy, looks like an amateur job (my apologies if it was crafted by anyone on this forum.)
http://www.reminderfeed.com/ - I think I used that font in the 80’s for those 10-page banners printed from my dot-matrix.
http://www.xanga.com/ - great name, what’s the deal with the image? No connection to the site or text. Too many colors.
http://www.bloglines.com/ - I’ve got that image in my clipart gallery somewhere…
Do you have any colors in mind for your logo? (if so, why?)
I’d like to see what the designers come up with. The obvious colors would be the official colors of Web 2.0 (http://miles.burke.id.au/blog/2006/02/03/the-web-20-secret-weapon/). Please feel free to stray from these choices. Once the logo project is completed, I will be posting to the web template forum for the website graphics. I intend to use the colors of the logo for the colors of the website, so keep that in mind.
In addition, I’m 99% sure the two words in the text should stand out (different color or something) from each other.
I’ve been using (http://kuler.adobe.com to look at some color combinations that might work. Some that I like are “Orange on olive”, “Basil Lemonade”, “Citrus”, “Red and smooth”, “Dark Beer”, “sea_stone”, and “Relax.”
Do you have any specific images or icons in mind that you would definitely like to see incorporated into your logo?
No. In fact, an image isn’t necessarily required.
Communication Strategy:
What attributes would you like your logo to reflect about your business?
I’m not trying to hide the fact that this is a new (inexperienced) business, so the logo doesn’t have to be the standard financial logo (navy blue with a triangle somewhere.) But it must be unique and professional, not comical.
What is your tagline or slogan?
I don’t have one yet, but when I do add one it will be physically separate from the logo (probably to the right of the logo if anyone cares.) If you want to include a tagline in the logo, take a shot at it.
What is the overall message you are trying to convey to your target audience?
This service is easy to get started with and provides value to families (or individuals) unsure about their finances.
Where will your new logo be used?
My only concern is with the web. If the logo does need to be printed on business cards, stationary, pens, mugs, etc. later on, I’ll deal with that then.
Competitive Positioning:
Who are your competitors and what do you think about their logos?
http://www.mvelopes.com/ (http://www.mvelopes.com) - this is my main competitor. The logo is just text, so having my logo be more memorable shouldn’t be too challenging.
http://www.budget-master.com/index.php?page=0 (http://www.budget-master.com) – no logo.
http://budgettracker.com/login.php - I’m sure this was a self-made logo.
http://www.myspendingplan.com/ (http://www.myspendingplan.com) - by far the best looking logo and site of the bunch. The text in the logo looks good, but the image looks a little cheap.
List competitive URLs if possible
See above.
What sets you apart from your competitors?
Ease of use, family-oriented.
Targeted Message:
State a single-minded word or phrase that will appropriately describe your company:
Easily organize your finances in minutes.
Some additional thoughts: The logo needs to be able to fit in a space no larger than 200 pixels wide by 45 pixels high, so this pretty much means any image must be to the side of the text, not above or below it. My initial design of the header has a silver gradient where the logo will be.
I apologize if I’ve been too vague with some of the answers (this is a brand new site so there are no existing restrictions, and I don’t want to taint the designers with my pre-conceived ideas of what the logo should be) and too verbose with others. If you need further clarification on any point, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Thank you in advance for all your effort.
Project Summary:
What text should be included in the main part of the logo?
budgetpronto (I’m open on different capitalization – budgetPronto, budgetPRONTO, etc.).
What type of product or service do you offer?budgetpronto is an online budgeting tool. It allows users to plan and track income and expenses over time.
How long have you been in business?
This is a new business.
What do you hope to accomplish with your new identity?
budgetpronto is geared towards families, so I’d like to generate an easy-going sentiment for users. The product deals with users’ finances, so the logo shouldn’t be outrageous. That being said, I don’t want the logo you’d expect see for a 100 year old financial advisement firm. This is an online application, not a desktop application, so its users expect a bit of an edge.
What are your long term goals?I hope to eventually target businesses as well, so the logo must translate well to corporate users. Nothing cheesy or too trendy.
When is the deadline for final entries before choosing a designer?I am not on a strict time table, so let’s say the deadline is May 12.
Audience Profile:
Please describe your existing audience
No existing audience – this is a new product.
Who would you like to add to your audience?
My audience will be more female, but not overwhelmingly (I figure 60% will be female.) For the time, I’m only focusing on English speaking, mostly in the United States. Most will be doing basic research for my line of product, so I need an identity/logo that will stick out from my competitors long enough for the user to come back to my site after checking out all options.
Perception/Tone/Guidelines:
What type of logo would you like?
My app is stylized somewhat like Web 2.0 apps. It isn’t a mashup, but it does incorporate heavy AJAX and user-friendly interfaces. http://www.fontshop.com/fontfeed/archives/the-logos-of-web-20/ has a listing of some Web 2.0 logos. Samples of logos I like:
http://www.zimbra.com/ - I like how the image is integrated with the text. I’m not too hot on the font.
http://www.zopa.com/ - I really like modified fonts – where some of the letters in the text are adjusted.
http://www.pando.com/ - This is my favorite as far as fonts go.
http://www.shoutwire.com/ - I like how clean it is. The mirror effect is a little too trendy for me, but it is done tastefully on this logo. I think I’d rather go with all lowercase text than anything else, but I’m open.
http://www.standpoint.com/ - I don’t like the drop shadow on the image (again, a bit too trendy), but I love how the logo portrays the intent of the site.
http://www.dropsend.com/ - Another good image. Not sure I like the use of a gradient in the text.
http://www.podzinger.com/ - Simple yet memorable, even though there really isn’t an image.
Some logos I don’t care for:
http://www.clipshack.com/ - Way too busy, looks like an amateur job (my apologies if it was crafted by anyone on this forum.)
http://www.reminderfeed.com/ - I think I used that font in the 80’s for those 10-page banners printed from my dot-matrix.
http://www.xanga.com/ - great name, what’s the deal with the image? No connection to the site or text. Too many colors.
http://www.bloglines.com/ - I’ve got that image in my clipart gallery somewhere…
Do you have any colors in mind for your logo? (if so, why?)
I’d like to see what the designers come up with. The obvious colors would be the official colors of Web 2.0 (http://miles.burke.id.au/blog/2006/02/03/the-web-20-secret-weapon/). Please feel free to stray from these choices. Once the logo project is completed, I will be posting to the web template forum for the website graphics. I intend to use the colors of the logo for the colors of the website, so keep that in mind.
In addition, I’m 99% sure the two words in the text should stand out (different color or something) from each other.
I’ve been using (http://kuler.adobe.com to look at some color combinations that might work. Some that I like are “Orange on olive”, “Basil Lemonade”, “Citrus”, “Red and smooth”, “Dark Beer”, “sea_stone”, and “Relax.”
Do you have any specific images or icons in mind that you would definitely like to see incorporated into your logo?
No. In fact, an image isn’t necessarily required.
Communication Strategy:
What attributes would you like your logo to reflect about your business?
I’m not trying to hide the fact that this is a new (inexperienced) business, so the logo doesn’t have to be the standard financial logo (navy blue with a triangle somewhere.) But it must be unique and professional, not comical.
What is your tagline or slogan?
I don’t have one yet, but when I do add one it will be physically separate from the logo (probably to the right of the logo if anyone cares.) If you want to include a tagline in the logo, take a shot at it.
What is the overall message you are trying to convey to your target audience?
This service is easy to get started with and provides value to families (or individuals) unsure about their finances.
Where will your new logo be used?
My only concern is with the web. If the logo does need to be printed on business cards, stationary, pens, mugs, etc. later on, I’ll deal with that then.
Competitive Positioning:
Who are your competitors and what do you think about their logos?
http://www.mvelopes.com/ (http://www.mvelopes.com) - this is my main competitor. The logo is just text, so having my logo be more memorable shouldn’t be too challenging.
http://www.budget-master.com/index.php?page=0 (http://www.budget-master.com) – no logo.
http://budgettracker.com/login.php - I’m sure this was a self-made logo.
http://www.myspendingplan.com/ (http://www.myspendingplan.com) - by far the best looking logo and site of the bunch. The text in the logo looks good, but the image looks a little cheap.
List competitive URLs if possible
See above.
What sets you apart from your competitors?
Ease of use, family-oriented.
Targeted Message:
State a single-minded word or phrase that will appropriately describe your company:
Easily organize your finances in minutes.
Some additional thoughts: The logo needs to be able to fit in a space no larger than 200 pixels wide by 45 pixels high, so this pretty much means any image must be to the side of the text, not above or below it. My initial design of the header has a silver gradient where the logo will be.
I apologize if I’ve been too vague with some of the answers (this is a brand new site so there are no existing restrictions, and I don’t want to taint the designers with my pre-conceived ideas of what the logo should be) and too verbose with others. If you need further clarification on any point, please don’t hesitate to ask.
Thank you in advance for all your effort.