There are certainly benefits to each option. If your goal is to reduce costs then a free logo software is the appropriate option. But often the designs are generic and don’t accurately reflect your brand persona. The drag and drop options of programs like Canva and Fiverr require minimal design skills and are suitable for basic design concepts, but they encompass a number of features which make them less desirable than professional programs. Whilst this is so, they do also have many great features that business owners can benefit from.
The Pros and Cons of Free Logo Design Softwares
Programs like Canva are incredibly user-friendly and don’t require extensive design skills. This makes it a great platform to use for social media posts and some print collateral design. It has the option to utilise the program for free or pay a small fee for additional features. These include the ability to upload brand fonts, access to a greater variety of imagery and create a brand colour palette to ensure you have consistency across all of the content you create.
But, with the good there is also some bad. We completely believe there is a place for Canva in the small business world.
What we also believe is that your branding and design work is a reflection of you and your business. With this being said, your whole brand shouldn’t be created by you (unless you are an awesome designer obviously!). There are some things that you should leave to the professionals. Your logo being one of those things. Logo images will pixelate when the size of the image is increased. Why does this matter? Because your logo is what people recognise and tie to your brand. To grow your brand awareness you need to promote your logo in more than an Instagram tile. This means you need to have a logo of high quality. This is when you need our expertise.
Let’s Compare
Check out these two logo concepts. The concept on the right is a logo design from Canva for a photography company. The concept on the left is designed by our team at Studio Nu for a local photographer called Vicki Miller Photography. Which do you think reflects a more professional design and business brand?
Our Advice
Pick your battles. We all have our own expertise and when it comes to running a business, trying to wear all the hats can make your workload unbearable. No matter what industry you are in. As designers, we do not attempt to do our own accounting and legal work to save ourselves money.
Why? Because that is not what we know best, so it’s best we leave that to the experts to ensure it is done properly. We suggest you do the same with your design work. It is a small investment into a team of experts who have a comprehensive knowledge base on design and who LOVE helping brands thrive.
We can help you see value in professional design services and show you a few ways that you can DIY some parts of your business.