Business logos designed in the correct way can do wonders for the image building of the business. But a bad business logo can be a disaster to the business as a whole. A logo design is the first image of a company which is viewed by the customers. It is the first impression and as the saying goes…The first impression is the last impression.

However, if a business logo is not able to communicate the desired message of the company to the customers, then it poses a downfall for the company. A bad business logo can confuse them and they might drift aware to another company as competition is fierce in the market. Hence, creating company logos with a purpose is critical for every business.

So What Makes a Bad Logo?

Inappropriate symbols and colors: 

Ever wondered why the London Olympic 2012 logo was a disaster? That is because when it comes to designing corporate logos, appropriate use of colors and symbols is imperative in generating the right response from the target audience. The symbols used in the London 2012 logo designed by Wolff Olins were unsuitable and not according to the needs of the London 2012 brand name.

Too many details and confusion:  

A logo design crowded with too many elements spells trouble for a brand. Small business owners and other businesses cannot afford to create confusion among the minds of their customers as to who they are and what they do. Hence, logo designers must be careful of the risk of using elements imperfectly in corporate logos.

Inconsistent with the company purpose:

Sending irrelevant messages to your customers is the last thing that small business owners can afford to do. Hence a bad business logo includes a logo design with an inconsistent message that is not parallel to the vision and purpose of the company. This is one of the reasons why small business owners fail. It’s because they cannot express their company purpose to their clients.

Unappealing to the customers:

Company logos are useless if they do not have the power and charisma of appealing to the target audience. The major purpose of a logo design is to compel customers to retain your company name and recall at the time of purchase decision. If your business logo is not relevant to your target audience, it will not be appealing to them.

The biggest constraint that any small business encounters in its initial stages is advertising and promotion budget. The unavailability of funds immobilizes small business owners to launch their company identity through proper promotional campaign. What good is your business logo when it is not evident in the market?

Overcoming the budget constraint!

Lack of media exposure is a prime reason that small business owners fail to initiate their business. In this overcrowded world of media coverage, it is imperative to make your business identity noticeable. Social media is especially helpful in this cause for small business owners who do not have sufficient funds to raise an advertising campaign. In simple terms, social media helps small business in getting heard. It is the cheapest form of promotion.
With the increase in consumer awareness, it is essential for businesses to establish their names in the market. The mindset of consumers has changed drastically over the years. People nowadays emphasize on the brand name rather than the product itself.

The statistical facts:

Common sense apart, there are statistical evidence to proof that social media is gaining popularity among small business owners as well. Recently, The University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business in collaboration with Network Solutions published the Small Business Success Index (SBSI). It is a study that discloses the degree to which small businesses are accepting social media. According to the report, social media adoption among U.S. small businesses doubled in the past year from 12% to 24%.

The report follows a list of extensive figures. Following are the rest of the interesting facts of the study:

• 75% have a business page on a social network site like LinkedIn or Facebook.
• 69% enthusiastically post status updates and articles of interests.
• 57% are building networks through sites like LinkedIn or Facebook.
• 54% monitor customer feedback of their business on social networks.
• 39% run a blog on their area of proficiency or interest.
• 26% tweet information related to their area of interest or knowledge.
• 16% use twitter to provide customer service.

Social Media – Time to embrace:

With all logical and statistical information, it is evident that social media is the best tool in bolstering the image of small businesses. Social media is like a great conflagration that sprawls over the blogosphere within minutes. It spreads out your business information within the blink of an eye. Hence for those who haven’t yet embraced the blessings of social media should start using it right away. The results will be evident within days.

Failure is every small businessman’s nightmare and an investor’s worst fear. Yes, the apprehension of failure looms in the minds of every small business owner from start. But everything happens for a reason, doesn’t it? Then why do 9 out of 10 small businesses ultimately fail?

Some small business owners are lucky enough to last for a few years, while a majority of them don’t even stay long enough to celebrate a single anniversary. One can never attribute the reason of small business failure to a solitary reason. In a normal business life cycle, there are four phases. The introductory, growth, maturity and decline phase. Failure at each level is owing to different reasons. In order to analyze the precise reasons for failure, let us make an inspection on each phase of the small business life cycle.

• Failure at introductory stage:

A majority of businesses collapse at the initial stage. This is the stage where the business is raw. The main reasons that small businesses fail in this early phase is lack of planning. Businesses set-up in haste are always prone to fail. Without any future planning and long-term strategy, any business is likely to fail. Another reason for collapse in the early stages is the lack of financial support to sustain the business over the years. This is also linked to reckless planning on the part of small business owners.

• Failure at growth stage:

In the growth stage, a small business commences its take off from the runway of infancy to the skies of development. Problems during this phase are partly attributed to the lack of vision and forecasting. Although many small businessmen claim extraneous factors to be the real cause of failure, but this is far from the truth. No doubt, unexpected business and environmental factors play a role in failure of business. But this crisis can be averted with a pre-planned approach taking all the intrinsic and extrinsic factors into account.
“There are no failures – just experiences and your reactions to them.”
 Tom Krause

• Failure at maturity stage:

At the maturity stage, a small business moves towards the phase of stability. At this point the business growth is in stagnation. Since the business has reached its threshold, it cannot move any further until innovative measures are taken. This is the reason why small businesses at the maturity stage fail. This is the point when small business owners require inducing innovative and creativity to lift their business endeavors.

• Failure at decline stage:

This is the final stage that a failing small business goes through. Failure in this phase is genuinely due to lack of commitment and interest on the part of the owner(s). Business at the decline stage is like a sinking ship. There is little that a small business owner can do. But then again…where there is a will there is a way. Small business owners should work out a bailout plan for their business in advance to prevent this situation.

However, I would advice all the small business owners not to give up easily and try to overcome all these problems mentioned above. After all, it’s better to try and fail than fail to try.