Identity systems

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Logo types

Lesson 4 of 18 in Identity systems.

The 7 types of logos you need to know (and how to use them!) · 99designs
Lesson

The taxonomy is old and slightly arbitrary, and it is still the fastest way to have a useful argument about what a company needs. Five families cover almost everything: wordmark, lettermark, pictorial, abstract, emblem. Many brands run a combination mark, which is a symbol and a wordmark designed to sit together and to be separable.

symbolwordmarkdescriptorclear spacelockupevery part,always in thesame placecall the parts by their nameshalf of client confusion is two people meaning differentthings by logo
A lockup with its symbol, wordmark, descriptor and clear space named.
A doodle of two rows of logos shrinking in five steps, with a long letter-like wordmark turning into a grey smudge at the smallest size and a round symbol staying sharp, next to a small phone outline.
A long wordmark and a compact symbol shrink step by step. At the smallest size only the symbol still reads, which is why size decides so much about the logo type.
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  1. Question 1, locked

    Why does choosing an emblem set the minimum size for a whole identity in a way a separate symbol does not?

    • The name sits inside the shape, so the thing scales as a unit and the interior type decides the floor
    • Emblems are drawn with finer strokes than symbols are
    • Emblems have to be reproduced in full colour, which rules out small print
    • Emblems are usually circular, and circles lose more detail than squares when reduced
  2. Question 2, locked

    Which of these words means this? “The name, drawn. Google, FedEx, Coca-Cola.”

    • Optical volume
    • Wordmark
    • Lockup
    • Reduction
  3. Question 3, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Initials standing in for a longer name. IBM, HBO, CNN.”

    • Art direction
    • Lettermark
    • Generative identity
    • Horizontal lockup

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