Corporate Logo Design Archives - Thomas McAuley: Product Designer Case Studies and Design Archives

Corporate Identity and Branding: A Foundation for Success

Jul 24, 2019 | Corporate Identity Design, Digital-Design, Graphic Design, Print Design

With nearly 100 corporate identity projects under my belt, I’ve helped shape the branding of startups, established companies, enterprise-level organizations, and even game studios. From healthcare providers and SaaS platforms to creative agencies and video game developers, I have built brands that resonate with their audiences and stand the test of time. Whether creating a logo for a new company, evolving an outdated design, or scaling a corporate identity across digital, print, and interactive platforms, I bring years of experience and an eye for detail to ensure that your brand not only meets its goals but exceeds them.

Corporate identity is more than a logo. It’s your company’s personality. It’s the first impression you leave on clients, partners, investors, and users—a handshake that should inspire confidence and trust. My mission is to craft corporate identities that reflect your vision, resonate with your audience, and stand out in a crowded market.

What is corporate identity?

Your organization’s first impression

Corporate identity is the visual and emotional embodiment of your brand’s essence. It’s how you communicate your organization’s story and values at a glance. A strong corporate identity is cohesive, professional, and impactful—leaving a lasting impression on your audience. On the other hand, an outdated, inconsistent, or amateurish identity can undermine even the best products and services.

I work to ensure your branding reflects not just where your company is today but where you want it to be in five, ten, or fifteen years. Whether you’re a startup looking to punch above your weight or an established company seeking to refresh its image, your brand should communicate your message cleanly, clearly, and confidently.

My approach isn’t about imposing a personal design style; it’s about uncovering your company’s unique personality and expressing it in a way that resonates with your target audience. Whether the aim is to appear like a Fortune 500 company or a personable small business, I tailor every element of the design to fit your vision.

Corporate identity examples

Logo & Stationery

IP Secure

Logo & Website

Prime Bodywork & Massage

Mailer

Half Moon Power Yoga

Trade show booth, print collateral, infographics

updox

Your organization's lasting impression

Defending the brand

Once your corporate identity is created, consistency is key to maintaining its impact. Whether it’s a logo, business card, website, or digital ad, every application of your brand must adhere to the same standards to preserve its integrity.

I not only create corporate identities but also ensure they are applied correctly across all touchpoints. This includes developing corporate identity guidelines that define logo usage, color schemes, typography, and more. These guidelines act as a playbook for internal and external collaborators, ensuring your brand looks cohesive and professional no matter where it appears.

From ensuring your logo appears correctly in a magazine ad to overseeing the production of promotional materials, I act as an advocate for your brand, protecting it from inconsistencies and ensuring it always shines.

Your organization's evolving brand

While consistency is essential, your brand must also grow with your organization. Over time, markets shift, audiences evolve, and companies expand into new industries. A skilled designer understands how to adapt a corporate identity to reflect these changes without losing the core essence of the brand.

Whether it’s refreshing an aging logo, adding new design elements for digital platforms, or scaling the brand for a broader audience, I approach every update with care. Gradual, strategic adjustments ensure your brand evolves seamlessly, maintaining its professionalism and impact.

Tailoring corporate identity to your needs

Branding packages

Corporate identity encompasses a diverse range of products and services, making it challenging for many clients to clearly define and communicate their branding needs to a designer—whether they require a single element or a comprehensive suite of solutions. I’ve found that these are the common groupings.

Logo Only
For startups or individuals on a tight budget, a logo can serve as the foundation of their brand. While simple, it’s a powerful first step.

Basic
Includes a logo, business cards, letterhead, and other essentials. Often, additional elements like presentation templates or notepads are added based on the client’s needs.

Marketing Package
A comprehensive set of materials that includes marketing-focused assets like sales sheets, white papers, ads, and infographics. These are designed to reflect the brand’s identity across both print and digital platforms.

Special Projects
From trade show displays to vehicle wraps, these one-off projects require seamless integration with the existing brand.

Branding stages

Many clients find it beneficial to start with a basic corporate identity and add new elements as their needs evolve. This approach ensures that each piece is created with purpose, avoiding wasted effort on assets that may never be used. It also allows the brand to grow naturally, adapting to new opportunities and challenges.

Let's build your brand!

Your corporate identity is the cornerstone of your organization’s success. Whether you’re starting from scratch, refreshing an outdated brand, or scaling an existing identity, I bring the expertise, creativity, and dedication to make your vision a reality.

Corporate Logo Design: Your Organization’s 1 Shot: Free Evaluation

Jul 13, 2019 | Corporate Identity Design

Corporate Logo Design

First Impressions Are Everything

Your corporate logo is your company’s first impression to prospective clients and customers. First impressions are hard to overcome, and most of the time you won’t be there to try.

It is crucial that a seasoned pro with tons of branding experience leads you through the process. And that’s where I come in.

With more than 60 companies of all sizes branded and rebranded from the corporate logo design to everything that comes afterwards, you can trust that I know the pitfalls and opportunities presented in this very important time in a company’s evolution.

EVALUATING YOUR CURRENT CORPORATE LOGO

The first step is to detach as much as possible from any personal feelings or other connections you may have with your current corporate logo design, to look at it with new eyes, to look at it as much as possible like your clients and customers will be looking at it. If you’re unable to, try to ask a handful of strangers, people who don’t know you or the company, what their impressions are of the company that this logo represetnts.

Don’t lead them. Ask them things like, “How big do you think this company is?” “How long do you think this company has been in business?” “Is this a foreign or a domestic company?” “What business do you think this company is in?” and “Is this company still in business?” Some or all of their answers might shock you. Just try to go in expecting the worst, because most company logos can use improvement. You’re not alone.

Not all of the logos below in my design portfolio tell specifically what each business does, but all of them tell a client or customer that there is a certain level of sophistication. They all impart a clear mood or tone of the company’s business. They all indicate that the companies are probably current, not decades old. And they all communicate a certain proficiency and confidence in what they do.

So now you’ve either seen it or seen it through strangers’ eyes and you understand it’s time for a change. But how can you transition your company into the next phase without that logo that’s meant so much to you?

Maybe you scratched it out on a napkin during a special, inspired moment when you were first starting out. Maybe your favorite niece was an artists and you were proud to let her create it. Maybe initially you didn’t have any money to do it right. Whatever the reason, you owe it to yourself to hold that old logo in your memory, but to move on. You, your employees, and your company’s success depends on it more than you can imagine.

YOUR CORPORATE LOGO’S REACH

In addition to being your company’s first impression, your corporate logo design has a wider reach than you might imagine.

Every design decision you will every make for your company, must relate in some way to the corporate logo, from the color of your trade show booth, to the orientation of your logo on vertical banners, how small it can appear at low resolution. It informs what your business cards look like, your sales sheets, your brick and mortar signage, your website, your app, your company vehicles, and a never-ending continuing list.

Additionally, your new corporate logo has the power to create whatever image in your clients’ or customers’ minds. If you’re a 10-person shop, an improved corporate logo can suggest that you could be a 100-person operation. What I try to do when creating a corporate logo is identify what the perfect business in your area of expertise would look like, what tone they would set, what reaction they are trying to elicit, and work from there.

Now Is Always time to evaluate your CORPORATE LOGO

So again, decouple your emotions from your current corporate logo. I’ll help you right your ship, using the wisdom and guidance I’ve gained over my years as a a professional designer who has done this hugely important work successfully dozens of times before.

Contact Thomas

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