Name: Check… Logo: Uhhh…
Designing the Covailnt logo
Just like the name, the Covailnt logo has to do a lot of heavy lifting. The logo puts a face to the name and with an name like Covailnt, my work was cut out for me. No pressure!
👍 The Essentials:
Similar to the process I used when creating the Covailnt name, I decided that our logo must:
1. Tell a story.
I knew part of the concept would revolve around the transition from “on your own” to “continually engaged in a community” and wanted the punchline to deliver on that.
2. Visually represent the human element of the actual people freelancing.
And as is the trick with many a visual punchline… do it in a non-corny or obvious way. I think I was successful in not being obvious, which is good because I think the verdict is still out on not being corny.
3. Be able to grow/evolve.
I think this logo achieves exactly what I intended for it and it’s holding it’s own. However, this is just the first iteration. Gabriel Shaoolian put it best when he said, “…no company remains static for long. Companies grow and evolve drastically over time. New services, products, and company missions are introduced.”
The Process
When I first started sketching, I still had my day job with an agency and freelance clients at night. My thumbnails happened here and there, mostly on the random post-it note or in the margins of my meeting printouts. This let me avoid a bit of analysis paralysis that often comes from starting out on a fresh white page, and the doodling actually helped keep my mind open to imperfect ideas and explorations. I started working through two different shapes, each geared towards the objectives that I previously stated
Shape 1
The first shape exploration focused on that idea of transformation. Looking at the element of movement, I drew inspiration from natural wave forms. This worked really nicely with the concept of starting independently, and then starting to cycle and engaging with others.
Shape 2
The second shape exploration revolved around the human depiction of a freelancer. Starting as simply as possible, my original doodles used stick figures. In the end the final execution didn’t stray too far from this basic idea.
Like a lot of scientific discoveries, the next development was a happy accident. I was pleasantly surprised when the forms started to reinforce a“chemistry” feel. When connected together in-line, two things happened: the corny stick figure approach was minimized, and the whole thing started to take on something resembling atoms bonded together.
The next step was to put it together, take a step back, and see what needed to be tweaked. After adjusting the sizing a few times, everything seemed to just fall into place.
With the shapes sorted out, I started looking for the proper typeface. Chalet from House Industries, with it’s crisp lines and clean shapes made for a strong early contender. It was up against Avenir from Linotype, which was slightly softer. Ultimately, I decided the perfect geometric forms of Chalet proved to be a little too strong, and decided to lightly modify Avenir to get it right where I needed it. (Avenir also plays nicely with Raleway and Lato, the web fonts used on our site and inside the app.)
The Result
Here’s how it landed. Perfect & Timeless? Any logo seldom is. As times change, working remotely becomes more common, new technologies emerge, our brand will also continue to evolve.
Have you done any identify or logo work lately? Drop us a note with your process, and we’ll feature it in an upcoming blog post!
Covailnt is a web app for freelancers who need to work with people they trust. Covailnt makes it painless for freelancers to connect and collaborate. Users can see other’s skills and style at a glance, instantly know who’s booked up, and work with those who work the way they do.
