Widget Maker: We are a new company. We have a great location, a recognizable name, a solid market that will love us, and now we need a logo.

Marketer: No you don’t.

Widget Maker: That is silly. Of course we do. We need something to put on our building, business cards and stationery.

Marketer: Why not just put up this recognizable name of yours? Why make people go through the steps of visualizing your logo just to recognize your name. Just put up the name instead.

Widget Maker: Get out. You don’t know anything about marketing.

Marketer: I know about human nature. You don’t need your name to be read aloud, you need that name to mean something. Surely one of the best ways to deliver the meaning of your brand is through a logo. People will recognize it in a snapshot, but that is only useful if they recognize the meaning of brand that logo represents at the same time. Your brand doesn’t need a logo, your brand needs meaning. Without that meaning, a logo is useless.

You will get a logo. But it is only a tool to convey the meaning we will help develop for your brand. If I were to give you a logo first, I would be providing you no service.