88 Gears Creative Logo Critique

Geri submitted this logo for a web hosting and design agency startup. She left the following commentary about the work.

“The outline around the eights represent gears. I wanted to merge the idea of gears with the number 88. This is a for a web host and design agency. We use gears to design ways to move and advance businesses.”

The following critique is based on one designer’s opinion and experience. I always appreciate the readers thoughts as well. So, I’ll ask a question of two in the critique, please share your perspective in the comments at the end of this logo design critique.

Design Principles

Geri’s logo for 88 Gears Creative has some interesting elements, but could benefit from some further refinement of the design. Overall, a more industrial and powerful look may fit better with the company name. What if the 8’s were made of gears rather than the gears being a background element? The circular nature of the numeral 8 is a natural fit for integrating the gear element right into the typography.

Functionality / Versatility

The logo is 3-color and should reproduce fairly well. I’m concerned about loosing the gears and the word creative at smaller sizes. I also wonder if the red in the logo is really needed. It’s so similar to the orange that the two visually blend into one color. This isn’t a big deal on screen, but when it comes to print it’s often cheaper to print 2-color vs. 3-color. Which leads me to ask if it’s really worth it?

Does the Logo Work for the Audience?

The concept of gears business and design can work together. Gears have been used in motors and various mechanical devices for a very long time and are somewhat commonplace. I see gears to represent concepts of thinking (i.e., the gears are turning), power/propulsion and rotation. Thinking and idea generation are key to design while moving forward is an important part of business.

Typography

The 8’s bother me from a visual standpoint. They are too close to each other when factoring in the black containing shape.

I also would say the light grey stroke around the word ‘gears’ is probably unnecessary. You really don’t notice it unless you look really close and at small sizes it would just disappear all together. If anything it makes your type look soft and slightly blurry, neither of which contribute positive attributes for your logo. The letterspacing of ‘gears’ is cumbersome. So much air between a compressed/condensed letterform doesn’t work well visually. This is especially visible between the ‘g’ and ‘e’.

Possible Improvements

Designing a logo for yourself or own business is one of the hardest logo designs you’ll ever work on. So what is the best way to improve the logo? Well I think have made some comments above that can certainly offer some direction. Here’s a list of actionable items.

Overall, I think you have a good start on the logo design. And with some refinement you can definitely improve it. Please know that my intention in critiquing your work is not to hurt feelings, but to offer constructive feedback. I hope it was helpful. Best of luck, to you!

I appreciate and welcome your comments, and look forward to hearing from you soon. I purposely don’t cover every possible improvement that can be made to this logo, so go for it if you think I missed anything. All I ask is that you keep your comments clean and appropriate.

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