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I'm struggling to create a new logo for a tech startup -- trying to capture a few concepts in the image: 1) "Agile" methods, feeding back upon each other for improvement, 2) evoke a "tech" emotion with angles, 3) represent the letter "A" in an abstract/stylized manner, 4) make the design elements all flow and work together.

I have included 4 versions below in an attempt to show ideas I've had, and to make it easier to review. Any response here requires voluntary work, and I am trying to reduce that work, while also trying desperately to not appear like a poll. I am honestly not sure I can do that with these current designs.

The most difficult problem has been representing the letter "A" in a stylized yet recognisable manner, even without the presence of the word.

choice 1 choice 2
choice 3 choice 4

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    Welcome! We have a few guidelines when asking for a critique. General "polls" along the lines of "which do you like" are off-topic. Polls can't have a definitive answer. Off-hand I'll merely point out when reduced, the "blurple" color variations are pretty much lost making them somewhat pointless overall.
    – Scott
    Commented Mar 13, 2023 at 18:30
  • I'd also point out that it can be difficult to judge variations with only 1 iteration will fit on the screen at a time. Posting a better formatted image displaying variations may be helpful.
    – Scott
    Commented Mar 13, 2023 at 19:55
  • Thanks @Scott so much for your design feedback and guidance regarding a proper way to ask for critique. Easiest is to reduce the size of the images such that they fit onscreen at one time. I didn't really mean for my question to be a "poll", but wanted to show the ideas I've had so far. I realise it is difficult for me to ask a specific question about the design. My best shot at this would be to ask, "Which 'A' design best conveys the stated goals?"
    – Scotty
    Commented Mar 13, 2023 at 20:33
  • H Scotty, it can indeed be difficult to ask specific, direct, questions. That's why we require it. It's important for users seeking a critique to specifically point out areas they are concerned about. The goal is to accumulate answers which can objectively be voted on. "I like #3" is just a opinion and is never right or wrong and can never be a "correct" answer. Please edit the question with some specific details which concern you -- examples... is the A conveyed well here - does the color combination convey a "tech" attitude - does the angular nature of the circle come across well
    – Scott
    Commented Mar 13, 2023 at 21:09
  • It's not my intention to dissuade you from asking. It is merely that you need to consider what answers may be if you want truly helpful answers. "I like X" from some random, unknown, internet user isn't really very helpful.
    – Scott
    Commented Mar 13, 2023 at 21:12

2 Answers 2

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This is a very opinion based question, so I can only give personal opinions. Feel free to totally disregard them. Others may of course disagree.

My observations:

The text Agilatech is not very readable at small sizes. If a logo must have text, then it should really be readable at small sizes. You might want to rethink the placement of the text, the font, and the size of the text. Check your logo at different sizes.

The stylized A in the examples is not very recognizable. I don't think I'd know these were supposed to be an A if it weren't for the Agilatech lettering. You might want to work on that.

The subtle different shades of blue in the outer circle and arrows are quite low in contrast. They can't really be seen at all at small sizes. Again, you should check your logo at different sizes. Perhaps you could just simplify this - make it just one colour. Small/intricate/subtle details like this don't often work well at smaller scales.

I can't really say which I would prefer. "None of them" would be the honest answer. The logos aren't horrible or anything like that, but I do think with some tweaking you could improve them.

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  • I realise that the way I have posed the original question is begging an opinion-based answer. However, graphic design is art, and art is subjective, so is it possible to divorce opinion from art? But I appreciate your observations and will work to make improvements. The most difficult thing is creating an "A" which is not simply a block letter, but is styled to fit within the flow while also still be recognisable as an "A" and further conveying a techy feel. Yes, the word should be optional, and future versions will not place that inside the circle (or perhaps at all). Thanks very much!
    – Scotty
    Commented Mar 14, 2023 at 17:09
  • I think it's very difficult to keep opinion out of art - as you say, it is very subjective. You can sometimes get more objective answers if for example you mention what you think might be causing a problem, but then if you don't know there is a problem, then this approach may not be feasible.
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Mar 14, 2023 at 19:19
  • @Scotty I'd abandon the uppercase A glyph in favor of a lowercase a - a lowercase "a" in itself can be a circular shape.... but that's merely a path I'd explore.
    – Scott
    Commented Mar 14, 2023 at 21:56
  • Marking this as "correct" as I thought it addressed many design issues. Thanks to all who posted and commented, as it really got me to rethink the design entirely. I was stuck on the circular arrows and then forcing the rest of the design to fit, and now going to go back to the drawing board.
    – Scotty
    Commented Mar 24, 2023 at 19:15
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Seems like you try to spam too many ideas into a single image. Your 1st stylized A is original but still simple enough. Augment it with a well visible and easy to read version of the business name. Let it have thick enough font and not too many customized items.

A rough example:

enter image description here

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    in the original the enclosing circle very strongly suggested the white space inside it was the foreground and I read it as a "gramaphone-like" device instead of a letterform. This solves that issue.
    – Yorik
    Commented Mar 14, 2023 at 20:34
  • It can still be a gramophone or a anything technical looking, even a microwave transmitter. But it's also A. That association is difficult to avoid because one sees at first the name below and automatically starts to search what's the relation.
    – Apippappoh
    Commented Mar 14, 2023 at 21:55
  • Wow @Yorik , I never saw a gramophone until you mentioned that. Of course, like so many things like this, now I can't see anything else! Thanks for pointing that out, since a depiction of 150-year-old technology is certainly not the goal...
    – Scotty
    Commented Mar 15, 2023 at 17:02
  • @Apippappoh Thanks for the effort. It does eliminate my desire to include some continuous improvement agile arrows, although I also realise that an overly complex design which tries to jam (spam?) many concepts into one image can be counterproductive. Often the simpler design is more impactful, like the Pepsi logo.
    – Scotty
    Commented Mar 15, 2023 at 20:51

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