
I asked Twitter. What makes a logo designer a professional logo designer? - imjustcreative
http://imjustcreative.com/i-asked-twitter-what-makes-a-logo-designer-a-professional-logo-designer/2008/11/19/
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thomasmallen
If people pay you to make logos and are satisfied, you are a professional logo
designer. It's no different than any other craft. For other organizations,
I've designed one logo so far ( <http://www.703designs.com/portfolio-logos> )
but I wouldn't consider myself a logo designer until I've made maybe ten
quality logos outside of my own ventures.

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huhtenberg
I'm not going to spoil it for you, but try uploading your logo to
<http://www.logopond.com> and soliciting a feedback.

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thomasmallen
Spoil what? I'm sure that my logo design abilities could use quite a bit of
improvement, but if my work sells, it sells. My site's out-of-date for sure
(need to add more Testimonials) but you'll see that the client for whom I made
the logo was quite pleased.

I'm a frontend developer first, designer second, and backend developer third,
and I like to do work in all three.

In any case, I said plainly that I'm not a professional logo designer in the
comment you're responding to.

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huhtenberg
> if my work sells, it sells

Certainly, it just doesn't necessarily make it a professional work.

In my opinion this particular logo is missing a mark on many levels. I may be
off, and you probably don't care about stranger's opinion to begin with. So
that's why I brought up the Logopond, which is by far the most responsive
professional logo design community.

~~~
thomasmallen
Please read before responding. The following quote is directly from my first
comment:

> I wouldn't consider myself a logo designer

Sheesh.

~~~
huhtenberg
> _If people pay you to make logos and are satisfied, you are a professional
> logo designer._

Perhaps you missed 'routinely' before 'pay' then ?

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swombat
All very nice, but it's all just buying into the general twisting of the word
"professional".

The Wikipedia definition is much closer:

 _A professional is a person in a profession that requires certain types of
skilled work requiring formal training or education. In western nations, such
as the United States, the term commonly describes highly educated, mostly
salaried workers, who enjoy considerable work autonomy, economic security, a
comfortable salary, and are commonly engaged in creative and intellectually
challenging work_

The essential part is the autonomy, which comes from responsibility. You
wouldn't give someone you hire autonomy unless they are a professional - i.e.
they take responsibility for their work and for the outcome of their work.

A bricklayer's assistant might be paid for their work, but they're not a
"professional". In fact, even a bricklayer isn't really a professional,
because he will pass on the responsibility to the person who tells him to
build the wall. At the top of that chain of responsibility you have an
architect, who stakes his personal reputation on the successful completion of
the project. That one is a professional.

Other examples of professionals: lawyers, doctors, entrepreneurs, managers
(both mid-level and senior - but I'll grant you that many managers are awful
professionals). Basically, anyone who, if things go wrong within the piece of
work they have control over, will get royally fucked.

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zandorg
I had the pleasant experience of suggesting a 'Made with Lisp' logo to
comp.lang.lisp in 2006, and suddenly 5 popular logos (like the Lisp lizard)
were designed and posted to the web. All because of my small suggestion.

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huhtenberg
Ugh oh .. is "I asked Twitter" are going to be new "Top 10" lists ? It's a
same concept really.

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tommusic
Sounds like a good question to ask Twitter!

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helveticaman
I think nobody cares about your logo. Unless it is either an anus or the
Lacoste crocodile (a case in which the logo really helps sell merchandise) it
won't make a big difference. Make it one of those details you'll spend a
couple of hours on after you're burned out from hacking.

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pxlpshr
A senior designer / creative director should take into consideration brand
strategy, market demographics, messaging, product positioning, company
culture, etc.

A designer makes stuff look pretty.

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vaksel
I'd say vectoring is a big part of it.

