Where is your logo located on your webpage? Paying attention to small details makes a difference in your conversion rates and how consumers view your site. Even something as simple as where you place your logo has an impact on the user experience.
In a mere 10 seconds, people develop an impression based on a brand’s logo. However, it takes as many as seven appearances before that person recognizes the logo and associates it with the brand. Making sure the logo is noticeable is one step toward stronger branding and pulling visitors into an experience with your brand rather than a land on your page and a quick bounce away.
You likely already understand how important the right logo is. When it comes to your website, however, knowing where to place the logo is a vital factor that impacts the overall user experience. Here are seven reasons why logo placement is essential to the overall success of your company website:
1. Helps Your Site Stand Out
It’s important to place your logo in an area of your design where it will catch site visitors’ attention. Traditional placement is a good place to start, but if the logo seems too busy or doesn’t show up clearly enough, don’t rule out other areas of the page for placement. Each site is unique, and figuring out the aesthetics of placement isn’t easy. One of the best ways to determine what looks good is to study other sites with strong designs.
Chicago’s Pizza places their logo where it has maximum impact. The right top of their page has a transitioning background that isn’t busy. By placing their logo in that area, it allows the yellow to pop and draws the eye to the right. This works well as a simple but attractive overall design placement. Because they have a full-width image for their background, they are able to use a larger logo in a bright color to draw the eyes of site visitors.
2. Ensures Consistency for Every Page of Your Site
If people recognize your brand after a certain number of impressions, as discussed above, then it makes sense to place your logo on every single page of your site in a predictable location. It might be tempting to cut it out after that initial landing page, but what if someone enters your site via a different location? You want them to instantly recognize the site as your brand.
3. Caters to Expectations of Site Visitors
One thing you must consider when choosing where to place your logo is the expectations of your site visitors. A traditional location for the logo is the upper left corner of your website. People know they can click on the logo to go back to the home page in most cases, so they will automatically head for that upper left logo.
Homespire Windows places their logo in the traditional upper left corner. This works nicely with their blockish design elements. Note how the logo is simple but contrasts sharply with the dark blue background. In this case, the logo is also a navigational link that takes the site visitor back to the home page.
4. Creates Contrast
Even if your logo is in the perfect spot, it won’t do much good if it blends into the background. Instead of automatically placing it in the top left of your website, look at your pages and design and figure out where it pops for site visitors. You could also conduct some A/B testing and study heat maps on a couple of landing page designs to see which placement works best for your particular design.
5. Draws Visitors’ Eyes to a Particular Location on Your Site
Sometimes the best placement is smack in the center of the page, or at least center top. This allows the eye to be drawn to the middle of the page and puts the focus on the elements that run down the middle of your page rather than to one side or the other. This placement works particularly well with a full-width background style. In one study, researchers found there was no difference in brand recall between left and center logo placement.
Vionic Shoes places their logo at the top center of their page. It is clickable, so you can use it for navigation, but it also draws the eye because it is a simple text logo and appears big and bold against the white background.
6. Helps Keep Your Design From Getting Too Busy
Make sure there is white space around your logo, so it stands out. If the area around your logo is too busy and filled with design noise, then the consumer may not recognize your logo as readily. One way to ensure your logo stands out is to create a contrasting background behind the logo. This might look like an area at the top of your page that is dark or light — depending on your logo’s color.
7. Makes Your Site Different
Most sites have a left placement for their logos, but what if you want to stand out from your competitors? One simple way to achieve this and create a unique look with your design is to place your logo to the right of the page. You basically break a basic rule to look at a bit edgier and more modern than those around you. Just be careful and make sure the logo really stands out and is easy to identify.
The size of your logo also determines where you place it. If the logo is too large, it might not fit in your header, for example. On the other hand, if it’s too small, users might just skip on past it and not pay attention to your branding. Your logo can be any size, but it needs to suit the design of the page. So, if you want a larger logo, then reduce the clutter on the page and put the focus on the logo more than any other element.
Logo Placement
The best logo placement is the one that works to convert your site visitors into raving fans. For some sites, that means a traditional placement and a smaller logo design. For other sites, it will mean a big logo and full-width photo background with few other elements on the page. If you’re unsure what placement translates best with your site visitors, create several versions of a landing page and conduct split testing to see which version converts best.
