There’s a new green rush in town, and it’s bringing with it a whole new set of design principles. From branding to packaging, the cannabusiness industry is going through an identity crisis. As more and more states pass laws allowing for the production of cannabis, companies are forced to take stock of their branding and logo design — so that they don’t look like every other weed-related business on the market.
The Hood Collective specializes in branding and graphic design for the cannabis industry. This guide relies on our years of expertise and ability to forecast what's coming next. With that in mind, here’s how you can ensure your cannabis company has a modern logo and branding that will be in vogue in 2023 and beyond.
What You Can Learn From Non-Cannabis Industries
First and foremost, you need to understand what a brand is and what role it plays in the cannabis industry. A brand is a name, sign, symbol, or design that identifies the source of a product or service and differentiates it from your competitors. A brand doesn’t just apply to a logo, but also includes the name of your business, the products you sell, and the tone you use in your marketing.
This is why it’s so important to get your branding right from the start. Your branding should be consistent, and it should represent your company and products in the best possible light. Your company brand is the face of your company, and your logo is what people see first.
A good logo will help to create a lasting impression of your brand and a memorable experience for customers. There are many things that go into creating a good logo:
What it represents: What should the logo represent? Is it an animal, food, person, object, or place? For example, if you are a pet food company you might choose to use a dog as your logo. If you are a tech business you could use an abstract geometric shape as your logo.
Style: Your style of business also defines what kind of logo you should use. For example, if you sell clothing then you might choose to use an image of a person wearing your clothing with text on the bottom in white bold lettering. On the other hand, if you are selling office supplies then you would probably want to use objects that people recognize as being office supplies like pens, paper clips, etc.
Scalability: The ability of your logo to scale to different sizes also matters when designing it. Your logo might need to be recognizable on vape pen or cartridge, while being able to stand out from hundreds of feet away on a billboard or dispensary sign.
Font: The font used for your logo is also important because it can influence how it looks and how it is perceived by other people.
Colors: Your brand colors need to do more than just look good. Colors have a key role in allowing your brand to connect with your customers on a deeper emotional level. When choosing colors of your logo, you're also determining how people will feel when they see it and what mental images might come to mind.
Why You Should Consider A Rebrand
Your brand and logo design is the very first experience that people have with your company. As such, it’s important to get it right the first time. Not only does your logo need to be aesthetically pleasing, but it also has to accurately represent your business. With that in mind, it’s recommended that you rebrand every 3-5 years. This will give you enough time to evaluate your progress, identify problems, and fix them before they become too widespread.
Once you’ve established your brand, you should be growing at a steady pace. During this time, it’s easy to overlook your company’s shortcomings, but it’s important not to. Take a step back and look at your brand as if you were a consumer. Is it what you hoped it would be? If not, what needs to be changed?
All of this can be conveyed with a professional rebrand, as it allows your business to create a reset, and establish a new identity for yourself in the marketplace.
Here's the new logo we made for PotMates, versus their old logo
Keep Your Cannabis Logo Clean And Professional
The cannabis industry is currently in a state of identity confusion. With so many states legalizing the plant, the demand for cannabis products is rising. This is creating an influx of new brands and products, meaning that logos and branding are becoming more and more cliched.
You don’t want your logo to fall into this trap. Instead, you want to make sure that it’s clean and professional, without being derivative of what’s already on the market. Prime examples of what not to include in your cannabis logo in 2023 are a cannabis leaf and the color green. A more recent trend has been cannabis logos with a sun or harvest motif. If it’s already a trend, that means you should avoid walking down the same path.
Make Your Cannabis Logo Colorful And Vibrant
Gone are the days of subdued, muted logos. Instead, brands of all kinds are popping with color and enthusiasm. From vibrant blues and purples to bright oranges, cannabis logos are being designed with color in mind. Bright and colorful brand logos tend to draw more attention and stand out from other elements like text.
Bold colors also help your logo stand out from similar brands. It's important that your logo stands out from the crowd, so customers know it's uniquely yours. This will help them remember you and make them more likely to buy from you in the future.
You should also think about how your logo looks on different types of backgrounds. A bright logo on a dark background may not look as good as one on a white background. You should also consider how the logo looks at various sizes, like on small business cards or full-size posters.
Bright colors can also help with brand recognition. This is because they're more noticeable than black, gray, or white logos. Color also gets noticed faster than symbols or text alone. For all these reasons, you may want to consider using a bright color palette for your cannabis brand in 2023.
What's No Longer Fashionable In The Cannabis Industry
The influx of new brands and products flooding the market means there are a few trends that you might have noticed have fallen out of fashion. While it’s impossible to predict exactly which fads will fall out of favor in the future, there are a few that we can be sure will never be cool again (like the aforementioned cannabis leaf logos and the color green).
For example, a blatant disregard for the law is always uncool. There’s a fine line between being edgy and outright breaking the rules. With cannabis laws changing, it’s important that your brand doesn’t cross the line. This includes creating logos with cartoon animals or that might appeal to minors.
Another thing that needs to stop in the industry is haphazard branding. If your branding is haphazard, it sends the message that you don’t care about your business. If your logo is unorganized, it’s likely that your website will also be unnavigable, and that your social media posts are messy.
A professional brand for 2023 should be consistent across every customer facing touchpoint. That should be your goal for the coming year.
How To Choose A Cannabis Brand Graphic Designer
If you want to successfully brand your cannabis company, you need to hire the right designer. There are thousands of companies out there offering logo and branding services, but how do you know which one to hire? If you want to find a reputable designer, the first thing that you should do is research. Look for designers online and read their reviews.
And while you can look outside the cannabis industry, most brands should consider working with a design team that specializes in cannabis. This will ensure a strong familiarity with the industry and help you avoid making some of the mistakes mentioned above.
Choose The Hood Collective For your Cannabis Logo And Branding Needs
With the ever-growing demand for cannabis, brands must have a fresh and memorable approach to their branding. It’s important to constantly look for ways to improve your branding and ensure your products or services are viewed positively in the marketplace. This is why you should consider a rebrand every 3-5 years to give your business a new identity. A rebrand can help create a new tone for your business and a fresh start for customers.
The best part? The Hood Collective can help you affordably and professionally rebrand your cannabis business. We specialize in branding and graphic design and have developed countless logos for clients ranging from farms and processors to dispensaries and ancillary service providers.
By working with The Hood Collective, you will not only get the perfect logo, but also a comprehensive branding strategy that will help your business stand out from the crowd and create an unforgettable first impression, in 2023 and beyond.
Get in touch today to schedule a free consultation.