Introduction:
What Matters Media (formerly Compelling Video) is led by my own videographer and friend, Gabe Larson. After starting his own videography and marketing business in 2018, Gabe approached me to help with “a quick logo” when the business shifted and he narrowed his focus. The business name was changing, and it was time for a logo to match.
Normally the phrase “a quick logo” sets off warning bells to designers that it’s a problematic client, but that wasn’t the case! I’ve known Gabe for about 4 years, and we’ve worked together and had many business conversations in that time. I was confident I could deliver a high-value logo that matched his new brand in the short turnaround time.Â
Process:
Gabe and I texted back and forth about his brand and what he was looking for. I asked him to send me some inspiration, and I would send him sample images so I could ascertain the aesthetic he had in mind.Â
I begin all logo projects with sketching. Sketching by hand allows me to iterate and explore options more quickly than I could on a computer. Gabe was looking for a messy, hand-written aesthetic, so I wrote out a few samples and sent it over.Â
Refining Strongest Concepts
The first draft helped Gabe see what he liked and didn’t and ultimately I decided the fastest way for him to get a good, hand-drawn logo was to use a custom typeface. After a few back and forth images, I selected a typeface on Creative Market that matched the brand look tone and feel, and got to work on refining the logo. Gabe also sent me a desired layout on a napkin, which I was happy to improve upon.Â
Final Version
The final logo was designed to stack, be legibly crooked, fit nicely in a square or circle, and scale to small sizes while keeping the grungy look and staying legible. Once the primary mark was designed and ready to go, I designed a few alternates for other uses.
If you’d like to see more of this brand, go to https://www.whatmatters.media/
