Yes, as a place to start. An AI logo is a quick way to show what you have in mind, and I’d rather see a rough concept than guess. Just don’t treat it as your finished brand.
Explaining a brand is hard. Plenty of clients know what they want when they see it but can’t put it into a brief, and words like “modern” or “premium” mean something different to everyone. A rough picture can do in a minute what a long email can’t.
A sketch pad on steroids
That’s how I’d think of these tools. Put the concept in, draw the idea, try a few directions and see what feels right. You can test a colour, a mood or a shape in minutes, and you’ll often find out what you don’t want as well.
On a mascot logo, this is how I’d use it. I’d ask for a few possible poses of the animal, choose the one closest to what I have in mind, and then draw my own logo from that pose.
It helps the designer too. I can see where your head is before I start, so we spend less time guessing and more time on the brand.
What to send your designer
You don’t need anything polished. Send the concepts you like and add a line on what you like about each one. Tell us what you don’t like as well, because that’s just as useful.
Got a concept already?
Upload it on our Get a Quote form with your brief. It can be as rough as you like.
Why an AI logo isn’t your final brand
An AI tool gives you a flat picture made of pixels. A final logo is built by a person as clean vector artwork, so it stays sharp from a small icon on a phone to a billboard, and you get it as AI, PDF, SVG and PNG files.
A brand also has to work hard. Take The HangarHound, an aircraft maintenance company. We used no AI on this one, but it shows the job a logo has to do. The same hound sits on a business card and a letterhead, works alone as a big icon on the front of a hoodie, and runs full size across the back. An AI logo that only looks good in a chat window won’t manage that.
Logo, corporate identity, shirts and hoodies for an aircraft maintenance company in South Africa.
The same tools are giving the next business something close to yours as well. I’ve written about why every ChatGPT flyer looks alike, and logos have the same problem.
Your colours, your fonts and your tone of voice need to work together too, and a single picture can’t plan that for you.
What a designer does with your AI concept
We look at what’s behind the idea: what you’re trying to say, who your customers are and who you’re up against. Then we keep what works, fix what doesn’t and build it properly. On a logo design project you get 3 options (1 if it’s a mascot logo), you pick one and we refine it. If none of them feels right and your brief hasn’t changed, we make new options.
Our Logo design package starts at R3 000€300, and a logo takes 7 to 15 working days. Only the days we’re working on it count, so time spent waiting for your feedback isn’t included. The logo is yours once the final invoice is paid.
I’ve been designing for more than 15 years, and at Strogonofy Designs and Adorn Media Studio we use AI tools ourselves. On a logo we use them for early concepts at most, so I know what they’re good for and where they stop. Our How we use AI page sets out the rest.
Questions about AI logos
01
Can you turn my AI logo into a proper logo?
Yes. Send it with your brief and it becomes the starting point. We keep what works, fix the rest and build the final logo as clean vector artwork.
02
Can I ask you not to use AI on my logo?
Yes. Say so in your brief.
03
Can I register a logo I made with AI as a trade mark?
We don’t do trade mark or copyright registration, so ask a trade mark adviser before you rely on it.
So, should you use AI for your logo?
Yes, if it helps you and your designer. Use AI for the concept and as a first guide to what you want, then send it with your brief. The finished logo still has to be drawn as vector artwork and tested on everything your business will put it on.
