Including LLC in your logo can hurt your marketing/branding for many reasons. First, including LLC in your logo increases the risk of confusing customers and reducing recognition of your logo as a trademark. Second, an LLC logo is difficult to label, looks amateur and unprofessional, and feels cluttered. Third, if you`re moving from an LLC to a corporation or sole proprietorship, you`ll need a new logo. Fourth, if you want brand protection for your new logo, you need to repeat the branding process for your new logo. 1. You need to reprotect your logo if you change your business structure from an LLC: If you ever decide to change the legal structure of your business, you will need to update your logo – which can be expensive and time-consuming. If you have registered your logo, you must start the process again. A common question we receive when creating a logo, business card or marketing material, if it is necessary to involve LLC, limited liability company, etc. Now that the basics of naming a limited liability company are clarified, let`s get back to the question of whether the entity ID should be included in the logo or business card.
The entity identifier is the word at the end of a registered trade name such as LLC, Limited Liability Company, Limited, etc. Each state has different requirements for naming an LLC, and these entity identifiers must be used in a specific way. This means you can avoid including “LLC” in your logo, domain name, social media pages, or other marketing materials. Not only is it unnecessary to include “LLC” in your company logo, but it`s also ill-advised. Company names can create the clutter appearance in the design. The most successful branding is simple and focused – and makes the design unforgettable. Trust us here – we work with many designers. On the other side of the argument, a majority of lawyers say that the entity identifier does not need to be added to the logo. Those in this camp say that since the logo is an extension of a company`s trade name, the identifier does not need to be included with a logo. The bottom line here is that you do NOT need to include the three letters LLC in your logo after you finally file your LLC. (Your marketing team will thank you for that). Including “LLC” in your logo does not increase the legal protection of your business and brand.
In fact, including “LLC” in your logo could hurt your business and limit future marketing options. For these reasons, it`s usually best to avoid “LLC” in your logo. For example, if the LLC is called Ben and Sarah`s Auction Business, LLC, it can also register as a DBA as “It`s All About the Bidding.” You can have a designed logo that contains “It`s All About the Bidding” and is not bound by the LLC rule. If you`ve already registered your business name, you can update this documentation when you file your LLC with the state, but you do NOT need to inform your professional logo designer and ask them to update your logo! There are many reasons not to include LLC in your logo. Here are the main reasons why you should not include LLC in your logo and use the resulting LLC logo: Below are some examples of logos designed by Tingalls that include LLC without compromising the overall design and aesthetics of your logo. In the end, the most successful branding is clear, simple, memorable and distinctive. Excluding “LLC” from your logo promotes all of these brand goals. For this reason, major brands do not include “LLC”, “Inc.” or “Ltd.” in their logos.
Even though “LLC” shouldn`t be included in your logo, there are still significant benefits to forming an LLC. While the company is generally not required to include LLC on business cards, it can make the company look credible. In addition, its use on any matching tool, including business cards, is a good security measure. If it is included in the logo design, it goes without saying that the logo on business cards will include the LLC designation. The common problem is that using the entity ID in a logo makes it visually less appealing. These lawyers propose a solution, which is to register a DBA. The DBA or Doing Business As (also known as an alias or assumed trade name, fictitious trade name or trade name) allows an LLC to operate under a name other than the registered legal name. In this case, the LLC uses the same company name and simply excludes the identifier. This is the safest way to use a logo without the entity ID. Generally, you don`t need to include LLC in your logo.
Once you have formed your LLC, you can register a DBA (doing business as) name, also known as a “fictitious” or “assumed” trade name.
