Dental Logos | Dentist Logos

Logos have always been a part of businesses’ branding campaign, but what happens when one’s logo looks just like any other?

That’s exactly what’s happening in the dental industry. Dental logos need revamping – fast! If you’ve noticed, there’s little differentiation among many dental logos that you’d think they’re done by the same hand. If you want to stand out from competition, then you have to create a great first impression.

Overused Dental Image

When it comes to creating dental logos, designers typically use images that are related to the dental profession. These include a tooth, smile, and toothbrush. That’s three images and you have like tens of thousands of dental practices around the world to use them. Not surprisingly, the images have become overused and dental logos have looked strikingly similar to each other.

The challenge logo designers are facing is how to make their design fresh and unique. One approach is to put a unique spin on traditional images. Here are some examples.

Country Living Dentistry. This is a clever spin on the dental practice’s name. The designer replaced brush hair with a fence. The background is forest green.
Innovative Family Dental Health. The logo appropriately mirrors the message that the clinic caters to dental needs of the entire family. The logo is a take on the traditional image of three family members holding each other’s hands. Instead of human icons, however, the designer used three individual teeth made to look like human icons. Each tooth comes in a different color. The overall impression that you get is a friendly and approachable dental clinic.
City Dental. Here, a collection of city skyscrapers replaces toothbrush hair. On top of the skyscrapers is a bit of toothpaste, but it could also be taken as an image of a cloud.
Garden City Dental. The logo features four toothbrushes with leaves. One toothbrush is color orange, another’s green, another’s blue, and another’s pink.
Another approach is to use an image that is not related at all to dentistry. If Starbucks and Mercedes-Benz can get away with it, then a dental logo can.

Dental Logo Design Basics

It’s clear that you need to create a dental logo that stands out. However, you still have to make sure that it is appropriate to your client’s target market. Dental clinics are an object of fear for many. An effective dental logo removes the element of fear and establishes an element of trust. It should make patients feel like they can trust a practitioner to resolve their dental woes. Here are some basic features that logo designers should consider:

Color. You would want calming and soothing colors – nothing bright, nothing bold. Colors can communicate to patients a lot about the kind of service you give. Some dental clinics use red and pink – the colors of tongue and gums. However, these colors also remind patients of blood. If you don’t want illicit negative emotions in your patients, then you should avoid these colors. Some clinics use black and white to evoke formality and tradition. Unfortunately, many end up looking austere and dreary. If you want a more inviting atmosphere, go for light blue or green colors. White is also great for communicating hygiene or cleanliness.
Keep the color combination minimal. Excessive use of color can make your logo look cluttered, confusing, and unprofessional.
Font. Your choice of typeface can very much influence the mood or atmosphere your logo conveys. Typeface style and size can give an impression of playfulness, modern, classic, bold, etc. While projecting an image of professionalism is important, you don’t want to appear cold and uninviting. The logo designer has to find that subtle balance between friendliness and professionalism.
Symbols/images. Most dental logos are a combination of texts and symbols. As already mentioned, there are only a few symbols you can use, and these symbols are already overused. Again, the challenge is to make it new and interesting. Just make sure to include symbols that communicate care, concern, and wellness. If it’s a dental clinic for children, then cartoonish illustrations would be more appropriate.
Versatility. The logo should look good on a small scale (e.g., email, document) as it would on the dentist’s signage.

Some final words. Talk to your client before starting your logo design. Know their target patients, their business goals and objectives, how they would like their patients to perceive their clinic. Do they want to look affordable, child-friendly, or professional? Create as many logos as possible and present them to your client. Let them pick the final design.