New Logo Feedback

[firstdew]

Hey everyone out there! This is my first post. Hope it comes through ok - lol. When I looked at the attachment, the mower looks strange, but on our computer, it's fine. Go figure! :dizzy:

Anyhow, My husband and I recently started a small lawn business and are considering going w/ this for a logo. He is a full-time firefighter, so we thought we'd try to incorporate that to gain reputability. Any feedback is welcomed. :usflag:

[Poncho25]

Very simple and nice.

[tsh1773]

I would lose the mower from the graphic. Also I would put a "&" in between Landscape and Professional. Just my opinion.

[firstdew]

Very simple and nice.

Thanks so much, Poncho. We're actually in Brandon, How 'bout u?

[firstdew]

That's what I needed, thanks.

[2menandamower]

I would for sure try to get the letter out of the white box that the mower is in. I like it myself. Some will not catch the "First Dew" concept but some will understand it as "First Due". That is from a former Paramedic...

[martinfan06]

Not bad catchy and original best of luck neighbor... How long have you been in landscape maintenance? I ust to do a little work out in brandon valrico area.

[firstdew]

Not bad catchy and original best of luck neighbor... How long have you been in landscape maintenance? I ust to do a little work out in brandon valrico area.

Hey back 2 u. When I said we just started, I meant 2 mos. ago. There's lots of competition, but we're hoping to get a small piece of the pie. So far, we're 75% commercial and 25% residential. We'll see what happens ...How are things in Plant City? How long have u been around?

[Poncho25]

I am in the town-n-country/west chase and carrollwood area. Like yourself I just started in July, but am 100% residential atm, i have a commercial bid to do tomorrow so we will see how that goes! Any help or advise i can give please just ask...I am always willing to help esp a firefighter... got a bunch of friends that are NYC firefighters and have nothing but respect for them and their familys!

[RedMax Man]

Personally, I would reccomend that you replace the lawn mower logo with a simple landscape logo ie. lawn, trees, plants or nice home and landscape.
the mower doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the logo and it doesn't look like a prof. mower ... looks like a Craftsman. Other than that i think the logos and business name a great.:)

[noseha]

Personally, I would reccomend that you replace the lawn mower logo with a simple landscape logo ie. lawn, trees, plants or nice home and landscape.
the mower doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the logo and it doesn't look like a prof. mower ... looks like a Craftsman. Other than that i think the logos and business name a great.:)


yes, I agree have a picture in the same style of a walk behind or ztr. making more professional image

[Prestige-Lawncare]

My only holdback is the color of the background. Brown and/or yellow are not my favorite colors when it comes to lawncare.

:nono:

[nobagger]

I would loose the mower and the fire symbol. just my .02

[Runner]

I agree. The brochure picture of the push lawnmower is not only limiting, but in all reality, not really well done. It looks like a simple "cut and paste" thing.
Also, while he is a fireman, and that is very commendable (thank you for doing what you do), trying to capatalize it a bit on a tasteless side...tacky at best. I'm sorry, and please don't take this wrong,...because as I say, we thank you for what you do.
But from a marketing aspect - a TRUE marketing aspect, I'm just seeing it how the masses will see it. Use your BUSINESS ands INDUSTRY to capatilize, not an outside entity like a career of being a fireman...not on a business card or logo.

[TurfProSTL]

Yeah, the fire logo shouts out PART-TIME!

[Frontier-Lawn]

You could do something like this.

[Runner]

Along this subject, wouldn't it be cool to have a rig set up that actually looks similar to an emergency (fire) rig? Perhaps something like the brush rigs they have. There is someone on Plowsite that has a service truck for his operation that is set up and looks much like a paramedic style rig like the one that was on the old show Emergency. this one was MUCH nicer looking, though. I wish I knew the thread on there, because I'd post the link. It was a COOL looking truck. I think that would be a pretty neat "theme" to go with.
Also, there IS another member on here that used the fire symbol, but he used it just on his sign on the back of his trailer. It was just a small outfit, but kind of neat, all the same. Now this wouldn't be so bad, but not as a regular thing on the card or logo. :)

[POPO4995]

Lose the mower image....otherwise lookin good!

[firstdew]

You could do something like this.

Thanks for your suggestion!:waving:

[firstdew]

Lose the mower image....otherwise lookin good!

Thanks, we're going to try to tweak it a little more. :)

[firstdew]

Yeah, the fire logo shouts out PART-TIME!

Just wondering, is being part-time a bad thing? It really isn't our intention to grow so large that we give up the career as a firefighter. Is there still room for someone like us?*trucewhiteflag*

[firstdew]

Does anyone like this any better?

[Grits]

That's AWESOME!!!!!! Love it!

[Runner]

It looks the same, to me. You just substituted a cartoon walk behind for the push mower.
O.k......Let's get serious about this, if you are considering getting into this, you are going to want a well thought logo, theme, and format that you are going to want to stick with. The logo and theme is something you are going to want to have people identify with the business. Looking at the card, at first glance, I see NOTHING that says ANYthing relating to the green industry.. It could very well just as easily be a mower repair business. Another thing is, I see a fire insignia, and a machine....not an easily identifiable machine at that....especially to someone who is not familiar with the lawn services, and is not real familiar to these typeof machines. (Yes, there ARE many people who don't know what they are). Then,...we come to the title. What do you want do? What do you want to focus on? Do you want to do landscaping (installs, beds, trees, etc.)? Or, are you mainly wanting to do maintenance (mowing, shrub trimming, etc.)? Too many people make the mistake of calling themselves "landscapers", or titling their business as "landscaping" when they merely just doing maintenance. Unfortunately, they end up shorting themselves on the marketing side when they do that because all too often, they are then overlooked by the people who are looking for what their TRUE services are.
So, what can be DONE about this??? Here are some ideas. First, name yourself for what you want to do. There is nothing saying you can't deviate from your stated title of business, because things like doing installs and such can come along. As a matter of fact, they are basically an aspect of doing maintenance, because we are always replacing stuff, refurbishing, and adding on to certain things. But the main thing is,...shoot for what you want to do - from the get go. Don't cut yourself short.
Now, for the format. When people are shopping for service in the green industry, whether it be landscaping, lawn maintenance, or lawn care (fert. and chem.), they put themselves into a mindset of what they want to think. We, as consumers, do the same thing with ANYTHING we are in the market for. When we are shopping for a new computer or electronics, we want to to see something that is technological. Whether it be displays, or the way the associates are dressed (white shirts, ties, etc.). When we go for some sort of service for our car, we want to see pitcrew looking uniforms, checkered flags, efficient looking work areas, etc.. When we are in the market for outdoor goods, like camping equipment and such, we want to see nature. We want to see trees, water, beach, and campsites. Just like us,...when we are shopping for new equipment, we want to see images of efficiency of nice properties being done, by professional looking people using the equipment, giving us the impression that if we use this equipment, we TOO will look like that and so will our properties. "This is the machine to get this done."
Well, when people are putting ANY consideration to having a service done for their lawn, they also want to see things that will remind them of certain characteristics. They will think of manicured edges, green color, an just a natural...niceness. well, this is where YOU come in.... With a name like "First Dew" (which is a great name, by the way), you would be doing yourself a terrible injustice by not capitalizing on the connotation of serene nature, natural beauty, openness, peacefulness, and ease of mind that could be sublimely conveyed to the thousands of potential customers that you will be reaching over the years.
An idea?
First Dew. How about just that? If you were to ask 100 people, what they think when thy hear this name, I'm willing to bet that the VAST majority of them think green grass glistening in the morning. Where do we see alot of this? Related to peaceful nature. If you were to come up with some sort of logo image, similar to what some have that are the better logos, that has a nice rolling hill(or hills), green grass (don't show the blades - just have it green), and a nice sunrise coming up in the back, believe me, you will be REACHING OUT and appealing to alot more customers attractions than what you will with just some sort of abstract generic cartoon pics that the kid down the street put on his supermarket flyer. Remamber, do it right the first time, and you will be using this for several years to come. Your logo is your signature and photo - all in one. It will be what people relate YOUR business to over everyone elses.

[FERT-TEK]

Hey everyone out there! This is my first post. Hope it comes through ok - lol. When I looked at the attachment, the mower looks strange, but on our computer, it's fine. Go figure! :dizzy:

Anyhow, My husband and I recently started a small lawn business and are considering going w/ this for a logo. He is a full-time firefighter, so we thought we'd try to incorporate that to gain reputability. Any feedback is welcomed. :usflag:
One fellow Professional firefighter to another, here is a website I am looking into for next years advertising. It is a website that advertises off duty firefighters side jobs according to their zip codes. It appears to be fairly new but might be worth a look offdutyfirefighters.com

[Frontier-Lawn]

hows this one i came up with for you

[noseha]

ya.......runner, said it

[Grass-Masters]

They all look nice to me.

[Allure]

I have to agree with what Runner said. Also keep the colors & graphics looking professional. Less colors is better for a professional look.
I also have to agree with everyone who said drop the firefighter logo. I commend your husband for what he does but it is confusing to have that as a part of your logo.
Someone suggested customizing your vehicle instead. That could be a great way to incorporate your husbands job & creating a buzz at the same time.
I attended a marketing seminar recently. a guy told us his story. He only has 2 trucks but they are both orange. When a new customer calls they often say 'i see your trucks all over town'. The were seeing the same two trucks but they where remembering them because they where different.

Or maybe your uniform could pay tribute to firefighters. Maybe suspenders (lol) or custom caps or something more creative.

As to anything being wrong with being part time. Absolutely not. i am part time as well but i try not to convey that image. People may not see you as being available when they need you. If need be you can inform them of your part time status once you have established a connection.
Best of luck in your new business.
Glenn

[firstdew]

One fellow Professional firefighter to another, here is a website I am looking into for next years advertising. It is a website that advertises off duty firefighters side jobs according to their zip codes. It appears to be fairly new but might be worth a look offdutyfirefighters.com

Hey! Thanks 4 the tip! :usflag:

[firstdew]

Hey everyone. Thanks for all of the feedback. You've all given us a lot to consider.

Any idea how hard it is to change your corporate name? Ours is filed as "First Dew Landscaping, Incorporated". We do both lawn maintenance and landscaping. I sure do I wish I had found this site BEFORE starting the bus.

[Allure]

Any idea how hard it is to change your corporate name? Ours is filed as "First Dew Landscaping, Incorporated". We do both lawn maintenance and landscaping. I sure do I wish I had found this site BEFORE starting the bus.

I did a little searching & here's what i came up with. you need to file Articles of Amendment. check this site for more info.
http://www.corporationcentre.ca/docen/pmtn/home.asp?d=amdquote

here's the search if you wish to dig further
http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=A0geutgFD11FImMB8tpXNyoA?p=articles+of+amendment+name+change&y=Search+the+Web&ei=UTF-8&fr=yfp-t-501&fl=1&x=wrt&meta=vl%3Dlang_en&_adv_prop=web

here's another resource
http://www.legalzoom.com/index.html