I need logo ideas for a "soft" construction company?

Question

I'm trying to design a website for a good friend's construction company, Goodwill Builders (Slogan: "Building for you as we would build for us").
The guy that runs it believes very much in peace and spirituality. His company has been building portable buildings for the last 15 years, branching into custom homes in the last five years or so. (Pictures of their work can be found at their current site, www.goodwillbuilders.com, but be warned that the site design and layout is terrible. I did not design the monstrosity).
I need help constructing a logo for the business. The message I want to convey is the owner's philosophy (peace, forgiveness, happiness) but I don't want to lose the solidness of a construction company. Although I certainly don't expect anyone to actually design a logo for me, I'd very much appreciate any tips in regard to what color scheme I should use and any specific ideas you have about what the logo (or the entire site) should look like.

Answer 1

First of all, as your friends' web designer, you should be asking him these questions. It's his business and his web site...and he should have the say in what his web site looks like.

First of all, you will need to know, based on his existing website, what he wants to change (aside from the actual design and layout) - what does he hope to achieve with this website? What are his goals? What types of layouts does he like? He should be providing you with links to layouts he likes and which he dislikes so that you have an idea of where to start. What colors does he like, dislike? How does he wish to organize the website? Is this web site only for informational purposes as far as what he does, or does he intend to use this web site for selling purposes? Will he be collecting emails from people if they wish to receive more detailed information? Who will write the content on the "home" page? I saw no real content on his existing site. He will need new and detailed content enriched with good key words and phrases for SEO. As his web designer, these are considerations you need to keep in mind.

Regarding a logo, once you have the answers to the above questions, creating a logo should be fairly easy. I would recommend that you leave religion and any religious concept out of it completely because his business has nothing to do with religion. You will want to create a logo that is simple yet effective in translating what his business actually is. And as far as what colors to use, well, ask him.

Here's some links to help you:
Symbolism of color
http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/color2.htm
and here: http://www.color-wheel-pro.com/color-meaning.html

Choosing colors to communicate: http://www.valcasey.com/webdesign/color.html

Good luck!

Answer 2

Perhaps pick a symbol that embodies his philosophy -- something tranquil with a religious lean but I wouldn't go too far into religious symbols so as not to alienate potential customers.

Then change it like that symbol is being built. This isn't a great idea but to give you a concrete suggestion of what I mean. Get a logo of the scales of justice then modify it so it is partially built and has scaffolding around it to signify it being constructed.

Soothing colors. Nothing too vibrant like red, primary blues. Light blues, mild yellows, soft greens...

Answer 3

A limp brick! :D :))