So you received your files from your designer and they are sayings all of these acronyms and you’re extremely confused. Worry not, here is a handy guide for the logo files you need for your business!
VECTOR FILE
This will probably be the file that you will be asked for most. This is the ideal file to work with when handling your brand to vendors or other designers. A vector means that it will not be pixelated. It can be sized up to be the size of the house and still look pristine and can be sized down to the size of a penny without losing quality. Vector files are created in various programs, the two most popular would be Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign. However, your logo should be an Adobe Illustrator file. Keep in mind you may not have the necessary programs to open some of these files but do not throw them away as they will be vital as your business continues to grow.
VECTOR FILE TYPES
.ai
.pdf (this sometimes is qualified as a vector, depending on if your designer saved the file correctly.)
.eps
.svg
Note: Most designers do not hand off the .ai file, also known as a native file. However, this is not necessary for you. If you have a professional designer you will receive some sort of vector file.
PIXEL FILE
This will be the file you use to upload to the web and can print from your office.
.JPG - This is the most common image file that you can use in various formats.
.PNG - This file is the one with the background looking like a checker box. This means the background is transparent as long as the ending of the file is .png. This means if you are trying to place your logo over a colored background you will not have the white box around it.
THIS IS A SIMPLE WAY TO KNOW WHICH SIZE FILE YOU NEED:
300 DPI - Is made for printing, meaning this file will not lose image quality when printed at its size.
72 DPI - This is ideal for the web, this makes your websites load faster. These are the quality you will upload to the web. If you upload the 300 DPI file to the web it can come off pixelated because it is too much information for the computer to read so quickly. Hence, why the larger files take longer to load.
When we work with clients they always receive: Logo.eps, .svg, .pdf, .jpg, and .png. (PNGs in 72 dpi and 300 dpi)
If you are sponsoring an event or getting something printed with your logo it will always be ideal to send your vector file as well as your brand standards. Your brand standards is a manual that tells other designers or marketing departments how your logo should work, how much space is needed, the exact colors that may be used, how to use them, etc. These are essential if you are a slightly larger business with many moving parts as you want to keep your brand identity intact.
