Bleed marks and crop marks are a printing term.

• A bleed is the extra margin on a print product that is meant to be trimmed off when the product is trimmed to its final size.
• Bleed basically means that the color and graphics on a product "bleed off the page" to ensure continuity of the color to the edge of your product. (because there's never been a printer invented that can print to the very edge of a sheet of paper!)

Crop marks are lines on the design that serve as a guide for where the image or product will be cropped. The red line below, indicates where the cut mark the printer will make. 

A good logo is a simple, distinctive, practical graphic and/or type treatment. We try to follow the below when creating a logo:

• Simple
  • We often get request to have multiple elements to a logo and we need to remind clients that a simple logo design allows for easy recognition and allows the logo to be versatile & memorable. Good logos feature something unique without being overdrawn.
• Memorable
  • An effective logo design should be memorable and this is achieved by having a simple, yet, appropriate logo.
• Timeless
  • An effective logo should be timeless. Will the logo still be effective in 10, 20, 50 years?
• Versatile
  • This is what tends to separate the pros from the amateurs. An effective logo should be able to work across a variety of mediums and applications. The logo should be functional. For this reason a logo should be designed in vector format, to ensure that it can be scaled to any size. The logo should be able to work both in horizontal and vertical formats. Will your logo still work if:
    • Printed in one colour?
    • Printed on the something the size of a postage stamp?
    • Printed on something as large as a billboard?
    • Printed in reverse (ie. light logo on dark background)
• Appropriate
  • How you position the logo should be appropriate for its intended purpose. For example, if you are designing a logo for children’s toys store, it would be appropriate to use a childish font & colour scheme. This would not be so appropriate for a law firm.
    
  • A logo is purely for identification therefore; a logo doesn’t need to show what a business sells or offers as a service.
    • The Harley Davidson logo isn’t a motorcycle, nor is the Nokia logo a mobile phone.

Sited: Jacob Cass

What does all this mean?
It's important for us to know how you plan on printing your project, prior to us starting. We'll need to covert images saved in RGB mode to CMYK for any print projects. If you have a specific brand color that your original designer and you selected, please let us know that pantone # at the beginning of your project. 

Straight from the United States Copyright Office - We found the below to be some of the most FAQs. See the full list here. 

What is copyright?
Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works.

What does copyright protect?
Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section "What Works Are Protected."

How is a copyright different from a patent or a trademark?
Copyright protects original works of authorship, while a patent protects inventions or discoveries. Ideas and discoveries are not protected by the copyright law, although the way in which they are expressed may be. A trademark protects words, phrases, symbols, or designs identifying the source of the goods or services of one party and distinguishing them from those of others.

When is my work protected?
Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.

Do I have to register with your office to be protected?
No. In general, registration is voluntary. Copyright exists from the moment the work is created. You will have to register, however, if you wish to bring a lawsuit for infringement of a U.S. work. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Copyright Registration.”

Why should I register my work if copyright protection is automatic?
Registration is recommended for a number of reasons. Many choose to register their works because they wish to have the facts of their copyright on the public record and have a certificate of registration. Registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees in successful litigation. Finally, if registration occurs within five years of publication, it is considered prima facie evidence in a court of law. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Copyright Registration” and Circular 38b, Highlights of Copyright Amendments Contained in the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA), on non-U.S. works.

Resolution is also known as dpi (dots per inch) or ppi (pixels per inch) - And, YES! It matters.  

• The resolution of an image indicates the number of colored dots or pixels that make up one image.
• The higher the dots per inch/pixels per inch, the greater the resolution and the clearer the resulting final print will be.

DPI is used in printing. PPI is used on the web. 

Every colour, including black and white, has implications for logo design. To keep things simple, here's what we think: Bright and bold colours are attention-grabbing but can appear brash. Muted tones convey a more sophisticated image. Here are a few other break downs of color theory. 

• Red implies passion, energy, danger or aggression; warmth and heat. It has also been found to stimulate appetite, which explains why it is used in so many restaurants and food product logos.
  
  • Choosing red for your logo can make it feel more dynamic.
• Orange is often see as the color of innovation and modern thinking. It also carries connotations of youth, fun, affordability and approachability.
• Yellow requires cautious use as it has some negative connotations including its signifying of cowardice and its use in warning signs.
  
  • However it is sunny, warm and friendly and is another colour that is believed to stimulate appetite.
• Green is commonly used when a company wishes to emphasise their natural and ethical credentials, especially with such products as organic and vegetarian foods.
  
  • Other meanings ascribed to it include growth and freshness, and it's popular with financial products too.
• Blue is one of the most widely used colors in corporate logos. It implies professionalism, serious mindedness, integrity, sincerity and calm.
  
  • Blue is also associated with authority and success, and for this reason is popular with both financial institutions and government bodies.

• Purple speaks to us of royalty and luxury.
  
  • It has long been associated with the church, implying wisdom and dignity, and throughout history it has been the colour of wealth and riches.
• Black is a colour with a split personality.
  
  • On the one hand it implies power and sophistication, but on the other hand it is associated with villainy and death.
    
    • More mundanely, most logos will need a black and white version for use in media in which colour is not available – and there is currently a trend for bold monochrome logos and word marks.
• White is generally associated with purity, cleanliness, simplicity and naiveté.
  
  • A white logo will always need to stand in a coloured field to make it show up on a white background. 
• Brown has masculine connotations and is often used for products associated with rural life and the outdoors.
• Pink can be fun and flirty, but its feminine associations means it is often avoided for products not specifically targeted at women.

​Sited: Martin Christie of Logo Design London

There is a lot of online discussions recently about the difference between a brand vs. a logo. Every designer or agency may have different views, but here's how we've broken it down to best understand:

• Your brand – The perceived emotional image of your company as a whole.
• Your identity – set of assets that make your company recognizable, including your logo, name, colors, fonts, primary messages and marketing materials. This visual system plays a big part in how your audience perceives your brand across various mediums.
• Your logo – a simple visual representation of your brand. It serves to quickly identify your company through a symbol, mark or typography. The logo identifies a business or product in its simplest form.