You don't have to pay hundreds of dollars for a practice logo. Nike's logo cost $35.00. It is now one of the most famous logos in the world.

"The SWOOSH logo is a graphic design created by Caroline Davidson in 1971. It represents the wing of the Greek goddess Nike. Caroline Davidson was a student at Portland State University interested in advertising."

"She met Phil Knight while he was teaching accounting classes and she started doing some freelance work for his company. Phil Knight asked Caroline to design a logo that could be placed on the side of a shoe."

"She handed him the SWOOSH -- he handed her $35."

I think you can find a congruent logo for a good price, if you give logo creators like gotlogos.com, explicit directions.

"In spring of 1972, the first shoe with the Nike SWOOSH was introduced... the rest is history." Referenced from the Nike Q&A web site.

The logo for ISOC cost $25.00. gotlogos.com created it. Go to www.gotlogos.com to see examples of their work and/or to order a logo.

Follow up to last weeks logo article.

Paul Henny DDS of Salem, Virginia wrote:

I would advise caution with regard to implying that marketing is as simple as buying a $35.00 logo off of the Internet. The reality is that logos are rapidly becoming passe' and may be inappropriate for a very personalized health-centered practice. The days are gone where happy dancing teeth, smiley faces, and arty toothbrushes enhance an image.

It is my strong opinion that for our preferred practice model, we must become masters at promoting ourselves, our values, and our philosophy toward care. That is hard to do behind some corporatized logo.

You are it. It is you. I really think the most appropriate logo today for a truly health-centered practitioner is their name stylized or in a special font.

Public image projection is critical and is quite important in everything we do, from image projected by our letterhead and the quality and content of the message imprinted on it, to the way our phones are answered, to how well our patients' experiences are managed during and after their contact with us.

This type of work is often beyond the realm of the average dentist who received no formal training and has had next to no experience in this area. It leads to what is known in the graphics arts community as "nephew art," meaning that when a professional looks at what has been done they can tell it was done for next to nothing and with little proper thought and planning behind it.

We as dentists are so busy with literally hundreds of important decisions to make each month, that we are quick to throw money at a problem instead of doing the hard work of really creating something which is long-lasting, congruent, and appropriate. When we see $35.00 "deals" we tend to even throw our money around faster.

Paul A. Henny, DDS

This email from Paul was used with his permission.

Lynn Carlisle's reply to Paul:

You make some good points. I made some assumptions in writing the article for ISOC members.

1. They have a written philosophy statement.

2. They practice a high level of dentistry.

3. They have a written business plan.

4. They are congruent in their marketing materials.

5. They have good taste.

6. They are looking for a logo to reflect all of the above.

These are mighty big assumptions, but I think they apply to most ISOC members.

I think you can find a congruent logo for a good price, if you give logo creators like gotlogos.com, explicit directions.

I agree with you that the logo should reflect the practices values and philosophy. A logo should be philosophy and values based.

When dentists look at their logo, they should be able to say "This image reflects my practice values and philosophy."

Logos are one of the many images used to brand or market a practice. I think a good logo is helpful, but not having one will not doom a practice.

Creating a good logo may take a few iterations. I got what I wanted on the first pass, but I gave very explicit directions and sent them part of my business plan so they would have a feel for what ISOC is about.

Thanks for the feedback - I realized that I did not give enough details. Hopefully these added comments and your comments will help ISOC members when they are looking for a logo.

Bob Frazer, DDS thoughts on logo's.

I certainly wouldn't put logos at the top of my to do list, but I believe a unique logo can be another way of branding what you do. Be sure that it flows out of your written philosophy, vision and mission.

Our logo was a turtle wuth the Chinese symbol for water on its back within in a delta, under which was our motto "Quality Endures." We would welcome the frequent times that a new patient would ask us about our unique logo.

I was priviledged to be a part of two of the earliest dental teaching delegations to China ('82 & '84). What I discovered in the Forbidden City where countless statues of turtles. Why? Because the turtle symbolizes long life in China. In our courtyard on which all of our treatment rooms looked out, was a pond and waterfall with seven water turtles.

How does one judge excellence in literature or art or music? It endures over time. So does fine dentistry! So do turtles! Finally, like the turtle in the children's story of the race between the turtle and the hare, although the turtle started very slowly, as we do in our new patient examination, and like the turtle we win in the end as do with all of our patients because we developed a careful, collaborative plan for a lifetime of excellent dental health.

So if you have a logo let it tell a story that people can remember that conveys what you stand for and then walk your talk.

If you want to comment on logos or practice promotion, go to the discussion forum and post your comments. ISOC members only