Howdy Dog
Logo, branding, home page, mailers, and SWAG
The Challenge
Design a logo, branding, and assets for Howdy Dog that conveys that they are a local, trustworthy option for those seeking dog walkers or sitters.
Howdy Dog is a concept business that offers subscription-based dog walking and dog sitting services. Their biggest competitors are Rover.com and other local businesses. Their customers are generally working adults aged 27-55, though there’s a secondary audience of adults who have specific health needs who also rely on dog walking services.
My Approach
To differentiate Howdy Dog from competitors like Rover.com, I wanted Howdy Dog to feel local, like getting help from a caring neighbor. To accomplish this, I aimed to create branding that had a handmade feel. I noticed, however, that this approach had been used with other local services, but often to the point where they looked unprofessional.
Sketches
Initially I wanted the logo to focus on a dog’s happy face, but I was worried that it might lack movement. I decided to explore this option along with something more dynamic. I also debated between using a typeface that looked Western and one that looked handwritten.
First Digital Drafts
I moved on to experimenting with different styles in Adobe Illustrator. After looking at these drafts, the walking dog seemed like a much stronger image for the brand.
Initial Digital Draft and Feedback
I presented the following drafts for feedback. Using a blue and yellow color scheme supported the friendly but professional brand of Howdy Dog. Further, the logo mark of the dog felt both personal and professional, while the bandana and western-style typeface gave it that local to Austin, Texas flavor.
In feedback I heard that the typeface and logo mark had room to feel more cohesive together. I agreed that I could work to make sure they were speaking the same design language. I set out to explore additional typeface solutions and refine the logo mark for my final draft.
Final Design and Touch Points
I realized that a handwritten font would fit better with the hand-drawn style of the logo. I also created a design language playing with an offset print look, as this would help give the brand that hand-crafted, local feeling I wanted to convey.
The marketing strategy of using hand-written mailers to targeted customers also plays a key role in promoting the local quality of the brand. Mailing lists could be obtained from pet stores in the area.
This was the first logo I designed so I learned a ton about creating images that are simple but dynamic, that scale well, and are able to look attractive when used in various formats. In the future, I’d love to add to this project by crafting a marketing campaign with Instagram ads as I could see that being a great platform for this brand.