How to Choose the Right Branding Method for Your Logo

The same logo on the same product can look like a considered gift or like conference stock, and the difference is almost always the branding method rather than the product itself.

There are seven methods we use regularly. Rather than describing all of them and leaving you to guess, this guide works through the five questions that actually decide it.

The five questions

1. What is the surface made of?

Material rules out more options than anything else. Metal, glass and wood can be engraved. Leather and heavy paper can be pressed. Fabric takes screen ink or a heat transfer. Plastic and acrylic take direct printing. Get the material settled first and the list usually halves.

2. How many colours are in the logo?

One or two flat colours suit screen printing, where a stencil is made for each colour and the ink is pressed through it. A gradient, a photograph or a logo with many colours does not, because there is no way to build those from flat layers. Those go to digital printing, which lays the whole design down in one pass.

3. How many pieces are you ordering?

Screen printing carries a setup cost per colour, so the price per piece drops sharply as the quantity rises. Digital printing has no screen to make, which makes it the better option for small runs. The crossover point moves around depending on the product, so it is worth asking rather than assuming.

4. Is the surface flat?

A flat panel takes almost any method. A curved bottle, a ridged case or a small round surface does not. That is what UV transfer printing is for: the artwork is printed onto a thin film first and then pressed on, so it follows the shape underneath.

5. Should the branding be seen or felt?

This is the question most people skip, and it is the one that changes how the finished gift reads. A printed logo announces itself from across a room. An engraved or pressed mark has to be looked for. Events want the first. Client gifts usually want the second.

The methods in short

Screen printing

Ink pushed through a mesh stencil, one colour at a time. Solid, consistent colour across a long run, and the cost per piece falls quickly with volume. Not suitable for gradients or photographic artwork. Best on canvas, cotton, notebooks, bottles and boxes.

Digital UV printing

Full colour printed straight onto the product and cured under ultraviolet light as it goes down. Holds fine detail and gradients, and is economical in small runs because there is no screen to set up. Works on metal, plastic, acrylic, leather and wood.

UV transfer printing

The artwork is printed onto a thin film and pressed on with heat, so it wraps around curves and ridges that a flat printer cannot reach. Used on bottles, tumblers and curved cases.

Laser engraving

A laser removes a thin layer of the surface and reveals the material underneath. There is no ink, so nothing can peel, scratch off or fade. On stainless steel it reads as a soft grey, and on wood and leather it burns darker than the surface around it. The trade off is that the colour comes from the material, so it cannot be matched to a brand colour.

Deboss and emboss

A metal die presses the logo into the material. Debossing pushes the shape down and embossing raises it. No ink at all, so the branding is felt more than seen. Suits leather goods and heavier paper stock. Very fine hairlines lose definition once they are pressed.

Heat transfer printing

The design is printed onto a transfer sheet and bonded to fabric with heat and pressure. It carries full colour and fine detail that screen printing cannot, and it works for one piece as readily as for a hundred. Best on flat panels rather than across seams.

Foil stamping

A heated die presses reflective metallic foil onto the surface, leaving a mirror finish in gold, silver, rose gold or holographic. Usually kept for the logo alone rather than large areas, because big solid blocks can show pinholes.

Matching the method to the material

• Stainless steel and aluminium. Laser engraving first. Digital UV printing if the logo has to carry its own colours.
• Leather and faux leather. Deboss for a quiet finish, digital UV printing if the logo needs colour, foil for a metallic accent.
• Canvas, cotton and tote bags. Screen printing for one or two flat colours, heat transfer for full colour.
• Plastic, acrylic and cases. Digital UV printing on flat faces, UV transfer on curved ones.
• Notebooks and paper. Deboss, foil stamping or screen printing, depending on how loud you want it.
• Glass and wood. Laser engraving.

Where people go wrong

Choosing the product before the branding. A logo with six colours and a gradient, on a curved steel bottle, in a run of fifty, narrows to almost nothing. Bring both decisions together.

Expecting engraving to carry a brand colour. It cannot. If your logo only works in a specific colour, engraving is the wrong method regardless of how good it looks on the material.

Scaling a detailed logo down. Fine lines and small text survive on a tote bag and disappear on a pen clip. If a logo has to go onto something small, it usually needs a simplified version.

Assuming one method for a whole order. A mixed order often uses three or four different methods. That is normal and it is usually the right answer.

Common questions

Can you match a Pantone colour?

Screen printing matches closely. Digital printing is very close but works in process colour rather than a mixed ink. Engraving and deboss carry no colour at all. Send Pantone references if you have them.

Which method lasts the longest?

Laser engraving and deboss, because there is nothing sitting on the surface to come off. Printed finishes are durable in normal use but will eventually wear on a high contact area.

Do I have to decide before getting a quote?

No. Send the product, the logo and roughly how many you need, and we will tell you which method we would use and why.

Can I see it before production?

You approve a digital proof of every branding position before a single piece is produced.

Next steps

There is a longer breakdown of each method, including the materials it suits and the artwork it needs, on our branding methods page. To see the finishes on finished work, have a look through the case studies.

If you already know the product, send it through with your logo and we will come back with a recommendation.