Can the logo be made larger?

Inwardly, I shake myself every time I am asked this question. But I remain patient and explain why the size of the logo on a website should be reduced to a minimum and why an oversized logo can even be annoying or out of place.

Today I would also like to explain this rather interesting topic to you.

If the logo were bigger…

The following charts clearly show where the „problem“ actually lies.

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What's so bad about making the logo bigger?

In the picture examples above, I have already somewhat exaggerated the problem. But you can see what it's all about, can't you? Basically, there's nothing wrong with opting for a giant logo. There are various examples where prominent logos look very good:

But on the web? Hmm…

Why you don't need to make your logo bigger

Please don't get me wrong: of course I appreciate and need your opinions and ideas regarding your web design wishes! Nevertheless, you should bear the following points in mind:

• Your site visitors are not blind – For that reason alone, your logo shouldn’t take up too much of the screen space, which is actually very valuable and limited. And all that just to let people know which page they’re on. Take a closer look at the logo layout on the websites of the brands mentioned above: Mercedes Benz, Ray Ban, Nike. Compared to the navigation and the product presentation, the logo display is absolutely secondary.
• Your logo has no real benefit for the visitor. – The limited space on the homepage is far too valuable to waste on something so useless to visitors. After all, you want to keep visitors from „clicking away“ and „searching further on Google“!
• Your website is not about YOU – This is hard for many companies to accept at first. Your website isn’t made for you, but for your customers and potential new customers. Creating a consistent brand image is a good thing and should be encouraged wherever possible. But to achieve consistency, it’s not necessary to bombard your website visitors, prospects, customers, and new customers with your logo.
• A giant logo can push other more important page elements out of the precious field of vision – Wouldn't you prefer to take advantage of that brief moment of your website visitor's 100%-style attention and draw their focus to your stylish products and services?
• Large logos can disrupt your website – This is basically a summary of all the points mentioned so far:
  Large logos distract from the added value and benefits of your website. Unless you want to sell the logo instead of your products.
  Learn to understand what the actual purpose of a website is: Information provision, customer service, product presentation, etc.

I hope I was able to give you an understanding of the advantages and productively sensible reasons for a less prominent logo on your website. Let me know what you think about this topic.

Best regards
Saskia Lund