The AI is most powerful when you give it specific, intentional directions. Here's how professionals think — and how to translate that into prompts that get exceptional results.
The Golden Rule
Be specific about one thing at a time. Broad instructions like "make it better" produce safe, average results. Precise instructions like "change the primary colour to #1A3A2A and remove all rounded edges" produce intentional, distinctive ones.
Name specific hues
"Change the primary colour to deep forest green (#1A3A2A) — keep everything else."
Use mood descriptors
"Make the palette feel cooler and more clinical — think surgical steel, white linen, pale arctic blue."
Reference known aesthetics
"Shift the colours toward a Parisian apothecary — dusty rose, aged cream, verdigris."
Set contrast intention
"High contrast dark background with a single gold accent. Everything else secondary should recede."
Specify tracking and weight
"Give the logo widely-tracked, all-caps thin letterforms — very architectural and spacious."
Describe letter personality
"The brand name should feel like it was carved into stone — geometric, structural, no flourishes."
Reference real typographic styles
"Inspired by 1930s Art Deco poster typography — strong verticals, decorative serifs, gold on black."
Handmade vs engineered
"More hand-lettered and organic — like it was written with a brush, imperfect but intentional."
Control the symbol vs wordmark balance
"The logo should be a wordmark only — no icon or emblem. The name itself is the identity."
Describe negative space usage
"Use negative space cleverly — the icon should have a hidden element that rewards closer looking."
Specify orientation
"Horizontal layout only — icon to the left of the text, vertically centred."
Frame and canvas fill
"Logo should fill 90% of the canvas with consistent 5% padding on all sides. No floating in a sea of white."
Stack two contrasting references
"Dark academia meets Japanese minimalism — aged textures, quiet luxury, earthy tones."
Name a decade or design movement
"Late 90s Tokyo streetwear — clean grids, technical typefaces, monochrome with a single neon accent."
Describe the customer feeling
"I want the brand to feel like opening a gift from yourself — indulgent, ceremonial, worth it."
Set the environment
"This should look at home on a marble bathroom shelf in a Paris apartment, next to a candle and linen towels."
Specify hierarchy clearly
"Brand name dominant at top in large text. Product name in a smaller secondary weight below. Ingredients in micro text at the base."
Describe the finish
"Label should feel like premium embossed print — like it belongs on a £60 serum."
Badge placement
"The quality badge should sit in the bottom-right corner, small and discreet — a nod to quality, not a shout."
Shape and proportion
"Tall, narrow label — portrait orientation. Clean top and bottom borders with generous internal spacing."
Lighting direction
"Soft directional light from the upper left — one strong shadow to add depth. Clinical clean background."
Lifestyle context
"Studio shot on a raw concrete surface next to a single eucalyptus sprig. Minimal, high-end editorial feel."
Material texture
"Show the matte texture of the bottle clearly — I want the frosted surface quality to be the hero."
Multiple angles
"Show the bottle at a 3/4 angle so both the label and the cap profile are visible."
Quality signal words
"High-resolution, sharp edges, print-ready, vector-style, professional commercial photography"
Restraint instructions
"Keep it simple. Remove all decorative elements that are not essential to the identity."
Precision anchoring
"Change ONLY the colour of the icon — do not alter the typeface, layout, or proportions."
Comparison references
"It should look like it belongs in the same visual universe as Aesop, Le Labo, or Byredo."
We use cookies and similar technologies to keep your shopping cart, analyse site traffic, and personalise content. Under UK & EU law (GDPR / PECR), we need your consent for non-essential cookies. See our Privacy Policy for details.