Western-themed Logo Design For Social Media Marketing Company

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT US:

I'm Dave - a veteran online marketing professional who is starting my own company. ThirstyPony.com will be the main company URL and I've already used the domain for years as an SEO blog - so there are some existing creatives a designer could look at for inspiration. Ideally I'll end up with a more professional (and less literal) logo which I'll be proud to use wherever appropriate.

HERE IS WHAT WE NEED:

Simply put - a logo. Maybe even a couple versions of the same basic graphic - one that works well horizontally on the website and one more confined to a square for avatars, etc. The logo will initially be used on the website http://www.thirstypony.com where an older (and very literal) logo version can be seen. I'd like the logo to be larger in terms of dimensions than the current one, but it doesn't have to take up the entire header - I'd like this to be designed with alternate applications in mind - business cards, email signatures, invoices, etc.

In keeping with the site's name, and because I am a big fan of Westerns, my initial thoughts as to a theme/spin for the design are as follows. This is a "brain dump", not a list of requirements. I am keeping a very open mind about what the final product may become.

- First off... literal interpretation or figurative interpretation? I am WIDE OPEN on this point.

- Western font?

- Horse/pony full body or body part?

- Horseshoe?

- Tin sheriff's badge?

- The color brown. You don't see it used much on the web and it's definitely in keeping with a Western theme. If you click through to the existing site/logo you'll notice it's being used in a few places and I like the effect.

- Hooves or hoof tracks?

- Bullet holes?

- The "Bullseye" is overused in the online marketing industry, so unless you think you've stumbled onto something great, probably steer clear of those.

- Any other iconic Western images might fit the bill: saloon doors, tumbleweeds, arrows, rifle, hats, etc.

OUR TARGET AUDIENCE IS:

Entrepreneurs and small business owners needing agency-level online marketing consulting services without agency-level prices. The entire finished experience will be very "web 2.0" in appearance - but due to the company name and it's small business targets I think room exists for a little fun with the logo design. It doesn't have to be super stuffy, formal or anything people have seen hundreds of times. My business model and experience sets me apart from the pack - so it's OK for the logo to do that too.

WE LIKE THESE EXAMPLES:

Professional without being "linear". Has some life to it: http://www.biz-logo.com/examples/053a.sh...

I like the color schemes on these ones:

http://www.biz-logo.com/examples/025a.sh...

http://www.biz-logo.com/pre-designed-2/a...

Western/Animal-themed logos I can tolerate:

http://www.biz-logo.com/pre-designed-2/a...

http://logopond.com/gallery/detail/10253...

Hope these are helpful. Again at this point I'm very open minded.

WE ABSOLUTELY MUST HAVE THIS IN OUR PIECE:

I don't want to put any limitations on this endeavor. I've already described what I think I want, but I'd like people to feel free to provide alternatives if they come up with something they feel strongly about.

Hope y'all have fun with this one.

Dave