A change in logo is a bold move that announces to clients and prospects that you’re updating, moving forward or expanding. Whether you decide on a small set of changes that incorporate ideas from your existing logo or a complete overhaul, you only get one chance to roll out a new look — when it hits the public view, you can’t keep tweaking it.

So how do you know when it’s time? Here’s a humorous list of some of the top hallmarks of tired logos to help you get started if it’s time for a change. You should consider a logo refresh if:

• It was designed before the year 2000 and reminds you of a prior decade
• You designed it yourself
• A member of your family designed it (this includes your sister’s cousin’s nephew)
• It has a typeface illegible to anyone over 40
• It uses more than 3 fonts
• It contains either the font Times Roman or the kind of clipart you see on neighborhood fliers
• You can’t close your eyes and visualize it
• It so closely resembles a competitor that clients refer to you by their name
• You get a cease-and-desist letter from an older company that holds the trademark to that design
• When you type the name of your logo into Google, the #1 result is an escort service
• In contains any of the following: snow, a kitten, a baby seal or a rose

While most firms don’t fall into the danger areas listed above, we have seen some doozies. If you suspect you might need a logo overhaul, ask people — whom you can trust not to flatter you — what they think about your current design. If you don’t have design-wise people around you, we volunteer. Send us your logo and we’ll tell you straight up if we think it’s time for a change.