Do you have a company logo? If so, is it in vector format? Is it on a business card or a website? If you already have your art work digitized then that will save you a step, but has this artwork been tested with a sample and sew out? Many digitizers do things differently so it is our suggestion that you get your digitizing done at the same place you get your embroidery done. This will ensure a great finished product without any complications. The third option here is to use a "stock design". This does not mean any old image you find on the Internet or clip art found in many pieces of software available for web design or print work. These designs are pretested and sewn out to ensure their compatibility with digitizing software and embroidery digitizing machines.
Artwork that is to complicated or with small lettering will simply not turn out well in an digitizing embroidery designs. This should be thought of when working with a logo anyways. What you are trying to accomplish is logo recognition. You really don't need to have all the information about your company within a logo. Also text that is smaller then 1/4 inch in height will not look good at all in your finished product. Bottom line is artwork that may look good on a computer screen may not look as good in the sewn format.
The second step is to determine what type of apparel this embroidery work will be applied to. By selecting your apparel and logo you will be starting your corporate identity, so it is of the utmost importance to begin this on the right foot.
The next step will be taking your logo and your apparel to your embroiderer Depending on who you are using these two steps may be intertwined within the process. The next big step is to get a sample sew out if this is a first time logo. Most all embroiderers will provide a sample to cover themselves as well as the customer. This sample can be done on a scrap piece of material or on an actual piece of apparel. If this will be done on the actual apparel please remember to provide one extra for this purpose. There will more then likely be many sew outs while the digitizer is attempting to make your logo work. The final one will be the one needed to be approved.
Once your sew out is approved the job can begin production. Production can take days to weeks depending on the size of the order and the complexity of the logo. Please allow adequate time to allow for a quality product.