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Size Relationships: These should not be arbitrary, you have to give them some thought. ​
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You can make the 2 objects of equal height as you can see in example 1 (width will hardly ever work btw, since it will make the icon way too large)
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You can make the icon larger. When you do this you still have to maintain a relationship that does not overwhelm the text since the text is always number 1 in the hierarchy. Again, when you do this always remember the golden rule that everything needs to be aligned - round icons (or things that are amorphous or very close to round) get aligned from the middle (see examples 2, 5, 6 and 7), straight icons get aligned from the top or the bottom.
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You can make the text larger in relation to the icon (see middle alternative in example 7). This has to be done quite carefully, since the text is already number one in the hierarchy and making it larger than the icon (again, we are talking about height not width) could very easily overwhelm the design, rendering the icon "invisible".
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Alignments: These are actually the most important element of any good graphic design products, not just logotypes. What to pay attention to is:
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Straight objects get aligned either from the top or the bottom
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Round objects get aligned from the middle.
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Everything gets aligned. Literally everything. Not just logos - everything! :-)
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​
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Weight Relationships: These can be
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Harmonies where the weight of the 2 objects is almost equal (see examples 1, 4 and 5 below) or
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Contrasts where the 2 objects have distinctly different weights. (See examples 2 and 6).
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Spacings: These should not be arbitrary.
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You can create tight clusters (see example 1, 3 and 4)
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or place the icon and the text at a distance​ which you should calculate in such a way that the two do not break apart too much but also don't stay close enough to form a cluster (see examples 2, 5 and 6)
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and, when needed, you can also emphasize the spacing of the 2 objects by using a separator (see example 7).
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Clarity: This is already a topic in one of the 6 short videos above when it comes to fonts. However, it isn't only the font your entire logotype, icon as well as font but also how you use contrasts, spacings, weights, alignments - everything should be clear and unambiguous.
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No ambiguity! What we dread above all else in graphic design (and all other design fields, including architecture) is ambiguity, which is the state where our eyes are not exactly sure of the attributes and the visual relationships of the things that they are looking at.
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No Color! The golden rule is no color on text - only black white and grey. Icons can eventually become colorized, however only after you have finalized your design in black and white since anything outside of black and white will conceal mistakes that you will only see in stark black and white.