Brand Guidelines – otherwise known as corporate identity manuals, identity style guides or standards. Whatever you might call them, they’re an essential element of any branding project – large or small.
What Are They?
Essentially, they’re a document that outlines all the important elements that make up a brand and how they should be used for best effect. These elements might include:
• The logo – the guidelines will document the logo artwork that’s available and when to use each file. There might be some do’s and don’ts.
• Recommended fonts – not just the font used in your logo but also other fonts that could be used for branded documents or websites
• The tone of voice – this helps those who aren’t necessarily professional copy writers to write text that’s inkeeping with the brand.
• The corporate colours – this will give the colour values (RGB, CMYK, PMS etc) that can be used in branded literature. Sticking to a fixed pallet helps to maintain a consistent image.
• The brand values – the core values that form the foundation of the brand. This might include a mission statement
• Examples of the brand in use – mockups of catalogues, adverts, websites etc that can be used as a guide
• Other elements from the ‘brand toolbox’ – could be shapes, illustrations, images etc.
Do I Really Need All That?
Quite possibly not. The extent of your brand guidelines will depend very much on the size and type of your business, the budget you’ve put aside for your branding project and your plans for the future.
What Sort of Guidelines Document Do I Need?
1. The Essentials (1-2 pages)
Suitable for low-medium budget projects where the focus is on the logo rather than an in-depth brand structure.
• Your logo – any colour/size variations available and when these should be used; the white space that should be left around your logo; basic hints and tips
• Your corporate colours – at the very least this should tell you exactly what colours are used in your logo. It should provide a swatch of each with Pantone references, CMYK and RGB or hexadecimal values.
• Your typeface – this should at least recommend a typeface for everyday use. Sometimes this will match the typeface used in your logo, but not always.
• Your files – an explanation of the types of logo files that have been supplied and what each is for.
Here’s an example of a basic brand guidelines sheet:
2. Intermediate (5-10 pages)
Suitable for higher investment projects where the budget allows for a broader scope of work. They should explain the thinking behind the brand and how this is represented in the logo and other design elements. They should give enough information for the company to confidently generate their own branded materials using the elements provided.
All the elements mentioned in the Essentials list (above), plus:
• Your brand values – at least a few words or phrases, or a mission statement to put the brand into context
• Examples – visual examples of the logo, colours and typeface etc in use in some everyday items
• Your corporate tone of voice – an indication as to how your written communications should be worded in order to fit in with the brand as a whole.
Plus all sorts of other elements specific to the brand in questions – anything that a marketing team, freelance designer or another third party might need to produce on-brand work.
Here’s an example of an extended guidelines booklet
3. Advanced (20+ pages)
This is the big one. Generally speaking only necessary for large organisations who have made a huge investment in their brand. This level of document would be intended for internal use and also supplied to any 3rd parties who might be responsible for handling the brand to ensure ultimate consistency. It will cover every aspect of the brand, giving detailed instructions as to how it should be treated in a wide range of circumstances and could easily run to more than 50 pages.
Here are some links to examples of advanced guidelines:
(All found via www.logodesignlove.com)
There are some truly stunning identity guidelines out there – if anyone has any links or examples they’d like to share please leave a comment – I’d love to see them.
