Brand guidelines, sometimes referred to as brand identity guidelines, are a document that you can use to help identify, build, and grow your brand. Your new brand guidelines document can then be used both internally and externally to ensure consistency and continuity with your brand’s visual identity and underpinning strategy.
In this blog, we will unpack the multiple facets of a successful style-guide and your brand’s visual cues. While there can be many more ways to standardize the way your organization identifies and operates, these are some of the fundamental tenets of the process.
Your visual identity comprises your logo, imagery, typography, colors, and creative design. It’s easy enough to list them out, but how do you get to the heart of how these elements communicate to your customers who you are, what you stand for, and why they should be loyal to you?
A truly effective visual identity needs to do more than just make you “look good”. Every asset should play a part in sending a unified message about your organization. After all, visuals are powerful, capable of evoking emotion and meaning on a fundamental level. Choosing a good brand image is pivotal to sending the right message.
Let’s start with the basics; color, logo, and font.
Color: Your color palette needs to fit what you are trying to convey. Some of this can be figured out through analyzing your industry’s field. For instance, if you are promoting a luxury product, you may notice a heavy usage of blacks, golds, and silvers. Another example could be if you have a financial product, you may want to incorporate greens and golds.
Logo: Your logo needs to convey what you do and have imagery that sticks into the minds of the people who see it. A logo can be a combination of your color palette, type, and design. Or a logo can be a one dimensional symbol of what your company resonates with.
Font: Beyond what the words say, the scale, font, and arrangement of your text impact your visual identity. A great example of how this can confuse the context of your brand is a funeral home that uses a playful, hot pink, comic font… clearly potential customers who are grieving will be deterred by how jovial they identify. Even the best-known brands out there—such as Facebook and Apple—tend to keep it simple.
While there’s no one-size-fits-all for what a visual identity should look like, all of these assets should serve the same purposes:
- Create an emotional link with customers.
- Inform customers about the purpose of the brand.
- Highlight the services/ products offered.
- Convey the personality of the company.
- Unify the marketing and branding assets of the organization.
The above covered the basics of a visual identity, and how to document it within your brand guidelines. More comprehensive brand guidelines include all of the above, and something called brand persona. We have covered the topic of brand persona in a previous blog.
Without rehashing that post, the primary doctrine of a brand guideline are:
- Audience Personas
- Competitor Research
- Brand Positioning
- Tone of Voice
- Company Mission
No matter how big or small your brand, or how robust your brand guidelines, maintaining a status quo to ensure company alignment is a must-have for successful marketing. If you don’t fancy yourself a designer, or want to bounce your brand ideas off the pros, My Social Biz is here to help.
Before you use budget on bells and whistles, your brand identity needs to come first. Book your complimentary consultation with our specialists today to optimize the way you position yourself and stand out from the crowd. All inquiries can be directed to olivia@mysocialbiz.net.