What are brand guidelines?
Also known as a brand style guide or cheat sheet, brand guidelines are a reference point for anyone to understand who you are, what you do, what you sound and look like.
They are a collection of the core elements that make up your brand including how you talk about yourselves and how you look, encompassing tone of voice, visual identity and application.
In short, they are the heartbeat of your visual and verbal identity.
Why do I need brand guidelines?
Brand guidelines help maintain consistency across channels and platforms, helping to make your organisation instantly recognisable.
Having consistent guidelines makes it quicker and easier for your team to generate content, and for new starters or external support to quickly get to grips with your visual and verbal identity and how to use it.
What should brand guidelines include?
Brand guidelines vary in scope significantly based on the size and purpose of your organisation. A micro-charity with a small website that produces flyers every few months will have seriously different requirements to an e-commerce focused B Corp, who’s brand has to work across a range of channels and audiences. There are key elements however that should form part of every brand toolkit.
- About you – Your brand guidelines are an expression of who you are as an organisation, and no document is complete without insight into what makes you tick. This can be a simple statement about your purpose and story, with more complex examples including tone of voice, positioning, and messaging assets.
- Logo – All permitted variations and usage guidance for your most recognisable asset. Can include guidance on clearspace around the logo, partner branding and examples of things not to do.
- Colour – The exact RBG, HEX and CMYK codes that form part of your visual identity. This can be as simple as 1-2 core colours to complex hierarchies with secondary colour palettes, sub brands and specific application guidance. You should also focus on what colours can be used together, to ensure sufficient colour contrast to meet accessibility standards.
- Typography – The fonts that you use to maintain consistency across your communications. Lighter brand guidelines might have a single heading and body font, while more complex brands typically use multiple styles and weights across several typefaces, with hierarchy and sizing guides to help create consistent information architecture.
- Graphic Devices and Imagery – Any custom icons or visual elements that add some personality to your brand should be listed here. It’s often also good to have image guidance, so that when commissioning or sourcing new imagery, there are good examples of content to focus on.
- Application – How your brand is used across a variety of channels. This can include posters, flyers, reports, social media profiles and templates, out of home (OOH) advertising through to your website and apparel design. The application section is often supported with pre-designed templates to help maintain consistency.
How often should I update my brand guidelines?
Your brand guidelines should be a living, breathing document, that you update regularly as you get to know your brand better, tweak your tone of voice or update your design templates. This gradual shift reduces the need for larger rebranding projects and ensures new starters or external partners have the latest tools, to apply your brand across platforms.
In summary
If you are looking for support in developing or expanding brand guidelines for your charity, B Corp or mission driven organisation, we’d be happy to help! Book a call with us today.
I'm a multi-disciplinary designer, with many years of experience designing graphics with impact and seamless user experiences. I started my career designing consumer products, but have since worked on a diverse range of projects from leading brand refresh projects for charities like Sculpt, Jamma and TUSP, sustainable and user-friendly website re-designs for CTRF, Climate Change Coaches and Mokoro to large internal communication projects for WWF and Oxford HR. I'm passionate about the use of design as a tool for positive social change, and with particular interest in projects tackling racial inequality and children’s social care. Recently I was appointed as a Trustee for the new charity Board Racial Diversity UK, working to improve representation within the UK charity sector.
