Brand Guidelines

You've got your brand and image together and have a very comfortable house style that is working. The only problem is the designers! Designers (ourselves included) are notorious for trying to push the boundaries of a house style. And so they should, after all, if we didn't then you would end up with boring, seen-it-before stuff. The only problem is you'll have a number of designers across web, print and brand projects (have we mentioned that we cover all of those aspects?). All of those designers will push and pull that image into the direction they want to see it go. The end result is fragmented communications that don't flow.

The answer is brand guidelines or a brand bible or Graphic Design Standards. They cover all aspects of the brand to the finest detail and if you're in a retail environment for example, can even incorporate what loo roll holder all of your outlets will have. Is that kind of detail really important? Well yes quite frankly, it is.

A solid set of brand guidelines should allow anybody to efficiently obtain relevant instructions on how to apply the brand across any marketing communication material whilst also providing a degree of creative freedom. Do’s and don’ts are a waste of space, if a designer even thinks of stretching or distorting a logo in any way they're a lost cause!

Brand guidelines supplied by Creative Central typically contain the following:

Logo specification

Specifying such things as exclusion areas, how to use clear space, will result in a high-quality definition
with legibility across all applications.

 

Logo application

Specifying the primary colours, black and white versions, single colour, application on a photographic
background etc.

 

Colour palettes

Colour can be a huge asset. Brands should not be afraid to use colour but neither should they
be slap-dash with its application. Pantone, CMYK, RGB and web colours will be specified.

 

Typography

To bring communication to life, the style of typography sets the tone of the brand.
Titles, headings, body copy etc. will be specified.

 

Photography

Photography can be one of the most powerful ways of illustrating a brand.
It should always be of a high quality – if your pictures don’t look good, you don’t look good.

 

Implementations

The brand guidelines end with a series of example implementations that demonstrate how a competent
graphic designer or marketer can apply the guidelines across a wide range of communication materials.

Start your Brand design project. Request a free Estimate

Whether you are defending your current position, redefining your brand or launching a new one, the branding dialog can never begin too soon. Just fill in our on-line quote request form here. We will send you a comprehensive proposal and quote outlining our recommended options when branding or re-branding your business.