What are Brand Guidelines?
Brand guidelines, also called a brand style guide, are basically an instruction manual and rule book on how to intercommunicate your brand.
Business brand guidelines help companies communicate their identity, what they do, and what they stand for. Essentially, it’s a ‘rulebook’ of your brand’s overall look and feel.
Here we will be examining more about brand guidelines and some helpful tips for how to make effective brand guidelines of your own.
Let’s get to it.
Brand guidelines completely cover a company’s brand identity, including its:
- Logos: complete logos, secondary logos, and icons
- Voice and tone: how the brand utilises language and emotion
- Color palette: primary and secondary colours
- Typography: font types, sizes, and spacing
- Other imagery: photos, pictures, and artwork
Although there is no one correct way to write brand guidelines, the elements included above are commonly included, and other elements can be added as needed depending on the specific brand’s wishes and needs.
Why is Branding Guidelines Essential?
By taking the time to build brand guidelines, companies can help to ensure that their brand image remains consistent, no matter where it appears. Brand guidelines can include things like a company’s logo usage, color palette, typography, and more. Having these guidelines in place helps to create a cohesive look for a company’s brand across all channels.
This will pay off significant time in the long run, as your company will generate the familiarity and dependability that open the doors to brand loyalty.
What is the Best way to use Brand Guidelines?
Effective brand guidelines are those that can be shared and understood easily by anyone involved in communicating your brand—both internally and externally.
That’s why it’s advisable that they should be concise, easy-to-read, and digitally accessible.
What is the Purpose of Brand Guidelines?
Brand guidelines ensure your brand is consistently communicated internally, and presented to your audience. By precisely adhering to brand guidelines, you can encourage a uniquely recognizable brand identity to stand out from the competition, and stay memorable in the minds of customers.
It is important that brand guidelines are shared and understood throughout an organization. Even one incorrectly utilised logo can hurt a brand’s reputation for quality and professionalism. Collating all the brand data in a brand book is a fine idea. This could include more in-depth details such as website templates, advertising and editorial guidelines, and guidance on social media branding etc
Tips on how to create Brand Guidelines
#1. Don’t be afraid to get specific
The more additional details, the better. If you’ve addressed this in your brand strategy, define specific scenarios and uses for distinct colors, fonts, and imagery.
#2. Brand your guidelines
The purpose of brand guidelines is to ensure that your brand is always portrayed in the same light, and the document should be a reflection of that.
Basically, it’s just another way to showcase the vibe of your brand.
By adding small touches that follow the guidelines you’re explaining, you can accomplish this.
#3. Name your primary color
Name your primary color if you want to further solidify your brand.
For example, Netflix uses “Netflix red” as its primary color, while HubSpot uses “HubSpot orange.” Spotify uses “Spotify green.”
This gives your brand an air of importance, while claiming the color as your own.
#4. Get professional help
It would be quite ironic if your brand guidelines looked like they were put together in a hurry.
If nobody on your crew has graphic design skills, consider hiring a professional branding agency in Dubai to nail down the most essential parts of your brand.
Your brand is a huge part of your business and investing in it early on is crucial for the future success of your company. It might feel like a lot to invest in at first, but trust us – it’s worth it.
