Most startups and small businesses do not know how to brand. They put random logos on T-shirts and business cards and then think of themselves as a brand.
However, branding is about the feeling that people bring to you. It’s about building a meaningful relationship with your audience.
Your potential customers will form an opinion about your brand in the first 3 seconds of the conversation. They are reviewing your brand logo, your design, and your content. The result will determine if they trust your business.
Why is Branding Important?
Entrust your brand to us
The brand that matters
Making your business proud
Why are brand guidelines important?
Think wisely of your brand identity as the personality of your company. That’s how the world recognizes you and starts trusting you. If you look at someone and see how they look and act all the time, you will not feel that you know who they are, and you certainly will not trust them.
Conflicts between your brands will confuse and alienate your customers. Branding in marketing is important because it helps your business communicate regularly across all teams and channels.
Logo guidelines
You know what color your logo should be, but do you know what it looks like in a different environment? This part of your brand styling guide makes sure your logo is used the way you want it. It also prevents errors – such as dragging, twisting, thickening, or rearranging – that can send the wrong message.
Include all approved versions of your logo, indicate when to use each one, and show visual examples to illustrate it.
Size: List the minimum size and appropriate proportions.
Space: If the logo needs a certain amount of white space around you, give clear instructions.
Colors: Show variations and when to use them.
Don’t: It can be just as important to say how you don’t want to use your logo.
Collect brand guide inspiration
You’ve heard the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words, right? Save and create references to your brand style guide that feel on-brand. It’s a great way to get people involved and make purchases.
What do other brands do that you like?
Which questions come up again and again? Keep an eye out for repeated comments. If you feel you are giving the same notes to your authors and designers, it may be helpful to include them in your style guide.
This will give you concrete examples to illustrate the shape of your brand.
You can use some of this material in the Imagery or Brand Voice section of your guide.
Image guidelines
When it’s your company, you have an instinct for which images and reflections are right for your brand. The image section in your style guide will guide everyone in the right direction without adding more approvals for you.
There are many different ways you can do this. You can even use some of the inspiration points you have collected to create your style guide!
The key components of brand identity
Mission and Vision
Write a mission statement about why your company exists and where you want your brand to go. They can be big or small, as long as they are right for your brand. Many advertising agencies start their branding projects with the “Is / Is Not” practice.
Target Audience
Explain who your customers are and why they need you. If you’ve done market research, add some insights that can help your team communicate more effectively with their customers. Here’s an in-depth guide to defining your target audience.
Personality
Make a list of 2-5 attributes that define your brand. This will set the tone for both writing and design. Are you sophisticated or weird? Classic or modern? Ask your team members for input and perspective.
Values
Set guidelines for company decisions and actions. Memorable values will make it easier for your team to stick to the brand. Are you sophisticated or weird? Classic or modern? Ask your team members for input and perspective.
Plan your brand evolution.
It’s important to note that SEO has implementation costs that affect ROI. Given the number of people involved in SEO, it costs more to implement, and it takes longer to get results. However, it ultimately achieves a much higher ROI due to its compounding profitability.
If you have an in-house SEO team, there are the costs of salaries, benefits, equipment, training, management, and the SEO technology stack. If you work with an SEO agency instead, you’ll pay a monthly fee and have a faster ramp-up period for productivity.
You are ready to create a brand styling guide
Once you start an SEO program and optimize your web pages, it can take months to see the impact and determine if your keyword and content strategy is working. Thus, testing and insight take time. It also creates opportunities to optimize landing pages based on real data in less time.
Typography and font guidelines
Another big part of branding design is the choice of fonts. Your brand needs will determine if one type of family will meet all of your needs or if you want to define multiple brand fonts. A good rule of thumb is to use a different font from the one in your logo, as this will help to make it stand out. An experienced designer can guide you through this process.
No matter how simple or complex your typography scheme is, make sure it is used correctly with clear instructions.