The Importance of Brand Guidelines for Businesses
Brand guidelines help marketers create products that are unique and recognizable to consumers. The same rules apply to brands in eCommerce as they do to products, so a brand must be able to stand out to make sales.
Brand guidelines can be tricky. While they provide the foundation for developing your brand identity, it can often take time to determine what makes a brand different from others. After all, what makes a brand unique is its personality—which can be challenging to figure out if you aren’t familiar with other brands. If your business doesn’t have an established brand identity, it can be difficult to determine what makes your brand different from others. This is especially true if you’re a startup looking to differentiate yourself from your competition. So how do you develop a strong brand identity without being overwhelmed by the process? We’ll discuss three common mistakes businesses make regarding brand identity and how to avoid them.
When it comes to running a business, the success of your brand is essential. Everything you do affects your brand, from your business type to the products and services you offer.
As a business owner, you must understand what your brand stands for and what makes it different from other businesses. This is where brand guidelines come into play. When you know what your brand stands for, you can set goals and objectives for your business that are aligned with your brand.
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of brand guidelines and how they can help your business. We’ll examine why they’re so important and how to create them.
What are brand guidelines?
There is no one standard. Brands have different needs and goals, meaning they work with different strategies to achieve them.
Branding guidelines vary from brand to brand but generally fall into three categories:
1. Brand guidelines for public consumption. These tend to be reasonably straightforward — often focused on the company logo, tagline, or product description — and are intended to make the brand easy to recognize.
2. Brand guidelines for internal communication. These focus on the product, service, or customer experience. They usually include detailed information on the product, service, and user.
3. Brand guidelines for design. These focus on the brand’s aesthetics and how they should look in print and online.
In other words, these three types of guidelines will differ. When deciding which guidelines your brand needs, consider how your brand fits into the world.
What’s included in brand guidelines?
Brand guidelines are an essential part of your marketing strategy. They won’t communicate your message effectively if they’re too strict or vague. They need to reflect the image of your company in a manner that your customers will understand.
For example, a clothing company may want to set guidelines for logos and slogans similar to or copy other companies’ designs. For example, if you use the same logo as Nike, Adidas, or any other major sporting brand, you risk being perceived as a copycat trying to get a piece of the action.
Similarly, your branding guidelines must communicate your company’s values and vision in a way that makes sure your customers understand. Here are some tips to ensure that you’re setting up your branding guidelines correctly:
- Make them easy to find. Create a place on your website where customers can view your guidelines.
- Include a link to your guidelines page. If you’re selling a product online, put the link to your branding guidelines page in the description box under the product name.
- Use bullet points to explain the key points in your guidelines.
- Include a picture of the product or service you’re offering. Show your customers what they’ll receive from your business.
- Keep the guidelines concise, at most five or six pages.
- Explain why you’re choosing your logo or slogan. Why did you choose it, and how will it affect your business?
- Provide your guidelines to employees as soon as they join your team. They’re a valuable tool for new hires and a reminder of your policies.
Why do you need brand guidelines?
Brand guidelines can be tricky. Some companies only need one set of brand guidelines for their entire company. Others have hundreds of brands with dozens of products each.
But what’s the difference between the two situations? In the first case, having brand guidelines across the entire company enables consistent messaging and brand consistency. It also lets people quickly understand how the brand is perceived and know if the company’s messaging is consistent with that perception.
In the second case, brand guidelines are necessary for each product or service within the company, as they represent the branding strategy for that specific brand. In this case, people need to follow the guidelines for each product. It’s a good idea to provide the guidelines in a central place, so everyone knows them.
Brand Consistency
Brands with long-term reputations for creating quality products benefit from consistency, which improves the brand experience for consumers. Consumers know what to expect from a brand because it delivers the same product consistently over time.
In addition to delivering a consistent product, brands with brand guidelines can protect their name, reputation, and brand equity. To maintain brand consistency, brand guidelines must include a set of principles that guide the creation of all products under that brand, including packaging, advertising, packaging content, and even product design.
Consistency within the product itself is also critical to ensuring brand equity. While brand guidelines may dictate the design of a product or its packaging, you should not use them to dictate product function or content. This is because different consumers will respond differently to different products. For example, if you sell a product that helps consumers remove makeup, you must expect consumers to respond differently to a product that helps them apply makeup.
Sets Standards and Rules
One option for creating branding guidelines is to use standardized guidelines. This means you’ll develop a set of rules that apply to every element of your brand.
For example, if you’re developing a website, you might create a section called “Website Brand Guidelines.” In that section, you can include the following:
- The size of fonts and logos.
- The number of pages per article.
- The length of your content.
- Other elements.
This way, you’re able to ensure consistency across the entire website.
Specific Guidelines
Another option for creating guidelines is to create a document that outlines specific elements.
In some cases, you’ll want to create guidelines covering the same areas as the comprehensive ones. However, create a separate document outlining different brand elements.
For example, you might create a branding guideline focusing on your unique selling proposition and your brand’s promise. You’ll also want to create a section discussing your brand’s colour palette and logo.
The goal here is to give you a more detailed look at the specifics of your brand. For example, focus on the font you’ll use for your logo and the colour of the text inside it.
Provides Tools
The truth is that there are brands with great products and services that need brand guidelines. And some brands with solid guidelines need better products or services. The important thing is that a brand guideline is a helpful tool. A great brand guideline can help companies with marketing strategy, visual communication, and product development.
Brand guidelines are like a road map. They show the company and its stakeholders how to navigate and communicate its products and services. They define the company’s vision and values, and they help to clarify the company’s position and direction in the marketplace.
Brand guidelines also help with product design and development. They are a framework for designers to use to develop products consistent with the brand. They can also guide decisions on visual content, packaging, and other branding elements.
A brand guideline isn’t a set of rules. It’s a living document that is continuously updated and revised. It reflects what the company stands for and wants its customers to know.
How to create brand guidelines
Brand guidelines help to make the brand image of the company consistent. It gives a complete view of the company. It helps to make the brand identity and logo more consistent. A brand is more than just a logo or slogan. The entire look and feel of the company are reflected in its products and services.
It is imperative to understand the brand guidelines and create good brand guidelines. Otherwise, it will be difficult for you to maintain consistency.
Let us check how to create brand guidelines:
1. Identify the core values
A brand has core values that are essential to its success. The core values are the basis of a brand. These values are the basis of brand differentiation. Every company wants to create a unique identity that will make its products and services stand apart from the competition.
Your brand guidelines should have the same core values as your company. For example, if the company is based on family values, the brand guidelines should have the same values.
2. Select the font type
Once you have the core values, you should select the font type. The font type defines the overall look and feel of the brand. You can use a combination of fonts, colours, and designs to make brand guidelines.
3. Include the logos
Include the company logo and the brand identity in the brand guidelines. A brand identity is the entire look and feel of the company. It includes the color, the font, the shape of the logo, and the overall feel.
4. Include the product images
Include the images of the products and services in the brand guidelines. These images give a complete picture of the products and services.
5. Include the design elements
Include the design elements in the brand guidelines. Design elements include the images, the shapes, and the colors used to create a brand guideline.
6. Include the photography
Include the images of the products and services in the brand guidelines. These images give a complete picture of the products and services.
7. Include the typography
Include the text in the brand guidelines. Typography includes the use of colors, size, and font.
These were the steps to follow in creating brand guidelines. You must follow all these steps to make the brand guidelines more consistent.
Wrapping Up
Today, we live in a world where businesses must compete for customers. This means they must ensure that their products and services are practical and memorable.
This is where brand guidelines come in. When it comes to online businesses, a brand guideline can be an excellent asset to your online business.
Every business needs to have a brand guideline. It is a document that contains information about your company. It can contain the logo, the mission statement, the core values of your business and a lot more.
